Learning Healthy Habits From Our Children

Written by Michelle May M.D.


There are many important things that we need to teach children as they grow—but they have many natural behaviors that we shouldn’t try to change. In fact, we could learn a few things from kids! Here are some important lessons:

Eat when you are hungry. Fromrepparttar time they are born, babies know when and how much they need to eat—and they cry to let us know too! As they grow, this important instinct can be un-learned. Byrepparttar 114140 time they are adults, they may have learned to eat for many other reasons besides hunger—mealtimes, tempting food, stress, anger, boredom, and countless other triggers. By recognizingrepparttar 114141 difference between needing to eat and wanting to eat, adults can re-learn when and how much to eat too.

Stop eating when you are full. An infant will turn their head away when they have had enough to eat, and a toddler will throw a plate of food onrepparttar 114142 floor when they are done. But as adults, we clean our plates because “there are starving children” somewhere—or just because something tastes good. I am not suggesting that we start throwing our plates onrepparttar 114143 floor again, but we need to remember that food is abundant in our society so there is no need to eat it all now.

Being hungry makes you grouchy. Being hungry, tired, or frustrated make children—and adults—crabby! Starving yourself because you are too busy to eat or because you are trying to lose weight usually backfires.

Snacks are good. Kids naturally prefer to eat smaller meals with snacks in between whenever they get hungry. That pattern of eating keeps their energy level and metabolism stoked all day. Adults who need to fire up their metabolism should try this too.

Play with your food. Most kids love to examine, smell, and touch their food. Since eating is a total sensory experience, they getrepparttar 114144 most from every morsel. This childlike approach will help you eat less food while enjoying it more. You’ll appreciaterepparttar 114145 aroma, appearance, and flavors more if you aren’t driving, watching T.V., or standing inrepparttar 114146 kitchen!

All foods fit. Children are born with a natural preference for sweet and higher fat flavors. Though parents sometimes worry, these “fun” foods can be part of a healthy diet. In fact, overly restrictive food rules usually lead to rebellious eating anyway—just think aboutrepparttar 114147 last time you weren’t “allowed” to eat something on a diet! Children and adults both eat healthier when they learn to enjoy these less nutritious foods in moderation.

Be a picky eater. Kids won’t easily eat something they don’t like. Think of how much less food you would eat if you didn’t settle for food that tasted “so-so.”

You can learn to like new foods. Healthy eating is an acquired taste. Good nutrition is essential, so providing a variety of appealing, healthful foods will benefitrepparttar 114148 whole family. In our house, we have a two-bite rule. Everyone tastes two bites of everything; if they still don’t like it, they don’t have to eat it—but they have to try it againrepparttar 114149 next time we have it. Since that is “The Rule,” there are no battles atrepparttar 114150 table andrepparttar 114151 kids often surprise themselves by liking something they thought they wouldn’t. (And we never say “I told you so!”)

What You Need to Know to lose weight without dieting

Written by Michelle May M.D.


If your commitment to eat right, exercise, and lose weight always seems to lose its steam, you are not alone! Weight problems are not just about what you are eating, but why you are eating inrepparttar first place.

To see what I mean, ask yourself these questions. Do you think about food and eating more than you think you should? Do you feel guilty when you eat certain foods? Do you have trouble passing up tempting food even if you aren’t hungry? Do you often eat when you are bored, stressed, lonely, or angry? Do you eat differently in private than you do in public? Do you fluctuate between dieting and eating too much?

If you answered yes to most of these questions, you have probably discovered that dieting hasn’t really solvedrepparttar 114139 problem. To help you understand why, lets take a look at three different eating styles: Over Eating, Restrictive Eating, and Instinctive Eating. In “Over Eating” people eat because it is mealtime or because something looks good - whether they are hungry or not. They may also eat to distract themselves or cope with stress and emotions. They may reward, comfort, or entertain themselves with food. Their weight tends to go up and down depending on whether they are off or on their diet.

In “Restrictive Eating,” a person controls his or her weight by dieting. They decide when, what, and how much to eat based onrepparttar 114140 rules ofrepparttar 114141 latest diet they are following. Since diet rules are always changing, they sometimes feel confused about what they should eat. They think of food as either “good” or “bad”—and they think of themselves as good or bad, depending on what they ate.

Now think about someone who doesn’t struggle with his or her weight. If you are having trouble thinking of someone like that, think of a baby or a young child. I call this “Instinctive Eating.” These people just seem to know when, what, and how much food they need. When their body needs fuel, they get hungry, triggering an urge to eat. They simply stop eating when their hunger is satisfied. Most of them really like to eat and seem to be able to eat whatever they want. However they will turn down even delicious food if they aren’t hungry.

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