What ‘Every Kid Healthy’ Means
As a national health campaign, Every Kid Healthy Week is an annual observance that celebrates school and community health for children. It takes place in the last week of April every year, which makes this year’s Every Kid Healthy Week April 22-26. During this week, events are hosted all over the country to show kids and parents how important it is to stay healthy, and how much fun being healthy can be.
Since 2013, there have been over 7,000 schools participating in Every Kid Healthy Week, which has helped this organization to grow. Six years later, there are over 3 million students, teachers, families, and community members who have benefited from this program. With physical activities that get kids excited to move and lessons on nutrition and family cooking, Every Kid Healthy Week is making a difference all over the United States.
How to Get Involved
Every Kid Healthy Week can be celebrated anywhere, in any community. If you want to get involved, then check out their website (http://www.everykidhealthyweek.org/) to see how you can volunteer, donate, fundraise, and even register your very own Every Kid Healthy event!
But the mission of Every Kid Healthy Week is not just to host events. It is to make a positive change in families and the health of children everywhere. So you can get involved by bringing healthy practices into your own home. To help you get started, try some of these tips for children’s health:
- Use family games, playtime, and after-school sports to keep children physically active. Some kids might take to athletics more than others, but it is important for parents never to force their children to do something they do not enjoy. If a child hates playing soccer but is forced to play it, then they might grow up resenting it and avoid sports and physical activity in the future. Instead, build positive associations by trying new things with your kids and encouraging them to take part in the activities that they have the most fun with.
- Pack healthy lunches. For some schools, buying lunch is an option, but these lunches might not always be the healthiest choice for your child. Make sure that they get all the nutrition they need at school by packing lunches that have fresh fruit, veggies, and are low in preservatives. Healthy lunches will not only keep your children healthier but will give them more energy throughout their school days.
- Let kids be involved in meal planning. There is no better way to teach your children about the food they eat than by letting them make choices about what’s for dinner. Parents can give the children in their homes a special night to choose what will be for dinner. Parents can set certain requirements like the dinner has to have vegetables, or kids can pick a main course and parents can choose small side dishes. Whatever your house rule becomes, when kids have a voice in what they get to eat, they will start to take their meals more seriously. They will develop a healthy relationship with food and become more mindful of what they choose to eat. Parents with older kids can even get them involved in cooking and meal preparation, which can teach children responsibility about preparing their food.
- Promote a positive body image in your family. No matter how active or nutritious some children are, body image and self-esteem can often become a problem for kids as they grow up. Entering the preteen and teen years can be difficult, and parents should make sure that they are promoting a positive emotional environment for their kids. Parents should remind their kids of how proud they are of their accomplishments, even small ones, and always be encouraging when kids want to try new styles or activities. Parents also need to be careful about self-deprecating humor. Many kids learn self-negativity from their parents, so everyone in the family should be mindful not to insult themselves or others based on looks. Modeling self-love will teach children to appreciate their bodies more and help them to avoid risks of eating disorders later in life.
The path to a healthy lifestyle starts early, and when kids learn how to take care of themselves at a young age, they are setting the groundwork for a long and healthy life. This is why Every Child Healthy Week strives to bring education on pediatric and family wellness to every community. Wylie ER supports this cause and is here to provide only the very best in emergency healthcare for parents and kids alike. With the help of everyone in the Wylie, Sachse, and Murphy communities, we know that our kids will grow up healthy.
Nutex Health, Inc supports you and your family’s health. You can depend on Wylie Emergency Room or any one of our concierge-level, freestanding emergency facilities to deliver the emergency care you deserve, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
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