Healthy Kids: What Habits to Teach Early On
Teaching your children healthy habits at an early age leads to them feeling good, both mentally and physically. One of the best ways to ensure a child develops healthy habits is by parents modeling appropriate behaviors each day. Simply telling your child to act a certain way while you act the opposite, sends a confusing message that ultimately leads to failure.
Daily Physical Activity
Get into the habit of taking youngsters outside each day for a brisk walk to burn calories and strengthen muscles. Many children today spend the majority of their time watching television, or playing on the computer rather than getting physical activity. By spending 20 minutes playing outside, your child increases their lung capacity through aerobic activity. When it rains or snows, take time to exercise indoors while listening to music or watching a DVD.
Eat Fresh Produce
Today pediatricians are already diagnosing toddlers with obesity due to poor dietary habits. Entire families may live on fast-food meals with huge cheeseburgers, greasy french fries, and supersized soft drinks filled with sugar. Many children do not eat any vegetables other than pickles because none are served in their home. Begin to prepare meals at home with large amounts of fresh vegetables and fruit such as carrots, strawberries and broccoli.?Give them a variety and make sure they always at least try new things.
Oral Health Care
Visiting a dentist at least twice a year helps everyone to prevent serious dental problems such as gingivitis and tooth decay, that can lead to other health conditions. By having a family Utah dentist, everyone can schedule their appointments at the same time to get teeth cleanings, medical images, and fillings. Parents displaying a positive attitude about visiting a dentist helps a child to have a good feeling about brushing and flossing their teeth. Smith Family dental services recommends you teach kids how to brush and to check with them each night to make sure they do a good job.
Getting Enough Sleep
Getting enough sleep each night is important for the brain and body of both adults and children to stay alert and improve the immune system. When youngsters have a regular bedtime that provides enough sleep for their age, they feel healthier, and learn faster. To make sure a child gets to bed on time each night, parents must have a schedule and rules concerning activities such as watching television, especially on school nights.
Setting boundaries for your child at a young age teaches them discipline to have healthy habits instead of detrimental ones. Anytime is a good time to learn new ways to remain healthy, but waiting until a child is a teenager to change their bad habits is time-consuming and difficult. Having healthy daily habits in your family also helps to make life less stressful.
“Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger. She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most her time hiking, biking and gardening. For more information contact Brooke via Twitter @BrookeChaplan.”
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