As parents, it’s our job to ensure our family’s health doesn’t decline. Chances are, you’ve heard of “you are what you eat,” which can hold a lot of truth. You’re not going to want to eat junk because if you do, you will feel like junk. It can be challenging to get families to eat healthier; this is even more apparent if you have kids.
Kids are usually attracted to sugary foods, sometimes even over-the-top greasy foods high in sodium. While these are fine in moderation, you will have to get the whole family to eat healthily. However, if you push it on them, you’ll find that this only creates more challenges! So, here is everything you need to know about sneaking those healthy foods into your family’s diet.
Eat Breakfast Like Royalty
You know those days when you wake up late, don’t have time to cook breakfast, and then frantically grab something on the go? What about the rest of your family? Avoid this scenario by starting your day right with a healthy breakfast. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day! Many people take their morning meals for granted, but it’s not until they start skipping meals that they realize how important breakfast is.
Many people start their days with a coffee or other less-than-healthy drink. But if you can get your family involved in making a healthy breakfast at home, you will be able to avoid the ills associated with fast food, sugary cereals, and caffeine.
Don’t Toss Those Leftovers
One easy way to make your food healthier is to cook more and have leftovers to use. There’s no need to throw away those leftovers if you can use them for another meal. Besides, tossing them is wasteful (and bad for the environment). The next time you cook a big pot of pasta, try making a large batch of sauce that you can freeze for later meals.
If you plan on having beef for dinner, roast the meat bones with vegetables after making a big batch of broth. When you’re ready to eat, toss the leftover veggies into the pot and let them simmer overnight with the beef bones and your favorite spices. This will give you an extra flavorful dish without adding any additional fat or salt.
Utilize Healthy Alternatives
Why use heavy cream when you could use Greek yogurt? Why eat white bread when you could eat brown bread instead? These are just a few examples of healthy alternatives you could consider. Sometimes, these can entirely impact the flavor or consistency, such as using avocado instead of butter for brownies. In general, these healthy alternatives can make your food taste wonderful, which you should take advantage of.
Drink Your Water
The key is to drink your water. Encourage a healthy water intake by making it tasty! Many kids are just not fans of drinking water; the same goes for adults. It’s more because it doesn’t have any flavor to it. However, you can add flavoring packets such as Crystal Light to make it taste better. It’s low in sugar, sometimes even no sugar, and it keeps the family completely hydrated.
Don’t Be Afraid to Spice Things Up
Adapting your dishes is the first key to getting the family to eat healthier. The more interesting the dish, the more likely it will be eaten. For example, add a few dashes of red pepper flakes or cayenne to chicken noodle soup. Why not fill it with spices such as coconut shrimp sauce? This will make your family think they are eating a bowl of comfort food, but in reality, they are incorporating some healthy vegetables into their dinner.
You can also use spices to add flavor without adding fat and calories. Consider using herbs such as oregano or basil instead of salt when cooking your favorite pasta dishes. You’ll still get that savory taste you love without consuming the extra calories and sodium in salt.
Go for Color When It Comes to Dinner
Have you ever heard the term “eating a rainbow”? Well, not only is the food healthy, but the presentation is great too! One great way to make food healthier is to opt for different colors. When you get rid of the red and yellow foods and go for a more colorful dinner, you can help your family eat healthier. This means having salmon instead of red meat, white chocolate instead of brownies, and avocado ice cream instead of ice cream in any other color.
Experiment and find out what works for your family. We bet you’ll thank us for these tips!
