Offer healthy choices with every meal.

Not all foods available at the local food market or shop will provide the necessary nutrients (hyperlink to ‘What does eat nutritious and varied options mean?’) needed by the growing child. Making the correct food choices starts at the point where you buy your groceries – be it a shop, markets, fruit and veg merchants, or directly from the farm. After making sure that you have a variety of healthy foods available at home, offer different of options for a meal.

Here are some:

• Boiled egg / beans / peanut butter on toast for breakfast. Here various protein food options are on offer.
• Mango/banana/strawberry/pineapple smoothie, keeping in mind the season and availability of certain fruits, served as a snack. Fruits can be sliced up and placed in a container with dividers.
• Popcorn / sweet potato crisps / fruit kebabs for movie night served on a platter.
• Chose to fill a wrap filled with tuna / meatballs / black beans together with salad vegetables / guacamole for lunch. This can also be packed in a divided lunchbox so they can make up the wrap at school.

Giving children the choice appeals to their independent streak, while limiting their options to nutritious foods means that you are maintaining control of the types of food they are consuming.

Certain meals are also a good way of ensuring that one large serving of vegetables is offered at a time. Pita pockets are great for stuffing with a mix of crunchy vegetables. Soups served hot or cold are made with a multitude of vegetables, while hearty stews and casseroles can contain several vegetables cut up in a variety of shapes and sizes. Homemade milkshakes may include real fruits as a dessert (peaches, banana, etc.), while allowing you to limit the sugar source to just one scoop of ice cream. Natural food colourants such as beetroot extract can be used to add colour.