Keep a healthy family

The other day when I was out of the house without breakfast, I was quite thirsty and hungry by mid-afternoon that went into a shop to ask for a bottle of soft drink and a meat pie; my favourite on days like this. Unfortunately, the first kiosk I went to had run out of my favourite drink that day. Call it the craving for sugar, caffeine or whatever, I rushed out as the boy selling there tried to tell me, “That one is not good for you at your age.”

“My age?” I fired back at him
“Yes it is all sugar.”
“So it is good for you?” I asked him

“I am still a small boy,” was his satisfied response
We laughed over this; his mother and the other people who were there at the time.

My age, really, but which of these drinks does not have enough sugar content to call for moderation, I wondered to myself. Also, does youth assure us that we can eat as much junk food as we want without some of us suffering for it?

I personally do not think so; but in this age- conscious and youth-worshipping society, we tend to think that we can do absolutely anything when we are young and get away with it; that includes cultivating a poor diet culture. It does not stop resultant health issues cropping up at a younger age however.

It would be wrong, therefore, to spread abroad the belief that a child should eat foods that may make her overweight-our diets should make us feel good about ourselves, not make us anxious about ourselves.

Seven-year-old Fola makes people laugh when she announces that, “I am watching my diet.” It was not only an excuse to refuse foods and other edibles that are given to children, the little girl was on the heavy side-too heavy, everyone agreed even at birth. But her mother and father, who is a medical doctor, had worked out a diet that the little girl was proud of.

We made fun of her, but some adults copied the girl’s example and seriously addressed their weight problem and boldly accepted their shortcomings.

Some mothers criticized the parents for what they said was deprivation of the simple childhood joys of eating sweets: “Allow her to eat what she likes now, she can tackle the weight issues later,” one mother scolded the mother once.

We saw though that her weight was not a problem to her; the diet and the thought that she was in control made her feel special. And she shed the weight.

It was a task accomplished because the parents made it seem as just another family project that required all hands to make it possible; “you are a bit on the fat side and if nothing is done now, you may have to work harder than this later.” The girl cooperated and even enjoyed her fruits and vegetables.

But it worked with Fola because the whole family went on ‘diet’ as it was the food they eat most of the time.

We admit, however, that it may not be easy to make many children stick to a diet, especially the ones who enjoy their sweets and pastries. And you may make it a warfare when you tell them ‘you are too fat’ or that ‘mummy is on diet’ and goes ahead to give them uninteresting food.

The ones who eat in protest may resist any thing forced on them to make them lose weight. The key to keeping them on healthy diet is the information that they are healthier and stronger eating fruits and vegetables. Most children want to be healthy and strong; watch your six year-old son flex his ‘muscle’.

Think of exercise; it is not news to say that Nigerians are exercising more than ever; watch whole families as they walk together or turn up at the National Stadium, children carrying exercise mats. Exercise is good for the body. It keeps the bones and muscles strong. It sharpens the mind and makes a young person alert to learning.

“Apart from workouts, the older generation walked long distances and did not collapse from it”, observes a friend

“We trotted home holding onto my mother’s bicycle coming home from school. We fetched water from a stream that was quite a long distance from home before school in the morning; we did that after school too,” she recalls.

We have school runs these days, still a family can make children walk to school sometimes if they do not live far away when for example, a child in Ketu may have to go to school in Victoria Island. Yet it is possible that they walk some distance by going down a bus –stop or some safe place, about two bus stops to the house.

The security challenges are reducing the fun children should have in discovering their environment on their own. Being constantly watched over and hearing all the terrible news cannot be fun for growing children. You may include other exercises like swimming, skating and bike riding; I was surprised at the number of motorcycles I saw parked in a school in Victoria Island one day.

At the close of school, I saw that they belonged to students. But as okada has given motorcycle a bad name, we must hasten to explain that we mean healthy sport and exercise, not a transport to Igbobi. We must think of safety helmets in some exercises.

As indoor exercise, introduce a family dance time; in a compound where it is still possible, have race time when children run from one fence to the other to see the first to reach there. Jumping burns calories and children do it without much urging.

The Diet
Cook more and fry less. Introduce them gradually to healthy foods at home. When you cook instead of frying, the food retains most of the nourishment. Your children may notice the change and kick against it, so tell them why they should eat healthier. But do not stop them indulging in sweets once in a while. Allow them milk drinks, too, because milk helps form bones as they grow.

Serve fruits and vegetables; we have a lot in season now. It is the best time to have nutrients like calcium, vitamins and minerals and others; these nutrients protect from diseases. Grow your own vegetables where possible, they are fresher. Raise poultry with the involvement of your children; feeding them and naming favourite chickens are good things children enjoy doing. You also have a good source of protein. I enjoy looking at Hajia’s turkey as it takes its five chicks on a walk.