Part 9 of my sneak peek inside Dr. Michele Borba's BIG BOOK of Parenting Solutions is a topic that we see quite frequently on the news: child obesity and how to help overweight teens and kids.  With the New Year around the corner, many adults will make resolutions to lose weight and get in shape.  Why not get the entire family involved?  Eating right starts at home.

Page's 520 - 530 goes into great details of helping your family develop habits for change and understanding more about dieting, as well as signs and symptoms of binge eating.  Michele Borba offers sound proven solutions on page 523 to help you help your kids staring with early intervention.

Here are thirteen proven strategies to slowly incorporate healthier eating habits into your lifestyle; they'll help everyone, especially overweight kids. (page 527)

1. Offer smaller portions.  Consider serving food on smaller plates with small portions.
2. Don't give second helpings.  Serve food once (not family style) and then put food away.
3. Make healthy snacks handy.  Reduce junk-food eating by preparing healthier snacks.
4. Don't ban.  Forbidding favorite foods sets kids up for failure; instead serve them "every so often."
5. Count calories.  Cut higher-calorie items; limit fat intake and sweets; broil and grill instead of frying; serve leaner meats and a variety of protein sources: fish, eggs, beans, and nuts.
6. Cut sodas.  Replace sodas and other sugary drinks with water and low-fat milk.
7. Don't rush meals.  You eat more when you eat quickly.  Tell everyone to chew slowly.
8. Eat in moderation.  Encourage kids to stop when they're full instead of urging them to "clean their plate"
9. Don't single out the overweight kid.  Serve everyone the same food and portions.
10. Sit, don't stand.  Standing to snack at the kitchen counter increases kids' food intake.  To discourage "mindless" eating, insist that everyone eat meals at the table together.
11. Don't watch TV during meals.  Aside from promoting inactivity, TV is distracting and leads to overeating.
12. Eat breakfast.  A study of over two thousand teens found that those who at a daily breakfast consumed a healthier diet and were far less likely to overeat later in the day.
13. Don't give up.  It often takes ten to fifteen tries for a kid to like a new food.  So don't force the food (and create a battle), but do keep serving healthier lower-calorie alternatives.

Next sneak peek: Lying. Does your child lie?

Previous sneak peeks: (1) Gratitude Recipes: Big Book of Parenting Solutions, (2) Parenting 101: Ungrateful teens and children (3) Seven Deadly Parenting Styles, (4) Sex Talk with your Children, (5) Gifted children, (6) Money and your kids, (7) Oppositional Defiant Disorder, (8) Sibling Rivalry, (9) Overweight teens and children, (10) Lying

For those that don't have time to read, this is the perfect book for you since it is not the type of book you sit down to read. As parenting questions come up, you can go straight to the index and find the page number. Immediately you will see the pages divided by boxes, quick tips and advice and easy to read and understand resources. Did I mention she also gives you proven research and statistics?

Order The BIG BOOK of Parenting Solutions today! Whether it is for yourself or as a gift, you won't be disappointed.
 

INSIDE THE BIG BOOK OF PARENTING SOLUTIONS SLIDESHOW.

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