One of the things I enjoy most about life is how much there is too learn. 

Learning is a lifelong process, it is a self-directed and self-paced journey of discovery which fills me with true wonder at the world.

When it comes to the area of kids nutrition, I’ve learnt bucket loads, through the eCourse Thrive, Raising Kids Who Love Real Food, which I proudly run with great mate Alexx Stuart from Low Tox Life. We are kicking off our only live round this year on the 22nd May 2019! 

There are SO many things I have learnt from interviewing various experts, so I decided to share just three things which have personally made me stop to think, and have made a difference to how I approach nutrition and parenting issues with my family as well as my clients.

1. In my interview with Dr Leila Masson, a biomedical paediatrician, we were talking about genes amongst many other things. It was enlightening to here how inheriting a gene alone doesn’t cause illness. It’s the gene in combination with certain environmental factors, which can trigger the expression of that gene. My daughter has inherited a gene from her Dad (Factor 5 Leiden) which makes her susceptible to blood clotting. This gene has been expressed in her Dad which has caused him health issues and lifelong reliance on blood thinning tablets. So you can imagine how worrying this has been for me. Given my daughter’s healthy lifestyle and reduced exposure to toxins, however, I am comforted that this gene is less likely to be triggered in her. Soooo good to know Dr Masson!

• In my interview with Simone Emery, from Play with Food and who is a Children’s Feeding Expert, I learnt SO MUCH about fussy eaters. Example, have you heard of the term ‘food jagging‘? It’s when your child suddenly gets stuck on a food and that’s the only thing they’ll eat. While it can be incredibly worrying to parents, Simone explains that often it’s simply related to a developmental or cognitive stage they are at, and she provides some very practical tips on how to work through this stage to ensure you child gets proper nutrition.

• My interview with David Bedrick, Counselor and Positive Body Image Advocate, was a huge eye opener not just for me, but with many members who were incredibly moved by the knowledge he shared. For instance, what he discovered when doing some research 7 or 8 years ago, was that more women were dying of eating disorders then they were dying of AIDS. But AIDS makes the headline news, eating disorders only makes the ‘style section’ tucked away somewhere. Eating disorders are deadly and affect 7 million women in America and affect approximately 9% of Australians. I loved David’s advice that one thing we can do is to help our children start to think critically about the ‘ideal female image’ from a young age, with tips and ideas on conversations you can start to have with them.

There is so much to learn about both physical and psychological health of our children and so many positive and simple ways we can overhaul or enhance their lives. Alexx Stuart and I share so much in our course THRIVE, RAISING KIDS WHO LOVE REAL FOOD. We are proud to say the experts we interviewed are the best in the field and we are blessed to have them share their wisdom and passion to help parents provide the best life possible for all of our children.

Join our only LIVE ROUND this year and be surrounded by passionate, likeminded parents on a mission to provide the best life for their kids and where Alexx and I will be daily present in the private Facebook to steer the ship and answer all your burning questions.

Bren x

Simone is a veritable encyclopaedia on all things to do with fussy eaters, and in our expert interview for THE FUSSY EATING BUNDLE, she shares some very insightful and extremely helpful effective strategies to combat fussy eating.

I’m so thrilled to have her on the blog sharing some of her expertise here for you all as well.

Family Meals and Fussy Eating- Guest Post by Simone Emery from Play with Food.

First thing first, I want to thank Brenda for having me here today! I love Brenda’s honest approach to health and wellbeing for the entire family.

Here’s a quick and succinct guest post all about conquering fussy eating stages with your child. My experience and studies in children’s feeding almost make it too hard for me to quickly tell you in a nut shell what to do about fussy eating. However, I can endorse one tool that is essential to get you on track, the family meal.

To effectively have a family meal we need to clearly set up a definition for it.

A family meal does not mean an elaborate roast joint with a million vegetable-laden side dishes, a painstakingly crafted dessert and everyone you are related to over 4 generations sitting down and eating together.

It can simply be just 2 people (you and a child) having a toasted sandwich together at the table.

I consider that the majority of my meals with my kids are family meals. Even if we only sit together on a picnic rug at the park to have a yoghurt that is still a family meal. Your role at the family meal is to be the provider but your children have control over pretty much everything else from the toddler years going forward – how much they eat, what they eat, how they clean themselves, how they motor plan getting the food into their own mouth. Yes, you provide it all but try and let them control it.

A family can, by understanding and playing out their roles effectively in family meals, raise children to be competent, healthy and joyful eaters.

If your child is particularly fussy with a smell, texture, temperature, sound, colour or any other visual aspect of a food increasing their exposure to it via the family meal will help you iron out the root cause.

Here are my tips for holding a successful family meal that appeals to even the fussiest of kids.

Engage the child in some movement before the meal to help them organise or reset themselves.

• Everyone should sit with a 90 degree angle at the hips, knees and ankles. (Special chairs, foot rests or booster seats may be required).
• Decide on the environmental cues that will help your child concentrate on eating (eg. turn TV off, sit in a well-lit area, use a familiar placemat).
• Family style meal serves where everyone takes something from each plate provided – they can put it on their plate or onto their learning plate. Do this instead of plating up for the child in advance. It also saves on waste!
• Try to offer a preferred food, a carbohydrate, a dairy, a fruit, a vegetable and a protein.
• Use this time as a great chance to connect with your children. Eat with purpose and concentration.

Want to raise healthy eaters who eat a wide variety of food? Grab The Fussy Eating Bundle for just $49 by midnight 31st July Sydney time and get your  5 Amazing Bonuses for FREE! FIND OUT MORE HERE.

Simone is a mother of 2 little girls and lives in Sydney. She runs Play with Food. Play with Food offer food experiences to children and their families that aim to delight the taste buds and imagination. Her aim in these is to help families have happy mealtimes. Get her guide “The ABC’s to happier and healthier family meals” via her website.