How To Add More Nutrients To Your Family’s Diet

Every mother knows her children can be the pickiest eaters in the world. Despite how common this is, it's not ideal. Your child's growth and development may be hampered by their fussy eating habits.

The good news is that, as the parent, you’re the one in charge of your family’s diet, and because of this, you can make sure they get all the vitamins and minerals they need to be as healthy and happy as possible, even if they are picky eaters. Read on to find out how. 

Give Supplements

Supplements are one of the best ways to add more nutrients to your family’s diet. You don’t have to change anything about what they’re eating (although it still might be wise to do so, depending on what it is they are actually consuming), and they just need to take something like Platinum Naturals best multivitamin to make up for the shortfall.

It can be hard to persuade younger children to take vitamins, but if you can make it fun and ensure they see you do the same, they’ll be more willing to get involved.

Choose Organic Food

Pick organic or grass-fed foods whenever you can as a good place to start. This is an easy step because it doesn't change the food you serve. Instead, you just switch the foods you already enjoy for their organic versions. This gives you more nutrients and fewer chemicals and additives.

Organic grass-fed beef and dairy have more omega-3s and other nutrients like vitamin K2 and CLA, another healthy fat, than grain-fed beef and dairy. By switching to grass-fed, you're giving your family the high-quality protein they really need giving them an extra boost of nutrients.

You can also get more nutrients without changing your diet by choosing whole grains instead of refined grains and looking for bread, crackers, and other grain products made with sourdough or sprouted grains. Not only do these have more nutrients, but they are also easier to digest.

Eat Plenty Of Seeds

Fats, fiber, calcium, protein, iron, magnesium, zinc, vitamin B6, and many other vitamins and minerals can be found in abundance in seeds. Plus, if you're a vegetarian or vegan and you don't eat fish, you can obtain your omega-3s from flaxseeds and chia seeds.

Nuts and seeds like walnuts, peanuts, and almonds, as well as seeds like flax, sesame, chia, pumpkin, and melon, can help you make up for the calories and nutritious value you're losing by cutting back on carbohydrates. Drink a solution of soaked chia seeds, sprinkle them liberally over your daily salad, or munch on roasted seeds for a healthy snack.

Eat More Vegetables

Vegetables are a great source of fiber, antioxidants, potassium, and vitamin C, all of which are beneficial to digestive health, but getting some children to eat them can be a challenge. As a first step, offer vegetables both raw and cooked to determine if your children have a preference. Or you can make them look interesting. For example, using a vegetable slicer to produce waffles or waves out of vegetables is a fun way to get youngsters interested in trying new foods.

Adding vegetables to foods that kids already like, like spaghetti sauce, enchiladas, chili, and soups (like tomato), can be a great way to get them to eat more vegetables. Or, try adding vegetables to different condiments that you put on sandwiches and wraps. Smoothies can also work well, and things like carrots, beets, avocados, or sweet potatoes can be included, for example.

Have A Just One Bite Rule

Studies have shown over and over that kids have to try a food they don't like at least eight times before they start to like it. In light of this, you might want to make a rule that says, "just one bite." When a food your child doesn't like is served, they have to eat at least one bite of it. At some point, your child's dislike of the food will go away, and they will start to eat it regularly.

Of course, you mustn’t force them into taking that one bite. If you do, they will learn negative associations with that particular food, and even if they do start to like it, or might do given time, their brains will always tell them it’s a negative thing. Make sure the rule is a lighthearted, fun one, perhaps with a reward attached to it after trying a certain number of new things, for example.

Involve Children In Meal Planning

Include your family, especially your kids, in the planning and making of meals. Teach them how to make good decisions by giving them specific healthy meal and dessert options. Instead of asking your child what they want to eat, you could ask if they would like either vegetable soup or salmon and beans – the choice of two healthy options.

In this way, you know they’ll choose good, nutritious food, but they will feel more in control, and everyone will be happy.