Sugar Addiction: A Parent’s Role.

Breaking a sugar addiction takes a long time and can be tough. Even more so if you are trying to break off your children’s addiction. Children are at the age where they need all the nutrients they can get. Eating a lot of sugary snacks will not be able to replace the nutrients for the children to grow well. Children that are addicted to sugar may experience the following symptoms such as lethargy, dizziness, excessive sweating, overweight, diarrhea, skin problems and allergies. So it is your responsibility as a parent to curb your child’s addition. Here are a few ways you could do it.

Eat breakfast. Make sure your child does not skip breakfast. Stop buying sugary cereal and serve protein instead. Breakfast should be eaten with an hour of waking so blood sugar levels don’t drop. A meal filled with protein will give your child the much needed boost they need to get them through the day.

Pack lunch for them. Pack them a meal full of protein for lunch. These could be cottage cheese, poultry, lean meat, eggs or nuts.

Fill your children’s time with activities. Organize family outings where all of you go jogging or cycle together. A healthy lifestyle will reduce their craving for sugary treats.

If your children would like to snack, fill your kitchen up with fruits. Fruits are naturally sweet and contain vitamins, antioxidant and fiber. Fruit which causes less sugar spikes are fruits such as peaches, pears, apples, oranges, apricots, mangoes and date. Choose whole fruit rather than fruit juices to ensure you get the benefit of the fiber.

Lastly, remember that you have to set a good example on your children. It would not do for you to try and restrict your children’s diet when you yourself are eating sugary treats. So be a good role model for your children. Break the sugar addiction before it gets worse!