Tips for a Healthy Family

The health of both women and children can be significantly improved by spacing births at least two years apart, by avoiding pregnancies before the age of 18 and by limiting the total number of pregnancies to three or less. Some basic parenting tips are:

* To reduce the danger of childbearing, all pregnant women should go to a health worker for pre-natal care and all births should be assisted by a trained midwife.

* For the first few months of a baby's life, breast milk alone is the best possible food and drink. Infants need other foods, in addition to breast milk, when they are four to six months old.

* Children below three years have special feeding needs. They need to eat 5 to 6 times a day. Mashed vegetables and small amounts of fats or oils should be added to their food to enrich their diet.

* Diarrhoea can kill by draining too much liquid from a child's body. So the liquid lost each time the child passes a watery stool must be replaced by giving the child plenty of the right liquids to drink- breast milk, home - based fluids such as dal water, rice water, butter milk or a special drink called Oral Rehydration Suspension (ORS).

* Immunization protects against several diseases, which can cause poor growth, disability, and death. All immunization should be completed in the first year of the child's life and a booster dose should be given at one and half years.

* Most coughs and colds will get better on their own. But if a child with a cough is breathing much more rapidly than normal then the child is seriously ill and it is essential to go to a health centre quickly. A child with a cough or cold should be helped to eat and to drink plenty of liquids.

* Many illnesses are caused when germs enter the mouth. This can be prevented by using proper latrines; by washing hands with soap and water after using the latrine and before handling food; by keeping food and water clean; and by boiling drinking water if it is not from a safe piped supply.

* Parents should keep an eye on the child's activities and also have knowledge about the mechanism of all the toys with which it plays

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Why healthy families cook together

Sounds like a lost art in today's urban Indian household. In modern times, it's quite hard for parents with hectic schedules to check their kids' homework, let alone teach them healthy cooking. After all who has the extra time and patience, but many experts think healthy cooking with children is well worth the effort.

According to an American Heart Association's report overweight problems in kids can be dealt by involving children in meal planning, shopping, and healthy cooking. Teaching kids how to cook and appreciate healthy food also reduces the number of meals they eat outside, and when they do - they opt for healthier, low-calorie foods. Such kids also enjoy well-structured meal times at home.

In the short term, teaching your kids how to cook healthy will increase their confidence in healthy foods and they will be more likely to join in for family meal preparations. Cooking is also a wonderful activity to open communication lines between kids and parents. Kids tend to avoid junk food when they're cooking a meal at home with their parents.

In the long term, healthy cooking with your kids will set your kids up for lifelong healthy eating habits. And kids who eat healthy at a young age tend to eat healthy as adults. Some studies have proposed that cooking together helps in establishing a bond between parent and children.

How to Start Cooking With Children. Of course it's never a good idea to give a young kid sharp objects like knives! How, then, can they help around the kitchen? Think breakfast. Not only is a healthy breakfast the cornerstone of a healthy lifestyle, but it also doesn't include too much chopping, cutting etc. Butter the toasts, pour out the cereal, peel the fruits, pour the milk, breakfast is full of small chores that should be second nature come morning. Opt for healthy options such as high-fiber and nutrient-rich whole grains, fruits, and dairy products. Hard pressed for time in the morning? Try cooking breakfast with them on the weekends. Or may be during their summer holidays.

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Family meals benefit health of children

A study in the journal Pediatrics finds that children and adolescents who share meals with their families at least three times per week are less likely to be overweight, eat unhealthy foods or be at risk for eating disorders.

"It tells parents what they can do to help in those nutritional issues with their children," said lead study author Amber Hammons, Ph.D., of the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign.

"We understand that parents are really busy, and that's definitely one of the biggest problems that's cited by parents- that it's just so difficult to manage time to prepare it and then to get all the family members to be present," she said. "What this study is suggesting is that sitting down for three meals out of the week tends to show this significant benefit." The researchers examined 17 previous studies, which involved 182,836 children aged 2 to 17. Their findings reinforced the recommendation by the American Academy of Pediatrics, as part of its campaign to prevent childhood obesity.

The researchers found that three or more family meals per week were associated with a 12% reduction in the odds for being overweight, a 20% drop in the odds of eating unhealthy foods regularly and a 35% reduction in disordered eating- including purging, the use of diet pills, skipping meals or the use of smoking cigarettes as a way to control weight.

Unhealthy foods included soda, fast food, fried food and sweets or candy.

In addition, the kids were 24% more likely to eat healthy foods like fruits and vegetables, breakfast and also more likely to take a multivitamin.

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Healthy family recipes with low glycemic index are best

Mums looking to get themselves or their household in shape should prepare healthy family recipes with a low glycemic index, according to one expert.

Nutrition consultant Dr Carina Norris explained that "the most sustaining foods are the ones which contain a mixture of protein, good fats, and fibre – all three elements are very filling. Glycemic index (GI) foods are the ones which contain that balance".

It is these kinds of healthy family recipes, she added, that cause a slower, more sustained increase in blood sugar levels and therefore keep energy up for longer.

Dr Norris went on to say that the psychological effect of choosing foods that take a while to eat can help families keep the weight off, as they are likely to make people feel fuller.

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