Fun and Healthy Snack Ideas for Kids

By Hescott Nutrition Services | posted in July 2024 | Healthy Snack Ideas, Unhealthy Snacks, Keep Portions Small, Paired Two Foods, Involved Your Child, Favorite Recipes.

As a parent or caregiver, your child's health is largely in your hands. When your little ones ask for snacks multiple times a day, it can be tough to know how to respond. Do kids need snacks? How can you encourage them to choose healthier options over the sugary, processed ones they often crave? This is a common struggle, so if it sounds familiar, you're not alone.

Providing healthy food from a young age is one of the best ways to help children develop healthy habits and strong bodies. In this blog post, we'll explore five strategies to improve your child's snacking habits, ensuring they get the nutrition they need while enjoying the treats you offer!

Do kids need snacks?

Absolutely!

Children need snacks to maintain healthy energy levels and provide the nutrients for their growing bodies. For younger children, it's generally recommended to offer three meals and three snacks daily. As they age, 1-2 snacks per day may be enough.

However, it's important to note that not all snacks are created equal. Many snacks that kids love or that appear healthy might not offer as much nutrition as you would expect. Unhealthy snacks often contain high amounts of added sugar and other nutrients that don't support your child's health. This is why it's crucial for parents to promote healthy habits, even when it comes to snack time.

What does "healthy" mean?

There are plenty of healthy snacks you can offer your child, but it's essential to understand what "healthy" truly means. Healthy snacks can vary, but ideally, they should be low in added sugar and rich in vitamins, minerals, and fiber.

Cultivating these healthy snacking habits is crucial, as they can continue into adulthood. With these five tips, you'll easily teach your child healthier snacking habits!

Tip 1: Pair Two Foods

I recommend including different food groups when preparing snacks for your kids for optimal nutrition and satisfaction. This approach not only creates more satisfying snacks but also introduces a greater variety of nutrients into your child's diet throughout the day.

Some healthy food pairings are:

• Freeze-dried strawberries and dry cereal
• Crunchy chickpeas
• Carrots and tortilla chips dipped in guacamole
• Apple slices with almond butter

Offering more than one food item is also helpful for gently exposing picky eaters to foods that might be out of their comfort zone. Keep the pressure off (no forcing a bite), and make the experience fun.

If your children usually have processed and packaged snacks you’d like to avoid, offer new foods with packaged snacks instead of just taking the packaged snacks away.

Tip 2: Vary presentation

Adapting to something new can take time, and for kids, especially picky eaters, new experiences can feel scary and uncomfortable!

Take carrots, for example. While baby carrots are a popular snack option, there are many other ways to offer them to your child. You can try pureed carrot pouches, shredded carrots for a different texture, roasted carrots for a new flavor, or even large carrot peels called ribbons!

By giving your child the opportunity to explore these different forms of carrots in a low-pressure environment, you help build their confidence. Over time, they may become more willing to try, and even enjoy new foods!

One of my favorite clients was so proud when her child finally took a bite of roasted Brussels sprouts for the first time. Seeing that moment of trying a new veggie made all the effort worth it!

Tip 3: Keep the portions small

If you're working on new foods, snack time is a great opportunity because dinner is right around the corner if they don't eat much of the new food. By the time dinner is here, everyone tends to be more tired and less patient, so it can feel more difficult to make progress at that time.

When offering new foods at snack time, keep the portions of the new food small. For your child, it makes the experience less overwhelming.

If age-appropriate, use toothpicks or other fun tools to serve the food. This keeps the experience more fun and playful for our kids, especially those who can get overloaded with too much sensory information.

Some of my favorite ways to serve after-school snacks are in a muffin tray, using paper muffin cups, or arranging them on a skewer.

Tip 4: Compare

You know what's fun and lower pressure? Exploring!

Instead of forcing your child to "just take a bite," make the new food feel fun. This will lower the pressure and make it more fun for everyone, not just your kiddo.

Next time you're at the grocery store, try buying a few different varieties of new food and also involve your child in selecting them. For example, three or four different kinds of apples. During the afternoon, when you have some free time, ask your child to describe how the apples are different in terms of size, color, and smell.

Which one smells the best?

Next, cut small slices of each type of apple and invite your child to taste them. Which apple is the sweetest? The most sour? The crunchiest?

Enjoy ranking and exploring together. It's much more fun than just telling your child to take a bite!

Tip 5: Involve your child

The more you involve your child, the better. For example, when shopping for healthy snacks, let your child pick two they want to try this week. This involvement can make them more excited and invested in their snack choices.

Next, offer choices in how the foods are prepared. Ask if they'd prefer their apple sliced or diced or if they'd like to enjoy it with a dip like nut butter.

Kids can handle more tasks in the kitchen than many parents realize. While it might be slower and messier at first, their skills will improve with time, and the mess will become less of an issue. Children are also more likely to be open to trying foods they've helped prepare.

Favorite dip and snack recipes

Click below to download the recipes:

Beet and Cucumber Yogurt Dip

No-Cook Vanilla Cinnamon Granola

Sweet & Salty Snack Mix

Conclusion

Parenting in a world full of snack options can be challenging. By partnering with a registered dietitian, you'll gain proven strategies to make snack time healthy and enjoyable, helping you reach your family's health goals. I look forward to guiding you on this journey!

Looking for nutrition support? Go to SERVICES to book an appointment, or call 347-915-3738.