'I wanted Louis to eat well'

By Jane Elliott
Health reporter, BBC News

The Owens family eat more healthily

As any parent of a toddler knows, one of the hardest things is getting them to try different foods.

You start off with the best intentions, slavishly following recipes from child food guru Annabel Karmel, pureeing every vegetable and fruit imaginable and encouraging your little one to try them.

At some stage however, many toddlers seems to develop a strong dislike of anything healthy, just the colour green on their plate seems to propel them into a mini-fury.

It is all too easy to give in and resort to tried and tested favourites.

Shaping eating patterns

Experts warn however, that habits learnt as early as the toddler years can shape our future eating habits.

They say that if we get the building blocks right in the early years, we could be sparing our child a lifetime of weight problems and eating disorders.

Through fun he and the others learnt to be a bit more adventurous about their food Jenny Owens

This May the 'Mini-Mend' programme, aimed at children aged two to four is set to be launched nationally, following five successful pilot schemes.

The 10-week programme will be open to all families with children aged two to four, not just those overweight and obese, to promote the healthy lifestyles message.

Jenny Owen's little boy Louis, now aged three, went on a pilot programme last year and she said they can really see the differences.

"Children are very adventurous with sweets, but not their food," she said.

"But since going to Mini-Mend, Louis eats red pepper, raw vegetables, all the fruits and sugar snap peas.

"Through fun he and the others learnt to be a bit more adventurous about their food. Kids can be quite conservative.

"The way the lady, at Mini-Mend, presented the food stuffs to them she made them appear so delicious.

"Louis eats much better now."

Keeping a healthy lifestyle

Louis did not have any weight problems, but Jenny admitted she did worry slightly that he was not doing enough exercise.

"He has to trail round after his two brothers to their activities, their swimming classes, their dance classes so there is not really a chance for him to do something by himself," she said.

Jenny, a mother of three boys, from Catford, south east London, said Louis was not the only member of the family to learn about healthier eating from the course.

"I have learnt more about food labelling," she said.

Children are encouraged to try fruit and vegetables

"You just don't know the right amount of salt that a child that age should eat.

"They explained it in a very simple way and yes, I do now have a look to see what the percentages of salt and sugar, if it is too high I put it back," she said.

"We also had discussions about things such as what to do if family members come over with big bags of sweets. How to say 'please don't give that to my kids' without upsetting anyone."

Jenny said that the programme had proved a success for the whole family with brothers Sebastian, 10 and Lenny, aged six, helping to cook and eat recipes with little Louis.

Good relationship with food

The Mini-Mend programme encourages healthier eating though a number of different ways.

There are weekly snack-time sessions where both parents and children are offered bite-size pieces of different fruits and vegetables which they are encouraged to touch, smell and then taste.

Public health nutritionist Julia Wolman, who is working with the project, said: "There is no pressure for anyone to eat the foods if they are resistant, but we encourage experimentation and give each child lots of praise and a sticker if they have tried the food.

"Many adults and children are reluctant to try new fruits and vegetables, but in the group they have their peers as role models which is a very powerful strategy, especially in overcoming fussy eating habits."

There are also regular cooking sessions where parents and children muck in together.

The emphasis is on having fun, but the serious intent behind the hi-jinks is for everybody to learn how to eat healthily - and to take those lessons home with them.

The programme also offers weekly workshops for parents covering topics such as food labels, portion sizes, and how to tackle fussy eating.

Ms Wolman said: "We are trying to ensure that children have a good relationship with food - and we get the parent to show them how through role modelling."