Healthy Habits To Teach Your Kids, And How To Teach Them

Of all the many influences in your kids’ lives, as a parent you’re still the most influential. You create and reinforce habits, like visiting the doctor or pediatrician in Phoenix, Arizona regularly and getting flu shots, from the very beginning. You reinforce habits over a long period of time via praise and attention. Any pediatrician in Phoenix, Arizona, or elsewhere, will tell you that it is extremely important to model healthy habits for your kids, especially parents with sick kids. But how do we know what healthy habits to teach them, and how to teach them?

Healthy and Active

Pediatricians in Phoenix, Arizona, and elsewhere, will tell you that one of the most important healthy habits you can teach your kids is to exercise and be physically active. It is no coincidence that childhood obesity has skyrocketed in conjunction with a decrease in kids’ physical activity. Teach kids how to play outside, enjoying our beautiful Phoenix weather, by taking them on bike rides, hikes, and kayak trips. Along with a flu shot, exercise raises immunity against seasonal illness.

Taking Responsibility For Day-to-Day Healthy Living

We can also model, and teach, taking responsibility for our own health. That may mean that parents with sick kids take their children to see their pediatrician in Phoenix, Arizona for well child checks and flu shots. It may mean just washing our hands when we arrive home, and making sure our kids do, too. Teach kids how important sleep is, especially when sick, and model this by sticking to a consistent and early bedtime.

Healthy Eating

Aside from regular visits to your Phoenix pediatrician, getting flu shots, and being active, eating a healthy diet is one of the greatest gifts of health that we can give our kids. Teach them that healthy food with many servings of fresh fruits and veggies is not only good for them but delicious, too. Particularly for parents with sick kids, teach kids to be in tune with when they are hungry and to reach for a protein filled snack to fill them up without spiking blood sugar levels. Teaching kids good, healthy habits takes time, but in the long term it’s well worth the effort you put in.