1976: Q&A - How Can I Encourage My Kids to Eat a Better Whole Foods Diet & The Science of a Child's Diet

[00:00:00] Hey, it's Justin from Optimal Living Daily. Before we start, I want to share a super powerful practice I use called NSDR or Non-Sleep Deep Rest. In just about 10 minutes or so, this Yoga Nidra practice leaves you feeling as refreshed as after a nap without actually sleeping. Experience it for yourself on our guided podcast. Search NSDR and look for the one from Optimal Living Daily.

[00:00:25] This is Optimal Relationships Daily, Episode 1976, How Can I Encourage My Kids to Eat a Better Whole Foods Diet and The Science of a Child's Diet by Dr. Neil Malik. Hello, everybody. I'm Greg Audino and welcome to another Sunday bonus episode of Optimal Relationships Daily. And this one will be an interesting one.

[00:00:48] I'm going to share with you a Q&A segment from Optimal Health Daily, in which our host there, Dr. Neil Malik, answers a question sent in by a listener. And it's the start of a double whammy because our regular episode, which is live now as well, is a Relationships Q&A, in which I will be answering a question sent in by one of you. So, be sure to check that one out too. But first, here is a question sent in to Dr. Neil that I think you parents will be able to relate to. Let's hear his answer as we optimize your life.

[00:01:46] Unfortunately, they eat a lot of ultra-processed foods, which of course, I admittedly buy for them. Do you have any tips on how I can help transition them to healthier but easy food options? And also, what does the research tell us about this type of a diet at a young age and whether it will have any impact on their health when they become adults? All of the children are active in sports and outdoor play and they have normal BMIs. Thank you so much for your time.

[00:02:15] Thank you so much for taking the time to send me your question, Valerie. And thank you so much for your kind words and for being a regular listener. I'm thrilled that you find the show so helpful. Now, I appreciate that you want to help your kiddos eat more nutritious foods more often. Occasionally consuming highly processed foods isn't a problem. But if children and adolescents can consume mostly nutritious whole foods, like about 80% of the time, that would be ideal. Valerie, you asked about the research.

[00:02:45] Specifically, what does the research say about children's diet quality and health later in life? Well, it turns out that eating nutritious foods when we're young can have a positive effect on our health as adults. Multiple studies have found connections between consuming more highly processed foods during childhood and the development of overweight, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and even cardiovascular disease later in life.

[00:03:13] This is because these foods, these ultra processed foods have lots of calories, are easily absorbed, which means the body converts them to sugar pretty easily. They don't have a lot of nutrients, are high in sodium, and high in unhealthy fats. So, if these types of foods are consumed regularly, they can then increase blood sugar levels, which in turn lead to higher levels of fat in the blood,

[00:03:40] which then might increase the amount of cholesterol in the bloodstream, which can then raise blood pressure. So, it becomes this kind of chain reaction. In fact, some practicing physicians have found plaque building up inside the arteries of children as young as 8 years of age. These little plaques are pockets of cholesterol that block the flow of blood to organs like the brain and the heart.

[00:04:05] But if we consume more whole foods when we're younger, we can reduce the chances of these things happening. Physical activity definitely helps prevent these diseases as well. So, it's great that your kids are regularly active and that they have healthy BMIs. Again, that's fantastic. Now, most health agencies agree that children and adolescents should aim to get at least one hour of vigorous intensity exercise every single day of the week. Okay, so that's the why.

[00:04:34] That's why eating more nutritious foods and staying physically active when we're young can be helpful for lowering the risk for future disease. Now, we have to think about how we can get our kids to actually do these things. Well, we're in luck because researchers have been trying to answer this question for years. So, there are lots of studies that tell us what's most helpful. Now, most health professionals agree that younger folks need to be consuming more fruits and vegetables.

[00:05:02] Vegetables are often the toughest sell. But luckily, just this past week, in fact, an article came across my email inbox that discusses how we can encourage our kids to eat more vegetables. Researchers conducted something called a meta-analysis. That's where scientists collect a bunch of already published studies to see whether these studies had the same results. These meta-analyses are considered the highest quality research.

[00:05:31] So, I often like to use them when I'm trying to find out whether there's truth to something. Well, these results found that getting children familiar with vegetables, particularly vegetable flavors, is one of the best ways to get them to eat more of them. Now, believe it or not, that can begin during pregnancy and continue through infancy. Researchers have found that when pregnant or lactating mothers consume more vegetables, their babies get exposed to those vegetable flavors,

[00:05:59] which makes the babies more accepting of those flavors as they get older. Now, Valerie, in your case, your kiddos are already older. So, we need some other ways to encourage these behaviors. So, another way is to encourage children to consume their veggies first before the other foods on their plate. We also know that with older children, social influences like their friends and those they admire, as well as the media, play a role in their selection of certain foods.

[00:06:28] While it may seem like parents aren't the most influential when it comes to older children's habits, believe it or not, parents can still have a powerful influence. When your children see you eating nutritious foods, they are more likely to do so as well. And dining together for family meals is one of the best times to do this. Another tip is to encourage each of the kiddos to help design one of the family dinners each week.

[00:06:56] By allowing the children to decide what the family eats, they feel as though they have a say too. Parents, of course, need to be involved in the planning and have to have final say. But many are surprised to see their children often plan fairly balanced meals on their own. Then involve the children in making up a grocery list, have them involved in the actual grocery shopping and selecting the vegetables that they're going to incorporate in their recipes, have them involved in the actual food preparation and cooking process.

[00:07:26] All of this will serve to give the children a sense of pride. They're going to want to see the looks on the family's faces when you finally sit down and enjoy the meal together. They love to see the rest of the family enjoying their creations. I wish you the best of luck, Valerie. And again, thank you so much for the question and for being a regular listener, Valerie. Answering your questions is my favorite part of the show.

[00:07:54] So if you want to send one in and make me happy, you can email one to health at oldpodcast.com. Or if you want to hear your voice on the show, come by oldpodcast.com slash ask. You can record your question right from your computer's microphone. It's really easy and you can even play back your message and do retakes before sending it on to us. Or you can do it the old-fashioned way and call in your question.

[00:08:22] The number is 61-ILOVE-OHD. And lastly, on Spotify, you can take a look at this episode and ask your question right in the Spotify app. Again, thank you for doing that. Thank you for sending in your questions. Thank you for being here every day and listening all the way through. I hope you have a great start to your weekend and I'll see you back here tomorrow where your optimal life awaits.