How can I be a good role model for my child in regard to eating habits?

Improve your own eating habits and your child’s will follow. Eat healthier and your child will be more likely to do so as well.

Remain positive: You can help your child live a happy, healthy life!

Children learn by watching what you do – and what you say.  If both actions are not in line – then this can create confusion for your children.  We have all had those days of just wanting junk food – what distinguishes a good role model from a poor one is the choices we make on a daily basis.  Consistently giving in to the apple pie versus the nutritious apple, sends the wrong message to your children. Teaching your child how to think about and live with food is the key to their healthy future and successful relationship with food.  Here are a few tips that can help both you, and them, to learn how to not let food rule your lives:

-  Present moment awareness – have enough awareness that when the munchies strike, you should look to more nutritious choices or simply negate the feelings by engaging yourself in another activity because you know what it takes to lose the calories.
-  Replace a poor behavior with a positive behavior – after you stop yourself from eating the apple pie, do some pushups or squats to remind yourself what it would take to get rid of those calories.
-  Make better calorie choices in front of your children and let them make good calorie choices for themselves.  Give them the opportunity to order the apple slices over the fries and reinforce their healthy choices when they do.
-  Be prepared – have foods around that are good calorie choices.  Let’s face it, no one in the house really needs cookies and cakes around.  Apples and carrots win every time in terms of healthiness!
-  Cut everything in half – our portion distortion is getting out of control!  We are eating way too much food.  When you are eating out, cut your meal in half and take the rest home for later.  You may also want to start using smaller plates at home as well.
-  Don’t forget that liquids have calories too – this is especially true when it comes to kids and juice.  Yes, juice is good for them, but it has a lot of calories so watch just how much juice they have in a day. 

Being a good role model for your kids means you must “model” the behaviors you want to instill.  Teach them and show them how to make healthy, nutritious food choices which will set them up for a healthier future. Diet and exercise are the keys to having a long, healthy life – aren’t your kids worth adding these few tips into your diet so they can see how healthy people interact with food?

Definitely set a good example, but also limit how much junk food that you buy. If you don't have it in the house, then you can't eat it. Try to teach yourself moderation and they will hopefully follow. Also, exercise together-take a walk or a bike ride-if you keep them active, they will develop a healthy lifestyle.