Advice for Keeping Your Child at a Healthy Weight
Last updated on March 10th, 2016 at 12:28 pm
Research shows that children who stay a healthy weight tend to be fitter, healthier, better able to learn, and more self-confident. They’re also much less likely to have health problems in later life.
Children whose parents encourage them to be active and eat well are more likely to stay a healthy weight and grow up healthy.
Check their BMI every now and then using using our BMI calculator to make sure they stay in the healthy range.
Steps for Success
Here are five key ways you can help your child maintain a healthy weight. You can read this whole page or click on the links below to go directly to the topic you want to know about:
- Be a good role model
- Encourage 60 minutes of physical activity a day
- Keep to child-size portions
- Eat healthy meals, drinks and snacks
- Less screen time and more sleep!
Be a Good Role Model
One of the best ways to instil good habits in your child is for you to be a good role model. Children learn by example. One of the most powerful ways to encourage your child to be active and eat well is to do so yourself.
Set a good example by going for a walk or bike ride instead of watching TV, or surfing the internet. Playing in the park or swimming with your children shows them that being active is fun. It’s also a great opportunity for you all to spend time together.
- Any changes you make to your child’s diet and lifestyle are much more likely to be accepted if the changes are small and involve the whole family. Here are 10 ways to get healthy as a family.
- Get inspiration with these 10 ways to get active with your kids.
- If you’re not sure what activities you’d like to try as a family, use this What’s your sport? tool to find out what you’re best suited to.
Get Active
Children need about 60 minutes of physical activity a day for good health, but it doesn’t need to be all at once. Several short 10-minute or even 5-minute bursts of activity throughout the day can be just as good as an hour-long stretch.
For younger children, it can take the form of active play, such as ball games, chasing games like “it” and “tag”, riding a scooter, and using playground swings, climbing frames and see-saws.
For older children it could include riding a bike, skateboarding, walking to school, skipping, swimming, dancing and martial arts.
Walking or cycling short distances instead of using the car or bus is a great way to be active together as a family – and you’ll save money too.
- Find out the amount and type of physical activity recommended for under-5s
- Find out the amount and type of physical activity recommended for children and young people aged 5-18.
- Join Change4Life for free and your child will get their own personalised activity plan full of good ideas for getting moving.
- Watch this short video to see how playing can help all aspects of a child’s development and improve their health.
Child-size Portions
Try to avoid feeding your child over-sized portions.
There’s very little official guidance on precisely how much food children require so you’ll need to use your own judgement.
A good rule of thumb is to start meals with small servings and let your child ask for more if they are still hungry.
Try not to make your child finish everything on the plate or eat more than they want to. And avoid using adult-size plates for younger children as it encourages them to eat oversized portions.
It may also help if you encourage your child to eat slowly and have set mealtimes. You can use mealtimes as an opportunity to catch up on what’s happened during the day.
- Explain to your child how to get the balance of their diet right using the eatwell plate. It shows how much they should eat from each food group.
- Read more about what counts as a balanced diet.
- Get ideas for healthier school packed lunches.
- Ideas for getting children involved in switching to a healthier lifestyle.
Eat Healthy Meals
Children, just like adults, should aim to eat five or more portions of fruit and vegetables everyday. They’re a great source of vitamins, minerals and fibre.
Getting 5 A DAY shouldn’t be too difficult. Almost all fruit and vegetables count towards your child’s 5 A DAY including fresh, tinned, frozen and dried. Juices, smoothies, beans and pulses also count.
Discourage your child from having too many sugary or high-fat foods like sweets, cakes, biscuits, some sugary cereals and soft drinks. These foods and drinks tend to be high in calories and low in nutrients.
Aim for your child to get most of their calories from healthier foods such as fruit and vegetables, and starchy foods such as bread, potatoes, pasta and rice (preferably wholemeal). And switch sweet drinks for water.
- Fussy eater? Not a problem with these tips to help your kids enjoy their 5 A DAY.
- Tasty 5 A DAY family-friendly recipes.
- Find out more about healthy drinks for children.
- Try these sugar swaps – healthier swaps for breakfast, snacks and puddings
- Ideas for sugar swaps when you shop.
Less Screen Time and More Sleep!
Help your children to avoid sitting and lying around too much, as it makes it more likely for them to put on weight.
Limit the amount of time your child spends on inactive pastimes such as watching television, playing video games and playing on electronic devices.
There’s no hard and fast advice on how much is too much, but experts advise that children should watch no more than two hours of television each day – and remove all screens (including mobile phones) from their bedroom at night.
It also helps children stay trim if they sleep well. It’s been shown that children who don’t have the recommended amount of sleep are more likely to be overweight. The less children sleep, the greater the risk of them becoming obese. Lack of sleep can also affect their mood and behaviour.
- Find out how much sleep children need according to their age.
- How screens impair children’s sleep.
- Sleep tips for children.
From www.nhs.uk
Budgeting for a Family with Food Allergies
Last updated on March 3rd, 2016 at 12:10 pm
Food allergies can cause a strain on families in many ways but very often I hear how people find it difficult 
to stay on budget while purchasing their allergy-friendly food items. All of us want to feed our families safely but trying to make ends meet is a natural part of each family’s costs. For the most part, allergy-friendly food products are higher in price, can be more difficult to find in your average grocery store and although online ordering is available, shipping costs and extra credit card use can discourage people from stocking up on the foods that they truly need to have inside of their kitchens.
As a mother and primary food shopper of our household, there are some money saving tips that may be useful for your situation. Obviously, everyone has a different allergy situation and a different budget goal but in general, having options is helpful when we have to start scrimping and saving. Here are some simple ways to consider adding to your budgeting plan:
- Become very, VERY friendly with your local stores– Many stores have certain days or specific times of the day that they will begin to mark down foods, including fruits & veggies. These are all items that can be taken home, frozen or cooked right away (or cook then freeze for later use). It may seem like a lot of work but in the end, you are cooking ahead for meals and it often teaches you how to utilize what you have in new ways.
- Look in bargain outlets/stores– Dollar stores, health food stores, places likes Big Lots, etc. will stock allergy-friendly items from time to time as well as have markdown sales. Pair up the sales with a printable coupon that you may get from a product website and you can stock up.
- Store discount rack– My local health food store usually has a grocery cart right when you walk in – I always go through it. The food stores I frequent also have markdown displays near the cashiers and somewhat “hidden” deep discount shelves- these are the places that I look at first. If you are unsure if the store has one, inquire at the customer service desk. Click here to see an example of what we have in our store.
- No discount rack? Ask– If your favorite stores don’t have a markdown section, ask them if they have any items that they may want to just get rid of. If you can negotiate, they may even be willing to give you what they have left at a big discount just to get rid of it.
- Churches & Organizations– Do you belong to a church or other organization? Many have food pantries & you can request specific allergy-friendly items be donated. There is no harm or shame in asking for help when you need it. Just try to repay the favor down the road if someone else is asking too.
- Free food– whenever someone asks, always say yes- Even when it’s an item you cannot use. These are foods that you can donate back to your church or organization. You may also be able to take these unopened items back to the original store without a receipt to exchange them at the store for items that you can use. Always ask stores about their return policies.
- Contact companies directly– Try, always try. You may not get a free item but you may get a coupon that can be used later with a sale. Often companies are happy to send you something to try.
- Contact me- I am always available to help whomever needs it. I am a food allergy mother just like so many of you. I was there from the beginning stages of my son’s food allergy
diagnosis to now where cooking and food shopping are my life (in a good way). I encourage everyone to always reach out to me to see if I can help you and your family in some way. Sometimes having a different person’s point of view and ideas creates an entirely different perspective for our own situation. Whether it be a peronal food allergy consultation, needing recipe ideas or even just a place to find a laugh when you really, really need it I invite you to visit me at AllergyPhoods and any of my other media sites.
Don’t let food allergies diminish your budgeting skills- embrace it as a challenge to increase your family’s pantry and decrease your monthly spending. Don’t get discouraged if there are months that save just pennies on the dollar- for each of those months, you will very likely have extraordinary months or weeks that will offset that. Every cent counts but having a supply of safe foods for your family’s allergies counts even more.
Tips and Resources for Coping with Cyberbullying
Last updated on September 24th, 2018 at 11:28 pm
Cyberbullying is the use of technology such as mobile phones and the internet to bully other people. Coping with cyberbullying can be difficult because it can happen at any time of the day.
What is Cyberbullying?
- Emailing or texting threatening or nasty messages to people.
- Posting an embarrassing or humiliating video of someone on a video-hosting site such as YouTube.
- Harassing someone by repeatedly sending texts or instant messages in a chat room.
- Setting up profiles on social networking sites, such as Facebook, to make fun of someone.
- ‘Happy slapping’, which is when people use their mobiles to film and share videos of physical attacks.
- Posting or forwarding someone else’s personal or private information or images without their permission.
- Sending viruses that can damage another person’s computer.
- Making abusive comments about another user on a gaming site.
Are You a Cyberbully?
Even if you’re not the one who started the online bullying, you become part of it when you laugh at a message that could be hurtful or threatening to someone else, or forward it on.
Don’t let yourself get dragged into cyberbullying. Think about the impact of what you say in text messages, chat rooms and emails. Could your words be used to hurt someone else, or could they be turned against you?
In some cases, cyberbullying can be a criminal offence. For example, it could be treated as a form of harassment or threatening behaviour.
How to Respond to Cyberbullying
Do
- Talk to someone you trust. This could be a teacher, parent, carer or friend. Schools have a responsibility to ensure that students aren’t bullied, and they can take action even if the bullying is happening outside school. You can call ChildLine confidentially on 0800 1111.
- Report the bullying to the internet service provider (ISP) if the bullying happened online. Ask a parent or teacher for help, or look at Chatdanger, which has safety advice about mobiles and internet use.
- Report the bullying to your mobile phone provider if you’ve received bullying texts or calls on your mobile. You may even have to change your number if you’re repeatedly bullied through your phone.
- Block instant messages and emails. Ask a parent or teacher for help, or look at the Chatdanger website for advice on how to do this.
- Report serious bullying, such as physical or sexual threats, to the police.
Don’t
- Don’t delete the upsetting emails or messages. Keep the evidence. This will help to identify the bully if the bullying is anonymous. Even people who use a false name or email can be traced.
- Don’t reply. This is what the bully wants, and it might make things worse.
How to Avoid Being Cyberbullied
The best way to avoid being cyberbullied is to use the internet and mobile phones carefully.
- Don’t give out personal details, such as your phone number or address, in a chat room.
- Think carefully before posting photos or videos of you or your friends.
- Only give your mobile number to close friends.
- Protect passwords, and never give your friends access to your accounts.
- Don’t forward nasty emails.
- Learn how to block instant messages or use mail filters to block emails.
- Know how to report bullying to internet service providers or website administrators. Ask a parent or teacher for help, or look at the advice on Chatdanger’s website.
Information and Help with Cyberbullying
BeatBullying allows young people to get help and support each other online. If you’re being cyberbullied or bullied in any other way, you can log on to the site and chat to a cybermentor. The cybermentors are young people too and can help you work out what to do next.
Chatdanger contains safety advice on mobiles, chatrooms, email, online games and instant messaging.
Digizen focuses on responsible use of the internet. Its section on cyberbullying includes a short film called Let’s fight it together, about how a boy deals with being cyberbullied.
Editor’s Note: Cyberbullying resources for the US:
- SafeKids.com – Bullying and Cyberbullying Resources
- Stopbullying.gov
- National Crime Prevention Council
- Cyberbullying Research Center – useful tips for teens and parents
It’s New Year’s Eve Somewhere…Celebrate Early!
Last updated on January 18th, 2016 at 11:02 am
On New Year’s Eve, my 13-year old son REALLY wanted to ring in the New Year and watch the ball drop in Times Square on the TV – particularly because the year before, while visiting my husband’s parents in Arizona, we lost track of the time difference and completely MISSED midnight on the East Coast – ball drop and all.
So that was a fine plan, except for the fact that we were having friends over – a couple who have a younger boy with ADHD and Asperger’s – and he probably wasn’t going to be able to manage well until midnight, especially as his medication wore off.
My solution was to arrange for us to celebrate New Year’s Eve twice – once at the regular time for our family and once earlier with our friends. But I didn’t want this plan to seem too contrived. My friend’s son is 9 years old and very bright, so I needed a context for this earlier celebration. So, what did I come up with???…..Greenland! We celebrated New Year’s Eve along with the residents of the capital of Greenland – Nuuk (or Gothåb, the Danish name), which is two hours earlier than Eastern Standard Time (e.g. their midnight was our 10pm). To build further credibility for this plan, I shot my girlfriend a text and said that we should all identify some fun facts or trivia about our celebratory focus, especially if this appealed to her son. We had NO idea what we were creating….
It turns out that this was right up the little guy’s alley. He spent most of the day on the internet (thanks Wikipedia!) and even learned how to use Excel (did I mention he is super bright??). And after an awesome dinner, we ended up playing a Jeopardy-style Greenland trivia game with categories and point levels associated with the difficulty of the question!
A few of the things we learned:
- Nuuk means “cape” in Greenlandic because it is positioned at the end of a fjord – and is the world’s northernmost capital city
- Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark – and is the world’s largest island
- Greenland’s parliament is called Inatsisartut – and is located in Nuuk
- The economy of Nuuk is focused on fishing and mining of zinc and gold
This might not sound like the most exciting activity for a New Year’s Eve get-together….but since we divided into girl/boy teams (girls won, of course!) – and the adults had the benefit of a little bubbly – it was really a hoot. Plus it addressed the needs of our younger participants – even those with special needs. Depending on where you live, you may have a lot more choices for locations to focus an early New Year’s Eve celebration on – here’s a mom blog that gives other exotic locations to set your celebration to – but either way, I would highly recommend it for next December 31st.
Teen Sex Tips: How to Say No
Last updated on January 20th, 2016 at 12:57 pm
Nobody has the right to make you go further than you want to. You also have every right to say no, at any point, whoever you’re with. If you want to have sex but your boyfriend or girlfriend or friend doesn’t, you must respect their feelings.
First Time or Not
You might think from what you hear from friends that all young people are having sex. But the average age for having sex for the first time is 16, and not everyone does it at that age. Some people wait until they’re older.
So you’re not the only one saying no. Even if you’ve had sex before, this doesn’t mean you have to do it again. It’s up to you every time.
When you meet someone you like, it might take weeks, months or even years before you’re both ready for sex. Take it slow, and think about your feelings, as well as theirs. Never rush or push each other into it.
Try talking about the relationship. Communicating helps you to know when the time is right, and to know exactly how you both feel, rather than guessing.
How to Say No
People who want to have sex might say things to try to get you into bed. Here are some ideas of what you can say in return:
They say: “Don’t you fancy (*like) me?”
You say: “Yes, but I respect you too,” or “You’re gorgeous but I want to know you better.”
They say: “My friends think we should have done it by now.”
You say: “They don’t know what’s best for us,” or “You should care more about what I think.”
They say: “We don’t need to use a condom.”
You say: “I’m not ready to be a parent and I don’t want to risk getting an infection.”
They say: “Let’s just get it over with.”
You say: “If we wait until we’re ready it’ll be much better.”
They say: “If you loved me you’d want to do it.”
You say: “It’s because I love you that I want to wait,” or “If you loved me you wouldn’t say that.”
They say: “If we don’t do it soon, I’ll explode!”
You say: “You need biology lessons … it’s not bad for you to wait.”
They say: “But you’re 16.”
You say: “Just because it’s legal doesn’t mean I have to. I’ll decide when I’m ready.”
If you both agree to have sex, make sure that:
- You use condoms to protect yourselves from sexually transmitted infections.
- You use contraception to help prevent an unintended pregnancy – find out about the 15 methods of contraception
Practice Saying No
It might sound strange, but try practicing saying no:
- “No, I’m not ready.”
- “No, I don’t want to.”
- “No, it doesn’t feel right.”
Or simply:
- “No.”
If you don’t want to have sex, anyone who really likes you will respect your decision even if you’ve had sex with them before.
If your boyfriend or girlfriend says something like, “If you loved me you’d do it”, don’t fall for it. It’s emotional blackmail. However much you love or like them, you don’t have to have sex with them to prove it.
Sexual Assault
A sexual assault can range from inappropriate touching to a life-threatening attack. It’s a myth that victims of sexual assault always look battered and bruised. A sexual assault may not leave any outward signs, but it’s still a crime.
Victims are most likely to be young women aged 16 to 24. But men and women of any age, race, ability or sexuality can be assaulted. This could be by a stranger or, much more likely, someone you know. It could be a partner, former partner, husband, relative, friend or colleague. Don’t be afraid to get help.
Find out where to get help after a sexual assault.
Domestic Violence
Domestic violence is when one person in a relationship is abusive towards another. This could be emotional, physical or sexual abuse, including forcing you into sexual activity against your will. If this has happened to you, help is available.
Find out:
- Where to go for help if you’ve experienced domestic abuse
- Information for male victims of domestic abuse
Editor’s Note: *clarification provided for our US readers.
- Info for teens on relationships, sex, and sexual health: StayTeen.org
- Information and resources on sexual/domestic violence:
From www.nhs.uk
Stress, School and Perfectionism – A Kid’s Perspective
Last updated on December 18th, 2015 at 11:15 am
A child’s desire to get everything just right may be their downfall. Imagine sitting in front of a blank screened computer, trying to think of the perfect way to start an essay. All the pressure put on kids to succeed, especially in competitive honors classes with teachers that ask for work to be “brilliant, timely and impressive,” can make it hard to get anything done. Kids just get stuck…a lot like writer’s block. Students will tend to worry about making every detail perfect rather than just getting the essay done. It seems the concept of the rough draft has been lost. As a student in Honors Language Arts I have had my fair share of experiences like this.
More recently, I was writing an essay about a novel and I couldn’t think of how to start my essay, which typically is the hardest part. I felt lost, frustrated, stressed, anxious, hopeless, sad. The list goes on and on. I wasn’t satisfied by anything that popped into my mind. Many kids like to jump right into their writing without making an outline, but I think in this case an outline would be very helpful. The key, however, is to create an effective outline. In grade school we are taught that outlines are for laying out the structure of your piece, but when you can’t think of what to say, writing random things that pop into your head and then letting your brain naturally improve upon them is good to get the creative juices flowing. That is the key to good outline writing. And if during your writing process you find a bunch of ideas rushing through your mind that you want to implement later in your essay, write them down.
Many kids don’t do a whole lot of editing, either. They try to get it right immediately without taking the time to make many changes. After you have made your outline and you have some rough inspiration written down on paper, sit down and write something very crude. If you try to do it on the first try rather than making edits you are going to spend a long time trying to get a masterpiece out of thin air. As the philosopher Voltaire said, “The enemy of the good is the perfect”. After all, most teachers give 
rough draft due dates for a reason. After you are done with your rough draft you should spend a lot of time improving on the essay. This is a safe bet for meeting the requirements and turning everything in on time. In fact, I am using this strategy to write this post right now. I have created a great metaphor for this concept – building on Voltaire’s saying: “It’s easier to polish a turd than it is to poop diamonds.” It basically means that it is easier to polish something bad than it is to poop something as hard and pointy as cut diamonds. Please excuse the terminology, but I am a teenage boy.
Of course, this solution doesn’t apply to all cases and the best place to start is to always make sure you understand the problem. Stress can come from many places: parents, teachers, other students…it can even come from the stressed student. As a parent, if you want to help, make sure your child doesn’t put too much pressure on him/herself. Also, take steps to make sure you are not putting too much pressure on them to excel. As a child, I know that the stress of school can negatively affect kids mentally, physically, and emotionally. Your child may not get enough sleep because they’re staying up late to finish or “perfect” their work which can affect growth and development.
Signs to look for that school and stress have your child down:
- They may seem sad or depressed.
- They may not be as confident as usual.
- They may be avoiding explaining how much homework they have or procrastinating.
- They might not be participating in many activities or not taking much interest in a subject that they used to love.
They say “all work and no play makes for a dull person” but where kids are concerned, probably one that’s pretty stressed too, so encourage your child to do more than school work. And if your child is in a bad place the best thing for you to do is to be supportive and positive. Help them as much as possible. But, you know your child best, so do what you think suits them best.
