Teaching Your Children the Difference Between Snacks and Treats

“Mom, can we have a snack?” If you are a momma of littles this phrase is probably one of the ones you hear most often, along with “Can you wipe me?” and “Why do I have to take a nap?”

You also probably hear it within five minutes of you child asking to be excused from the table. Sorry son, five minutes is literally not enough time for your stomach to empty the amount of meat, potatoes, and salad you just ate. Snack time is at least two hours away.

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Snacks are needed at my house, to keep boys in a good mood and to keep their growing bodies nourished. But my boys seem to think that brownies, cookies, and chocolate are an everyday snack which is not something I think is needed. {I do eat chocolate daily but that is self care and helps me to stay sane….so I think technically I could consider it a alternative therapy…}

Now is the best time to teach the boys what the difference is between a snack and a treat. We have been talking a lot about this at our house lately and here are some definitions we came up with to differentiate between snacks and treats.

Teaching your toddler the difference between snacks and treats: definitions+ printable idea chart and matching game. #toddlers #healthykids Click To Tweet

A snack is something that will satisfy hunger and provide nutrients, proteins, healthy carbs, and healthy fats to nourish our bodies and help us to grow. Snacks are allowed daily. If the boys ask for a snack within a relatively short time after leaving the table they have to drink some water before they get the snack. When children are growing you may find they eat all the time but if they are eating a real food diet they are probably going through their food quickly. You might want their snacks to be higher in protein and healthy fats to help satisfy them longer.

A treat is something that we want that doesn’t necessarily have real health benefits but it satisfies a craving for sweet, or salty foods. A treat is NOT a daily occurence at our house; a treat is a treat, maybe one or two a week is what we have found normally happens around here. You may want them more or less for your family, or even more or less for certain individuals in your family.

Teaching children the differences between snacks and treats while they are young will help get them started on a path of healthy choices and knowledge of what is in their food while they are in their most impressionable ages.

Talk to your children about their food choices. Teach them different ways to prepare their food. Read about how to traditionally prepare food. Help them to learn about the differences between processed foods and real foods. Teach them that it is okay to indulge in treats, desserts, fried foods, etc, but that they need to build the majority of their diet around healthier choices and options.

 

If you are going to teach your children about healthier choices you need to know them yourself.

If you are going to be teaching your children about health, food, and nutrition you will need to do some learning yourself.Here are some books that I recommend to help you get started on your journey learning about food and nutrition

Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon

I love this book!! This was the first book I read when I was starting my own journey into eating more real foods and using traditional methods to cook. There is so much information here about how food was traditionally prepared, how you can start on a journey to whole food living, soaking grains, sprouting flours, and so much more! Most of the recipes that we have tried from this massive informational cookbook have been delicious, the ones that we didn’t care for were because we weren’t used to that culture’s food prep or spices. even if you don’t use it for the recipes, every page is full of little tidbits of information and studies.

Real Food for Mother and Baby: The Fertility Diet, Eating for Two, and Baby’s First Foods by Nina Planck
I read this book shortly after I learned I was pregnant with my second son, Cameron. The actual reason I read it though wasn’t really to learn about food, but more because I wanted to have the healthiest pregnancy possible so that I could achieve my VBAC goal. I recommend this book to any pregnant momma out there, you will learn so much!! It may seem controversial at first, but I think as you continue reading it you will find that the majority of the book is food science based.

The Nourshing Traditions Book of Baby and Child Care by Sally Fallon Morell and Thomas S. Cowan
Sally Fallon has come under fire recently for recommending fermented cod liver oil and I am still unsure as to what I make of all that, but the rest of the information here about diet, baby and child care is sound. It is probably not a book that a main stream momma would like, because it talks about declining vaccinations, alternative remedies, and other natural things that excite crunchy mommas but may make others uncomfortable. Just a warning before you start reading it. 🙂

Digestive Wellness for Children:How to Strengthen the Immune System and Prevent Disease through Healthy Digestion by Elizabeth Lipski, P.H.D, C.C.N.
If you are someone who likes to have get your information from doctors and “more” educated authors than I urge you to start with this book first, Elizabeth uses studies to make her points and has lots of references for you to look up. This book includes many alternative therapies and remedies for different childhood ailments that can come from having a weakened immune system/gut; the gut contains up to 60% {possibly more depending on your source} of our immune system and if it is not functioning correctly than your immune system will not be able to do proper battle for you.

Teaching your children the difference between snacks and treat + a free printable matching game AND idea chart

Back to teaching your children the differences between snacks and treats. You don’t have to use my definitions, but you should come up with one that will make sense to your children. If they can read you can print off this chart so that they can see their options and choices; you can also print this off for their babysitters, or for whoever you leave them with, when you are out of the house.

Here are some more ideas for gluten-free and diary free snacks:
*strawberries, apples, or bananas with homemade chocolate nut butter
*a gluten-free tortilla spread with nut butter and honey then rolled up and cut into pinwheels
*leftovers
*roasted chickpeas
*BBQ kale chips
*pistachios, dried cranberries, and dairy free chocolate chips

And more ideas for gluten free and dairy free treats:
*grain free no bake cookies
*grain free and dairy free pumpkin bars
*dark chocolate squares
*dairy free ice cream from Trader Joe’s with gluten free Joe Joe’s crumbled up on top
*gluten free chocolate chip cookies
*gluten free and dairy free lemon raspberry pie
*more than a handful of potato chips
*some candy bars

FREE Printable Matching Game! Teaching your child what is a snack or a treat while they are young can help set them on the path to healthier food choices +options Click To Tweet

You can get your FREE printable matching game by clicking here. You can use it to help start the conversation about healthy choices with your children. All they have to do is match the food to the correct answer in the middle.