As parents and caregivers, we hold the key to our children's future. It's not just a responsibility, but a shared journey towards helping our children live healthy lifestyles. Together, we can make a significant difference.
5-2-1-0 Daily Rule
A healthy lifestyle incorporates eating, sleeping, activity, and social and emotional health. These aspects all play a role in a healthy lifestyle. An easy-to-remember guideline to follow is the 5-2-1-0 daily rule, which includes:
- 5 servings of fruits and vegetables
- 2 hours or less of screen time
- 1 hour of physical activity
- 0 sugar-sweetened beverages
Establish a Sleep Routine
Ensuring our children get enough sleep is paramount. The number of hours needed changes as they grow older, so it's important to establish healthy sleep habits. You, as parents and caregivers, can play a crucial role in this. By turning screens off an hour before bedtime and engaging in calming activities like reading, listening to music, or journaling, you can help establish a sleep routine. Keep bedtime routines scheduled and maintain consistent sleep and wake-up times, even on weekends. Your efforts will ensure they get enough rest for their respective ages.
Social/Emotional Health
Since 2010, data suggests that there has been an increase in mental health issues in both children and people overall. Correlational data indicates that some contributing factors are lack of in-person social interaction and social media usage. Adults can help children develop a healthy lifestyle by limiting screen time and demonstrating healthy social interaction. If you, as a parent or adult, put the phone down and pay attention to the child, the child will also learn to be present and focus on the person at hand.
Limiting screen time for children will foster independence and creative play. People, in general, struggle today with delayed gratification. We can listen to any song at any time, watch any show, order online, and receive a package the next day or the same day. It has become harder to wait for something people want. Learning to wait is a skill that helps build emotional health.
Remember to engage in daily gratitude activities, which have been shown to improve mental health and increase happiness for both adults and children. Setting aside time for prayer, creating a gratitude list, and mentally acknowledging positive aspects of your life can significantly contribute to positive mental health.
Model Healthy Behavior
The most important thing you can do for children is to model healthy behavior. Whatever we’re doing (or not doing), children see and emulate our behavior. If you are eating healthy, exercising, putting your phone down and paying attention to the children, they will notice and follow suit. Do active things together with family and friends. Ensure kids have access to healthy food at home and school. Make sure physical education and social emotional learning are part of the school curriculum.
Making a Healthy Lifestyle Fun
Children are more likely to continue an activity they find enjoyable, so it's important to make a healthy lifestyle fun for kids. Involve kids in mealtime by letting them pick from a list of healthy recipes and incorporate them in the meal prep. Allowing them to see what goes into a healthy meal and participate in the process encourages and motivates them to eat what they helped make.
You can also introduce some friendly competition. Challenge each other as a family to see how far you can stretch and touch your toes. Measure, record, and track over time.
Another idea is to create a scavenger hunt outside or even inside. Clues can lead children to the next stage and teach them along the way.
Get kids involved in activities they enjoy, such as sports, dance, gymnastics, etc. If none of these appeal to your child, then do family bike rides, walks, or hikes together. You can also use the Internet to find a dance video you can all dance to, or a workout video you enjoy and do it together in your family room. There are many ways to make a healthy lifestyle fun and build family bonds in the process.
A Healthy Lifestyle Carries Over into Adulthood
The habits you build in your children today carry over, positively or negatively, into adulthood. It becomes harder to change lifestyle once there are issues such as obesity or diabetes. It is easier to continue something than to change it and easier to establish a healthy routine when you’re younger. Children with higher body mass index (BMI) are at higher risk for developing diabetes and cardiovascular problems. Calcium, vitamin D, and activity level all impact bone health as an adult, so incorporate those at a young age.
Childhood Looks Different Today
Remember when your grandparents had to walk uphill 10 miles to school each way? Their childhood was different from yours, and your child's life is also different from what you experienced. Our understanding of healthy eating has evolved, especially with the food pyramid. Now, it's recommended that half of your plate should be plant-based. It's important for adults to understand what is healthy and what is not, and to teach children the new way of eating.
The impact of the Internet and social media has drastically changed childhood today. Parents need to understand Internet safety and be aware of the vast amount of information available, as well as the potential for strangers to communicate with kids online while playing video games. It's important to have safety conversations. Beyond the Internet, toys have also changed. Toys now feature lights and are more mechanical, providing more entertainment. However, you can still model and encourage basic creative play.
To help children learn a healthy lifestyle, follow the 5-2-1-0 daily rule, foster creative play and gratitude activities, and, most importantly, model healthy behavior. Set a good example and see the results in your children.
At Endeavor Health, our pediatricians provide comprehensive care for children, including checkups, sick visits, and general pediatric advice, all in our outpatient offices with the goal of ensuring your children stay healthy. Visit us online or call (847) 618-4968.
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