EAT, HYDRATE, MOVE: Experts Share Healthy Habits for Kids

Experts: 

• Tiffni Menendez, MPH, Sr. Program Manager of Research, The Michael & Susan Dell Center for Healthy Living, UTHealth School of Public Health 
• Melissa Campos-Hernandez, MPH, Research Coordinator II, The Michael & Susan Dell Center for Healthy Living, UTHealth School of Public Health 
• Emily Levin, Dietetic Intern, The Michael & Susan Dell Center for Healthy Living, UTHealth School of Public Health 
• Deanna M. Hoelscher, PhD, RDN, LD, CNS, FISBNPA, Regional Dean, UTHealth School of Public Health in Austin, Director, Michael & Susan Dell Center for Healthy Living, Distinguished Teaching Professor at The University of Texas System

A healthful childhood leads to a healthier adulthood. The dietary habits children develop early will continue into adulthood, which is why healthy eating, hydration and physical activity are important to a child’s overall well-being. Two of the biggest challenges kids face today that prevent them from succeeding in healthy eating and hydration are 1) food marketing; and 2) availability. Sugar-sweetened beverages and non-healthy foods are available everywhere and heavily marketed. Kids who drink one sugar-sweetened drink per day can gain up to 14.5 pounds of unnecessary weight (depending on age and size) in one year.* Too often, as well, the price of sugary beverages is the same as water. 

Expert: Deborah Gilboa, MD (aka “Dr. G”), parenting expert, nationally recognized family physician, and regular contributor on The Doctors, The TODAY Show, Good Morning America, The Rachael Ray Show, and more

One of the very best things you can do to help your child have a healthy body their whole lives is to build the habit of drinking water! With these three steps you can give your children not only a healthier childhood but a better chance of lifelong healthy weight, better sleep, sharper cognition and improved mood. 

Drink water "out loud" yourself. Don't just drink water when you're thirsty. Name it, ask for it at meals, praise the water you're drinking and yourself for drinking it. Make sure your kids know that you are drinking water most often and why. Modeling behavior is even more effective than imposing it on our children. 

Start with water for everyone. At restaurants, at home, in the car, at school and sports, set the expectation that everyone's first drink is water. If you decide to have juice or milk or even soda (for kids 13 and over) with a meal, make sure water comes first. 

Make it a competition or a collaboration. Depending on your child's personality and desire, you can compete with them to see who can get their recommended amount of water each day first, or you can collaborate to hit a "family total" each day.

Especially as our kids get older, it can be almost impossible to know if they are drinking enough water. Look for these common early signs of mild dehydration: headache, irritability, fatigue, unexpected hunger, or going to the bathroom less often. When your child mentions any of those, for example complaints of a headache or fatigue or hunger, suggest they try a glass of water as a first solution.



Expert: Chef Fernando Saralegui, restaurateur, author and creator of Papi’s Kitchen, an educational children's TV series promoting healthy eating 

Eating, hydration, and physical activity are three legs of the same stool. Positive encouragement in these areas at early stages in life could not be more important. They create the foundation for the future – not only as a physically healthy adult, but also as a mentally healthy adult, and ultimately, a healthy contributor as a citizen to society. These strengths are also important in helping children to believe in themselves in order to resist peer pressure from their core. 

In my opinion, the biggest challenge to all three topics is easy – screens! By definition, screens are sedentary. Just as important, unfortunately screens are also often used by parents as a pacifier. Hey, I get it, I’m a dad. Parenting is hard and demanding! While it’s often easier to check out and give kids screen time, consider that you’re also potentially creating myriad bad habits. Instead, try any or all of the following ideas to get your family moving together:

Start these healthy habits for kids at an early age. Introduce exercise to kids from the very start by jogging with them in strollers or hitching them on the bike.  

Take it outside. Incorporate sports and outdoor activities into your daily routines as a family. I’m currently working with Texas Parks and Wildlife, and I like their slogan: Life is Better Outside. Walk, hike, swim, hunt, fish, ski, kneeboard, surf, touch football, all sports. To quote NIKE, “Just Do It!” Overall, make activity part of your life together.