I've been a dietitian for a pretty long time, and I'd like to think that I've seen and heard it all.
I always encourage my patients to be free and honest with me because I'm fairly hard to shock. I do, however, end up hearing much the same things from a lot of different parents.
Now that I'm on mat leave, I've had the chance to reflect on some of the lessons I've learned in the past 10+ years on the job...and I'd like to share them with you.
If you're a chronic dieter, chances are your kids will pick your habits up from you
I recently saw a mom who is a chronic dieter, trying to impose her food restrictions on her young children. Kids don't need fat free sour cream! I see it all the time – kids learn from us. Model good behavior, which includes eating a variety of foods. Don't trash healthy foods that your kids like or that they haven't tried yet. If you say ‘I hate broccoli', chances are your kids will be reluctant to try it.
After school programs are not a good excuse to go through the drive through
I hear this excuse way too often. There are plenty of foods that kids can eat in the car on the way to and from practice/class/whatever they do. In a pinch, some string cheese or Babybels™ with a piece of fruit is fantastic. Everybody goes to an unhealthy restaurant every once in a while. It's when it becomes an unhealthy ritual - that's a problem.
Watch what you say
I have had parents in my office who sit there with their children and call their children ‘fat' right to their faces. Clearly this isn't something that many people would do, but I'm here to remind you that it takes one remark like that to start a child on an unhealthy track with eating. Please. Don't.
It's about health, not weight
I rarely make kids step on my office scale. Professional irresponsibility? Naw. Kids are impressionable, and I couldn't care less about how much they weigh. A kid who is overweight is clearly overweight and I feel as though weighing them may do more damage to their self-esteem. I try to make it about HEALTH. While the parent might say to me ‘we're here because my child is overweight', I then rephrase that to the child as ‘we're here so we can talk about eating and being healthy'. Society's preoccupation with the number on the scale, even at a young age, is shocking. I'm not going to contribute to that. (of course, when a kid really needs to be weighed, I do it)
Give in sometimes
I'm a mom of two, I work full-time, and I know what you're going through. I feed my kids processed food sometimes too. It's fast, easy, and convenient. And you know what? Kraft Dinner every once in a while isn't going to kill them.
Juice is the devil
Enough said. People tell me ‘but it's all natural!'..so is cocaine. And it's bad for you, too.
Do your best
We're all tired, stressed, and we all (hopefully) want the best for our kids. What's important is what they eat month to month, not day to day – so if they have a junky day every so often, no big deal. More likely than not, they'll still grow up big and strong.
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