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Does it feel like your child is obsessed with sugar and all they want is junk food? Here are the top 10 ways to reduce the desire for sweets.
- Reconsider sugar-sweetened beverages: The 20% increase in sugar over the past 40 years is primarily due to sugar-sweetened beverages. Yes, soda is one of them but so are energy drinks, juice drinks, and coffee drinks (See this post for the difference between juice drinks and 100% juice).
- See how low you can go: I regret the day I gave my daughter sweetened yogurt because the next time I served her plain she refused. When possible, keep your child on everyday foods that are as close to natural as possible — saving the sweets for “desserty” type foods.
- Spoil your child’s palate: No doubt your child will be faced with lots of overly-processed sweet foods throughout their life. But at home, you can up the ante by thinking twice about bringing these foods in your home and, instead, provide homemade desserts, wholesome treats, and dark chocolate (my personal favorite).
- Stay neutral when it comes to sweets: While it’s not always possible to stay totally calm when it comes to kids and sweets, try your best to stay neutral and matter-of-fact.
When children are provided with a variety of options, they typically balance out their overall intake over time, without us interfering. They need permission to eat sweets so they don’t feel scarce. That’s how you help your child’s sugar obsession.
- Evaluate your own mindset and fear around sugar. Have you ever considered how your own personal thoughts and fears around sugar may be impacting the current situation?
- Take notice of how you talk about sweets and sugar. Our words our so powerful. What we say and how we say it can profoundly impact how our children view food, nutrition and their bodies.
- Allow foods high in sugar regularly with meals and snacks. Not just at holidays. You may also be experiencing an increase in perceived ‘sugar-obsession’ around the holidays if you normally restrict sugary foods and then the availability suddenly increases.
- Give kids opportunities to self-regulate and learn more about their bodies. On this note, there is great value in letting children eat until they’ve had their fill, even with foods high in sugar.
- Serve them. And sometimes don't limit them. Often, when I suggest this to parents, they look at me like I have three eyes. "You mean, sometimes I just let my daughter eat all the cookies?
- Don't talk about these foods as good or bad. Stop making sweets into something they’re not: something that makes us feel shame or judgment when we eat them.
- Don't use them as a reward for other food. I don't like using sweets as a reward for eating other food, or for anything for that matter. When we offer food as a reward, think about the message you’re sending: "I have to eat my broccoli (yuck) to get my candy (yum)."
- Sometimes, serve them (gasp!) with a meal. Yep. Just try it. To put sweets on a level playing field, give it to your child with a meal. Think about this
May 22, 2018 · Many parents may attempt to limit, control, or prevent their child from having sweets and treats, but these behaviors, though well-intended, can definitely backfire. Because food that is “off-limits” or forbidden will almost always become more desirable, no matter what it is.
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Nov 13, 2019 · Do you feel like your child is obsessed with sugar? Have you found them sneaking candy or having a binge on brownies? These problems often arise when sugar is too tightly restricted for your unique child. Dive in to discover some of the key motives for such sugar-seeking behaviors and what you as th
