HEALTH & WELLBEING FINDING THE BALANCE


As parents we hear a lot about food and setting up good food habits for our children. There is more information than ever about nutrition, healthy eating and awareness of positive relationships with food. But all that information can be a little bit overwhelming.


Registered dietitian and local mum, Laura Clark, gives us her down to earth advice for finding the balance with food.


When it comes to feeding my children, I know how important it is to find the balance between healthy and convenient. We all want our kids to be healthy but we have to respect the stresses that we work under. Here are a few general principles that I try to work into family life.


wholemeal with banana and honey or peanut butter.


Serve vegetables Eat


breakfast Research tells us that people who eat breakfast tend to have healthier habits generally. So make it a habit for the family. Avoid any cereals marketed at children as they generally have high sugar contents. Look for something with a good fibre content, Weetabix or Shreddies or Crunchy Bran even if you have to mix a few to suit everyone. If you prefer toast, try


with every meal Having vegetables on the plate with every meal means that they’re seen as the norm. Don’t get hung up on whether they are all eaten. As parents we can only take responsibility for what we serve, not how much they eat. We don’t want to make dinner a battleground.


Count your colours The greater the spread of colours, the


broader the range of nutrients. That doesn’t mean there’s not a


place for beige but when serving more processed


foods I try to keep it to one on the plate at a time. For example, breaded chicken with potatoes or chips with salmon! And there’s always veg (there I go again)!


Fibre has been forgotten Add pulses to your meals. Try adding a few kidney beans to your spaghetti Bolognese or serve some chickpeas with a fruity chicken curry.


The S word Sugar is all about context and portion size. My kids see the chocolate coated cereal in the supermarket and pester me to have it. I ask them if they prefer to have their sugar as cereal or if they prefer a biscuit later in the day. They choose the biscuit.


I serve sweet treats in egg cups or cupcake cases. This satisfies little tummies and tells them that this is the correct portion size for them.


Laura works as a freelance dietitian. She works with private clients, runs a variety of courses including wellness seminars and weaning courses, writes the LEC Nutrition blog as well as appearing in the media. Laura lives locally with her husband and two children. You can find out more about Laura at www.lecnutrition.co.uk


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