Keeping kids fed and healthy can be a challenge for anyone. When my kids were little, for example, I sometimes joined the class for lunch, and I was in awe of what some of the other parents sent for their kids. Happy faces made out of vegetables (made them much more appealing to the kids!), rolled up deli meats, and “ants on a log” (peanut butter spread inside celery sticks and dotted with raisons – or here’s a fancier version from Martha Stewart). How did they come up with these ideas?
Nowadays, mommy blogs and sites like Pinterest offer up countless creative and fun food options to get your kids interested in a variety of healthy foods. Keep an open, honest dialogue with your kids about what they like and don’t like. They’ll sometimes just throw out their lunch rather then tell you they don’t like what you packed. You may not know unless you ask.
People with eating disorders usually have a skewed sense of portion size and may not feel confident they’re making good choices for their kids. Get help from a dietician who can guide you and make suggestions. We recommend Alice L. Baker of Joyful Nutrition, who works out of our building at 1345 Clay Street in Winter Park, Florida.
For those recovering from an eating disorder, it’s easy to keep the focus on what everyone else in your family is eating, and away from your own nutritional needs. You may really enjoy feeding other people, to a point where it becomes unhealthy for you because you’re restricting, skipping meals, or overeating while preparing the food or cleaning the kitchen.
It’s important that you make sure you are well fed yourself, so you’re not tempted to eat foods that aren’t in your nutritional plan or are triggering for you. You may need to keep those foods around for the rest of your family, but you don’t need to eat them.