How can gardening with our kids create healthy habits? We are all well aware of the benefits of spending time outdoors. Not only physically, emotionally, and psychologically, but also to promote a healthy lifestyle and create habits that will have lifelong positive effects. This holds for all outdoor activities; whether we’re exercising, playing, having a picnic, or even gardening… yes, gardening.

But when it comes to gardening, wwe’renot always clear on how it might positively impact our eating habits. Allow me to list 5 ways gardening with our kids builds healthy habits around food.

This is a paid partnership with Nestle – Nestlé for Healthier Kids

1. It fosters care and understanding of the food they consume.

When children grow the food they eat, even if only a small portion of the food they eat, they begin to understand that food is not simply a commodity that gets picked up from the grocery store. They learn to appreciate the effort and work that go into growing food and the resources required to stock those grocery stores. It also teaches them to avoid wasting or taking for granted the food they have access to.

2. They build a relationship with the food they grow.

This sounds strange, I know, but when children grow food, they have the privilege of witnessing the growth and life cycle of that particular vegetable or fruit. The whole process unfolds before their eyes as a moving picture of how nature’s gifts sustain us. What is this if not a relationship? And best of all, it’s a relationship rooted in gratitude.

3. It offers a sense of pride in eating what they have grown.

Children take tremendous pride in showing others their art, medals, or new skills. The same holds if they’ve grown the food that makes an appearance at a special dinner. Perhaps we might even have less trouble convincing our children to eat some broccoli if they’ve actually grown it. I, for one, love seeing the beaming smiles of pride when moms and dads tell their kids how delicious the food they’ve grown is.

4. Growing your own food creates an eagerness/willingness to taste it.

I want to elaborate on something I mentioned in the previous point. Most children are notoriously picky eaters… ask any parent who has had the misfortune of trying to convince their 4-year-old to try the spinach. When children grow the food they have before them, there is a greater willingness to at least “give it a go” when a new vegetable or fruit ends up on their plate. This also encourages a more confident approach to food and broadens our children’s culinary horizons from a young age.

5. A respect for the environment around them.

Finally, when children grow their own food, they develop an understanding of what is required to grow it. Healthy soil, enough water, etc. They begin to develop a greater respect for the environment as a whole. This cultivates a readiness to care for the environment by making healthy choices beyond food, such as recycling, conserving water, and minimising waste.

Want to know more about healthy food alternatives? Like some inspiration in choosing an activity that will get the whole family moving and feeling fitter? Visit NESTLÉ

Nurturing Together, add a little more goodness campaign.