This article was written by Kaleigh McFadden, dietetic intern with the Alabama Department of Public Health, a partner of the Alabama Farm to ECE Coalition.
March is National Nutrition Month! The theme for this year is “Food Connects Us.” Food is a beautiful way that we can connect to one another through culture and community. Food can mean different things for young children, and it is important to teach them how food connects us to different areas of life. Children learn their eating habits from the people around them, so this month we encourage you to tune into the food that nourishes your body.
Week 1: Connect with Food
A great way to help young children connect with food is by teaching them about how some foods start as a seed. Consider utilizing an apple seed and an apple to walk them through how the seed grew into the apple that they can now hold and eat.
Another way to connect with food is by visiting a local farmers’ market and asking questions to a farmer. In addition, we can positively impact children’s connection with food by eating meals around a table. By removing distractions from the eating environment and focusing on the food and people around you it can improve not only children’s health but also your own.
Week 2: Connect with a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN)
A RDN is a licensed nutrition health professional who can work in a variety of settings. They are food and nutrition experts who give personalized nutrition information. Although it may not be possible to have your children get to hear from or speak with an RDN, you can still provide your young children with accurate nutrition information through teaching them about MyPlate.
Week 3: Explore the Connection Between Food and Culture
Incorporate your favorite cultural foods into snack time this week or bring in snacks from different global cultures. An easy way to do this is by visiting the international isle at your local grocery store and choosing a few items from different countries to try with children. Because this may not be possible to accomplish due to allergies, consider watching this educational video with children.
Week 4: Build the Connection Across All Stages of Life
Just like your shoe or clothing size changes with age, your nutrient needs also change with age. To help you and your young children meet the nutritional needs for your age eat from all food groups. It is important to build balanced and sustainable eating habits at a young age. A great way to do this is by eating food in various forms such as fresh, frozen, canned, and dried. Teach students about food in different forms through a taste test. An example of this would be getting a peach in a fresh, frozen, canned, and dried form to sample.
Celebrate how “Food Connects Us” this March! Learn to cook, eat with others, remove distractions, seek out accurate nutrition education and reap the lasting health benefits of connecting with food. Making these small changes over time can have lasting impacts on the young children observing your eating habits.
