By teaching your children healthy eating habits, you can keep them at
a healthy weight. Also, the eating habits your children pick up when
they are young will help them maintain a healthy lifestyle when they
are adults.

One of the most important approaches to eating is cutting down on fat
intake: Simple ways to accomplish this include eating low-fat or
nonfat dairy products, poultry without skin and lean meats, and
low-fat or fat-free breads and cereals.

If you are unsure about how to select and prepare a variety of foods
for your family, consult a doctor or registered dietitian for
nutrition counseling.

It is important that you do not place your overweight child(ren) on
a restrictive diet. Children should never be placed on a restrictive
diet to lose weight, unless a doctor supervises one for medical
reasons.

Other approaches parents can take to maintaining healthy eating
habits in their children include:

Guide your family's choices rather than dictate foods. Make a wide
variety of healthful foods available in the house. This practice
will help your children learn how to make healthy food choices.
Encourage your children to eat slowly. A child can detect hunger and
fullness better when eating slowly.

Eat meals together as a family as often as possible. Try to make
mealtimes pleasant with conversation and sharing, not a time for
scolding or arguing. If mealtimes are unpleasant, children may try to
eat faster to leave the table as soon as possible. They then may learn
to associate eating with stress.

Involve your children in food shopping and preparing meals. These
activities will give you hints about your children's food preferences,
can give you an opportunity to teach your children about nutrition,
and provide your kids with a feeling of accomplishment. In addition,
children may be more willing to eat or try foods that they help
prepare.

Plan for snacks. Continuous snacking may lead to overeating, but
snacks that are planned at specific times during the day can be part
of a nutritious diet, without spoiling a child's appetite at meal
times. You should make snacks as nutritious as possible, without
depriving your children of occasional chips or cookies, especially
at parties or other social events.
Discourage eating meals or snacks while watching TV. Try to eat only
in designated areas of your home, such as the dining room or kitchen.
Eating in front of the TV may make it difficult to pay attention to
feelings of fullness, and may lead to overeating.
Try not to use food to punish or reward your children. Withholding
food as a punishment may lead children to worry that they will not
get enough food. For example, sending children to bed without any
dinner may cause them to worry that they will go hungry. As a result,
children may try to eat whenever they get a chance. Similarly, when
foods, such as sweets, are used as a reward, children may assume that
these foods are better or more valuable than other foods. For example,
telling children that they will get dessert if they eat all of their
vegetables sends the wrong message about vegetables.

Make sure your children's meals outside the home are balanced. Find
out more about their school lunch program, or pack their lunch to
include a variety of foods. Also, select healthier items when dining
at restaurants.