BEYOND THE FEED

In this week’s episode of Beyond the Feed, I was joined by Courtney Johnson, a women, infant, and child nutritionist. Johnson and I discussed early childhood and parental nutritional education.

Johnson has found that nutrition education is lacking, starting at home. Many of her clients come to her with minimal knowledge of what is right for children to consume regularly and suggest that a change needs to be made.

“There are a lot of parents who don’t know what they need,” said Johnson. “I would encourage there to be some type of education for parents.”

Johnson sees this firsthand. There are parents who do not realize that processed food items are bad for their kids, and soda is unacceptable for a toddler. This feels like it should be common knowledge, but the system in which our current generation of parents grew up has failed them.

Not only has awareness of healthy eating behavior declined, but the feelings around food have as well. Johnson notes that kids are rewarded for good behavior and accomplishments with treats like candy or ice cream. This kind of reward almost glorifies this type of food. It makes it more appealing to children when it is held on a pedestal.

This epidemic is starting in schools, which means it is now parents’ job to pick up the pieces.

“Your children know what they want, but they don’t know what they need,” said Johnson.

Without looking for information on healthy eating habits, new parents might struggle to properly teach their kids what fueling their bodies intentionally looks like. The importance of raising a kid in a knowledgeable and nutritious household is crucial to their future abilities to devote themselves to healthy lifestyles. The schools’ use of food as a reward system seems to be detrimental to children’s relationships between food and success as well.

In what ways do you believe the school system could improve dietary education?