So many factors play a role in what we eat — and how much. The availability of food, personal preferences, health concerns (or lack thereof), and daily schedules all come together to determine an individual’s diet. For someone with easy access to food and plenty of time, it’s generally easy to maintain a healthy diet. Someone with limited money and time may have fewer options for healthy eating.
However, there’s another factor that’s often overlooked when evaluating diet and eating habits. According to a number of studies conducted in the past 40 years, humans have a tendency to mirror the eating habits of their friends and family. More specifically, when you’re eating with someone who has healthy eating habits, you are more likely to imitate those habits and eat better yourself.
At the same time, when we eat with people who indulge, we’re more likely to indulge ourselves; not only does it help you fit in socially, but seeing others eat high-calorie, rich food is often interpreted as “permission” to do so ourselves, regardless of the consequences.
The importance of “food role models” is especially clear when you consider the influence that parents have on their children. Kids not only learn how to eat by watching their parents, parents also make most of the food choices for their kids. Therefore, when you set a great example for your family, they are more likely to make healthy choices when they have the opportunity to choose for themselves.
Being that example isn’t complicated. It just requires learning more about nutrition, and recognizing that others are watching and modifying a few of your own behaviors.
Role Model Standard #1: Try New Foods
Kids especially are often hesitant to try new foods. And when mom or dad won’t try — or says something like “You won’t like that,” they are even less likely to give something a try.
Even if you’re not sure that you’ll like something, try it anyway. When kids see you take a chance (and survive) they will be willing to as well.
Role Model Standard #2: Plan Family Dinners
Eating together as a family on more days than you don’t has been proven to reduce the risk of obesity in children. Family dinners are also linked to improved academic performance and behavior in children. The routine of sitting down to share a meal as a family not only provides a solid foundation for relationships, but it also gives you the opportunity to model healthy eating habits.
When your kids see you enjoying healthy foods, and associate positive memories with healthy eating, those habits are more likely to stick.
Role Model Standard #3: Be Honest
Relationships with food can be complicated, and every person’s struggles are different. By talking with your kids, and your friends, about your issues with food and maintaining a healthy diet you not only let them know that it’s normal to sometimes feel frustrated about food, but it also gives them the chance to support you.
For example, if you have a friend who always has cookies and cake available for snacks, talking with her about your commitment to eating healthy might spur her to offer you healthier snacks, or at least not be offended when you decline the treats. Others may follow your lead, and open up more honest dialogues about their own hang-ups and needs.
Role Model Standard #4: Take Food Out of the Equation
Think about all of the opportunities you have to eat every day. When you meet a friend for coffee, do you grab a muffin? After school, do you greet the kids with snacks? What about when you watch TV at night, or get together with friends for game night?
When you consciously think about all of the chances you have to snack throughout the day, it becomes apparent that food is a dominant factor in many of our lives.
To set a better example for your friends and family, try taking food out of the equation. Instead of meeting at a coffee shop, take a walk instead. Reward your family with an experience, not food. And if food is a part of an experience, try offering healthy options instead. Veggies and hummus or fruit can be as satisfying during game night as chips and soda.
Being a good role model doesn’t mean that you’ll automatically inspire your loved ones to eat right all the time. But paying attention to the example you’re setting can help you ensure that it’s a good one, and help your kids grow up healthy – and your friends get and stay healthy.
Questions: Do you have a tendency to eat how/what others around you are eating? Do you make food choices based on what your kids like? Do you have family dinners around the table? What’s your biggest frustration with food?
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