Kate is in the Sunday Telegraph - Healthy Relationship with Food
It was an absolute honour to be invited to write for the Telegraph and recently be featured in the Sunday Telegraph about my healthy relationship with food , how I attribute that to my upbringing and how I am passing on the same principles to our own children .
This article was following on from recent research which suggests that despite Britain being engulfed by childhood obesity, attempts to lose weight among all children, even those of a healthy weight, are now outpacing rising weight gain levels.
I have always had a healthy relationship with food and I like to eat a balanced diet and have the approach of ‘everything in moderation.’ As a child my Mum provided healthy, balanced and varied meals. We ate together as a family and used our meal times as a time to catch up and have good chats.
Nowadays people have such busy lives and it can be challenging to eat together as a family and having time to prepare home cooked meals and snacks can be difficult. As a result some children can have a less varied and balanced diet.
My Mum never denied us of anything but always encouraged us to choose the healthier options. We would be encouraged to eat our meals, though never forced to but we knew if we didn’t finish our dinner we wouldn’t get fruit and yoghurt for dessert. I maintain the same principles with my children.
My children love cooking and we grow some of our own fruit and vegetables together so they have a keen interest in food and where it comes from. I try to educate them about healthy foods and how eating a balanced diet can help them with their sports, their brain development and their growth.
In recent years I have focused more on how my nutrition can help with my sports. I need to ensure I eat the right foods to fuel my body to enable me to perform with my running and cycling.
Here’s some top tips from the article to help families establish a healthy relationship with food:
Try and eat together as a family and see it as a social time to enjoy
Think about everything in moderation - try not to forbid foods
Try and stick to a regular routine of eating
Avoid judgmental language around food - talk about healthier options rather than good, bad or fattening foods.
Try and give children some choice in their food, either by letting them be in charge of the menu once a week or giving them two options for dinner and they choose one.
Don’t force children to finish food. Research has shown that when children are forced to eat when they are full the receptors telling them they are full stop working which can lead to overeating later in life. I take the approach of if they say are full and they have eaten what I would consider enough to fill them up then that is acceptable. If, however they have only eaten a small amount, they don’t have to eat anymore but they won’t get any fruit or yoghurt for dessert.
Try and encourage an interest in all areas of food such as food shopping, cooking and self-serving.