Type 2 Diabetes - 4 Tips To Encourage Healthy Eating In Your Children

Type 2 diabetes was once known as maturity-onset diabetes because it never appeared in children. Unfortunately, it has been increasing rapidly in kids. Ten years ago a child with Type 2 diabetes would have been considered so rare the case might have been written up in a medical journal. If you have children, you might be wondering what you can do to get them onto a healthier eating path. With childhood obesity rates on the rise, it's becoming more important than ever to ensure our children are eating right and exercising regularly. Sadly, most kids don't, and this is putting them at risk for life-long conditions such as Type 2 diabetes and heart disease.Want to encourage healthier eating in your children? Let's look at a few ways you can do just that so they aren't facing health problems in their later years...1. Eat With Them.First, focus on eating with your children as often as you can. Enjoying a home prepared family dinner that's nutritious and healthy is a great way to help them learn about healthy eating and how home prepared food lookscompared to processed food.Plus, it sets you as the role model. If you are regularly eating unhealthy foods, you can't expect your children to do differently. Eat healthy options together and you'll firmly fix good habits in them.2. Make Healthy Eating Fun.It's also a smart move to make healthy eating as fun as possible. To encourage them to eat fruit, for instance, lay them out on a plate in fun shapes. Or, if you want them to eat more raw vegetables, serve them with a delicious dip you have on hand.Most children will gravitate towards eating whatever looks tastiest, so you want any healthy options you present to be visually appealing.3. Keep Grab-And-Go Options On Hand.It's also important that you have healthy "grab and go" options on hand. For instance, rather than sending them to school with a chocolate granola bar, bake up some fresh, healthy muffins instead.Likewise, make sure that there is always chopped vegetables and fresh fruit pieces they can grab when they need a quick snack. If you don't have these in the kitchen, they will choose something else that's convenient - usually something highly processed.4. Don't Ban Foods.Finally, never ban foods. The minute you tell children theycan'teat a particular food is the minute they decide that is all they want to eat. Be smart and let them make their decisions - but do provide helpful guidance.If you follow these quick tips, you should find your children begin eating healthier, maintaining their body weight as they form healthy living habits thatwill (hopefully!) last a lifetime.Although managing your disease can be very challenging, Type 2 diabetes is not a condition you must just live with. You can make simple changes to your daily routine and lower both your weight and your blood sugar levels. Hang in there,the longer you do it, the easier it gets.For nearly 25 years Beverleigh Piepers has searched for and found a number of secrets to help you build a healthy body. Go tohttp://DrugFreeType2Diabetes.comto learn aboutsome of those secrets.The answer isn't in the endless volumes ofavailable informationbut in yourself.Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Beverleigh_H_Piepers/123142