Ellie of The Mini Makery, shares her tips on converting fussy-eaters into new-food-lovers
We wholeheartedly believe that inside each child there is the potential for them to be the most adventurous, food-loving being, that has the confidence to try and LOVE new foods; parents just need to be given the tools, tricks and support on how to do it.
Feeding children a diverse, wholefood diet has never been more important. The rise of ultra processed foods (UPF) plays a huge role in the detriment of childrens health and well-being. An eye popping 50% of our diets are made up of UPF. These foods are void of nutritional value and are packed full of unhealthy fats, salt and sugar. Flavour enhancers, artificial sweeteners, additives, all trick our brains into wanting more. The more of these foods we eat, the more our gut microbiome is disrupted. The harmful microbes thrive, sending more messages to the brain and our body craves more of these foods.
Feeding our gut microbes fibre rich, whole foods allows the beneficial gut bacteria to thrive. This has a positive impact on mood, sleep, energy levels, immune function, cravings and more.
How to feed your microbes:
Eat a rainbow a day – something red, orange, yellow, green, and purple every day. It could be made up of eating a strawberry, carrot stick, sweet corn, cucumber and some blueberries. Try your best to mix up the fruit and veg on different days… microbes love diversity. Also, if you have a particularly fussy child, start with a nibble of each colour and build up from there. Celebrate the small steps!
Diversify your diet – aim to eat at least 30 different plants a week (fruits, vegetables, nuts & seeds, whole grains, beans, pulses, herbs & spices.) We’ve designed wall charts to help! (They even work on teenagers!) Also know that if you mixed up the onions that you cooked with and used shallots, a red onion and a white onion in different meals, these would total three points. The same goes for a red pepper and a green pepper – you could count a point each for these, but only one point if you ate two red peppers.
Add fermented foods – live cultured yogurt, kombucha, sauerkraut. These can be quite an acquired taste, however they can be mixed into foods. Kefir can be mixed into their usual yogurt or into a smoothie. Start with a teaspoon at a time and build up.
Remove/reduce ultra processed foods. It’s scary to think about how much ultra processed foods we consume. Breakfast cereals are sprayed with vitamins to put back in nutrients. Deli meats, hotdogs and sausages, pre-prepared pizzas, packaged biscuits, cakes are all ultra processed foods… Start by making small changes. Can you make porridge with fruit a couple of mornings instead of cheerios’/shreddies? Or adding some seed mix into the cereal to add more nutrients? Making your own pizzas can be fun, especially when adding some sweetcorn/peppers/fresh basil.
Play outside – get muddy, dig, splash in puddles, plant flowers/veg/fruits of your own and cuddle those pets!
Follow The Mini Makery for tips, inspiration and support.
