Ways in which obesity can be prevented is making sure that children are getting their ‘five a day’ of fruit and vegetables. Trying to get children to eat fruit and vegetables can be difficult but there are ways in which it can be delicious and fun.

• Children like to cook and be creative so asking children to make their own dinner or desert using ‘five a day’ can make it a lot more enjoyable eating the things they normally wouldn’t eat. This can include making smoothies or mixing in vegetables with foods they enjoy.
• Putting dips with raw vegetables can make it more enjoyable for them to eat and can make a tasty snack instead of having vegetables for dinner.
• Children often look to older siblings and parents as role models so if they see others enjoying healthy foods they are more likely to eat it without thinking it to be boring.
• Making healthy foods more accessible to children will mean they are more likely to eat it. For example, placing 100% juice cartons on the lower shelves of the fridge will mean they can grab it themselves without having to ask. Also if children are hungry they will go for the most convenient thing to eat, so making fruit and vegetables available to them will help. This can be done by having a fruit bowl or keeping healthy snacks in the fridge where they can get them without being tempted by biscuits and chocolate.
• Giving children an option in what they eat can make them think they have control. Giving them a choice of fruits or letting them choose whether they have carrot sticks or cucumber in their lunchbox makes them feel more grown up because they are making their own decisions.