Celebrate!

Sharing Food Tasks Parent Responsibilities

Sharing Food Tasks  Sharing Food Tasks is a parenting concept that gives specific responsibilities to parents and to children.  It is also called “Division of Responsibility in the Feeding-Eating Relationship.”

 The basic structure:  Parents will decide what food is served and when it is served.  The child gets to decide how much of what is served to eat and whether or not to eat. Sharing Food Tasks

 Parents decide what food is served.  It is important to serve a wide variety of foods.  No one food group is more important than another, and foods in one group cannot replace foods in another.  The key is moderation and variety.

 There should be at least one thing at every meal that the child likes to eat.  Children may like one food more than another - that is ok!  You are not a short order cook – you should fix one meal for your entire family. Tips - Planning Meals and Snacks

 The child should decide how much to eat of each food that is served.  The child should decide whether or not to eat.  If a particular food doesn’t go over well the first time, don’t get discouraged, try again.  Continue to offer a variety of healthy foods at each meal. Tips - Planning Meals and Snacks

Importance of Family Mealtimes  Families that eat together tend to have children who are better nourished and less likely to be overweight.  Children learn how and what to eat from their parents.

 Tips for making family mealtimes pleasant.  Try to eat together as a family whenever possible even though children may have different schedules.  Avoid using meal times to handle problems.  Focus on positive conversation, what your children did that day, what happened that was good. Importance of Family Mealtimes

Sharing Food Tasks  Parents decide when to eat.  Eating should happen at set times.  It is not a good idea to let children eat all day long. This is called grazing.  If they graze, it is harder to have healthy snacks and meal time foods on hand.  It also reduces the chances that children will eat the healthy food options at snack and meal times.  When children snack throughout the day, they may not learn to recognize when they are full.  They may overeat and may become overweight.

 Importance of Sticking to the Schedule  Children should not eat while they play.  It increases the risk of choking.  Eating at set times allows an adult to be on hand to supervise the eating.  This reduces the risk of choking. Sharing Food Tasks

 Importance of Sticking to the Schedule  If a child is thirsty between snacks/meals, offer water.  Do not allow children to fill up on milk, juice, soft drinks, or fruit drinks.  This may reduce their hunger at meal times and they may not choose healthy food options.  Water is less expensive than most other drink choices, and so it can help stretch your food budget. Sharing Food Tasks

 Highlights  Children should eat only at designated snack and meal times.  Children should drink water between meal and snack times.  These are cost effective ways to stretch your food budget. Sharing Food Tasks

Child Responsibilities

Sharing Food Tasks  Babies know when they are full and so they stop eating.  Toddlers and preschoolers know this, too, unless they are taught by an adult to continue eating.  Ex. Clean your plate, eat all your vegetables, etc.  Even the most well-meaning adult can teach a child to overeat by encouraging them to eat more of any food, no matter how healthy.

 Children decide how much to eat.  Children know when they are full.  When parents tell a child to continue eating, it is confusing to the child.  Sometimes a child is very hungry, sometimes a child is not at all hungry.  Sometimes there is one food at a meal that the child wants to eat a lot of, other meals may have a different food that the child eats. This is ok.  Children go through growth spurts where they need a lot of food, and then have times where they have a low appetite.  If you offer a wide variety of healthy foods from all food groups regularly, they will get the right amount of food. Sharing Food Tasks

 Children have smaller stomachs than adults, so portions sizes are smaller. A child-size portion may be:  1 slice of bread or ½ a tortilla,  A small cup of milk  A few small bit size pieces of meat  A few tablespoons of rice or chopped vegetables Tips - Letting a child choose how much to eat:

 Serve small portions of each food and let the child taste it. If they eat it all and want more, serve a second small portion.  If you serve many healthy items, the child may get full with trying the different items.  Do not assume they haven’t eaten enough simply because they didn’t eat all of each portion you gave them. Tips - Letting a child choose how much to eat:

 Children know when they are full unless you teach them otherwise. Let them be your guide.  Children won’t starve by eating less at one meal or one snack time; they will eat more at another meal or snack to balance it out. Tips - Letting a child choose how much to eat:

 Do not bribe or force children to eat.  Do not use television, games, toys, candy, or dessert to get them to eat foods.  Do not punish a child if she doesn’t eat.  Do not withhold food from a child as punishment. Tips - Letting a child choose how much to eat:

 Children decide whether or not to eat.  Children should decide if they want to eat or not.  If they don’t want to eat, it is ok.  Skipping an occasional meal or snack will not hurt a child. Sharing Food Tasks

 Children decide whether or not to eat.  A child should join in family meal times regardless of whether or not they are eating. This teaches the child that family mealtimes are important.  If a child chooses not to eat at a meal or snack time, do not give them food until the next meal/snack time.  This reinforces that if they are hungry, they should eat when food is available at the designated time. Sharing Food Tasks

 Children decide whether or not to eat.  Children may choose to “test” parents by throwing fits and crying about how hungry they are between meal times/snack times.  This is normal and often happens in the beginning, when Sharing Food Tasks is new to a family.  Remind the child that he chose not to eat at the last meal/snack time.  Reminding him that he can eat again at the next meal/snack time may help.  Children often use eating behaviors as a way to get attention or manipulate parents. Using Sharing Food Tasks can help reduce this type of behavior. Sharing Food Tasks

 Highlights  Children should eat only at the designated snack and meal times.  Children can choose whether or not to eat. Not eating is ok.  Children should still sit with the family at meal times even if they have chosen not to eat.  Bribes or punishments should not be coupled with eating.

 Highlights  If a child chooses not to eat, do not give in to fits or exclamations of hunger between the designated food times. The child will be ok until the next meal.  Children may “test” parents when Sharing Food Tasks is first started. This is ok. It will resolve if you stick to it.  Sharing Food Tasks works!  It provides guidelines and expectations which is good for the parent-child relationship. Sharing Food Tasks

Get Moving! Review of Lesson One

Get Moving!  In Lesson 1 we learned:  The information in the ESBA lesson series is based on health and nutrition research.  These lessons will help families plan healthy meals and snacks.  Being active is important.

Get Moving!  The goal of this lesson:  All participants can find ways to be physically active at a level that is comfortable and advisable for them.

Plan, Shop, $ave Review of Lesson Two

Plan, Shop, $ave  In Lesson 2 we learned:  How to plan meals and snacks  How to use shopping lists  Comparing prices can save time, stretch food dollars and help increase food security for many families.

 The goal of this lesson:  To help families learn to plan and shop for meals and snacks that are healthy AND within their budget. Plan, Shop, $ave

Fruits & Veggies Half Your Plate Review of Lesson Three

Fruits & Veggies  In Lesson 3 we learned:  Vegetables and fruits provide nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and fiber.  How to increase the amount and variety of vegetables and fruits in family meals and snacks.  How to save money when shopping for vegetables and fruits.

 The goal of this lesson:  To help families increase the amount and variety of vegetables and fruits eaten daily. Fruits & Veggies

Make Half Your Grains Whole Review of Lesson Four

Make Half Your Grains Whole  In Lesson 4 we learned:  What whole grains are  That whole grains help keep us healthy  How to choose whole grains at least half the time

 The goal of this lesson:  To help families find ways to choose whole grains at least half of the time. Make Half Your Grains Whole

Build Strong Bones Review of Lesson Five

Build Strong Bones  In Lesson 5 we learned:  The importance of calcium in building strong bones  Dairy foods are the best sources of calcium  How to choose dairy foods wisely (low fat or non-fat foods)  Both calcium and physical activity are important for bone health.

 The goal of the lesson:  To help families find ways to get enough calcium by choosing low-fat and non-fat dairy foods, and other foods that are high in calcium. Build Strong Bones

Go Lean with Protein Review of Lesson Six

 In Lesson 6 we learned:  What foods are in the protein group  The protein group provides valuable nutrients: protein, iron, etc.  There are plant sources of proteins which can help lower saturated fat intake.  How to choose low-fat/lean proteins and appropriate portion sizes.  When handling the protein food group, the food safety practice of “clean, separate, cook, and chill” is an easy way to reduce food borne illness. Go Lean with Protein

 The goal of this lesson:  To help families find ways to choose low-fat and lean proteins and to handle proteins safely, reducing the risk of food borne illness.

Make a Change Review of Lesson Seven

Make a Change  In Lesson 7 we learned:  Eating less fat, sugar and salt is important for improving our health and reducing our risk of developing chronic diseases  Ex. heart disease, diabetes and some cancers  A main source of added sugars in our diets are soft drinks/sodas, fruit drinks and other sweetened beverages.

 We practiced:  Choosing foods/beverages that are lower in fat, sugar and salt  Reading Nutrition Facts Labels  To see which foods were higher in fat  To find out the sugar content of soft drinks and sweetened beverages Make a Change

 The goal of the lesson:  To help families find ways to choose foods wisely by selecting those that are lower in sugar, fat and salt. Make a Change

CONGRATULATIONS! You have completed the ESBA Follow-up Training!

 Take a moment to reflect on all that you have learned and how you have started to apply that to your job.  Think about how those changes will help improve the health of the participants you teach! CONGRATULATIONS!