On Thursday afternoon I had lunch with a friend at A Votre Sante, an organic California cuisine type of restaurant. It is small and located in Brentwood and boasts a very healthy delicious menu. It didn't hurt that Pamela Anderson sat across from us and Britney Spears' manager Larry Rudolph sat behind us. It is also a favorite of locals Laura Dern and Ben Harper. But I digress! My friend wanted to know how we can stop our children from developing eating disorders.

My advice is very simple and I believe 100% that every parent should take this into consideration to protect their children from the most dangerous secretive disease that is prevalent in our society.

Here are my FIVE steps:

1. Lead by example. Guess what if you are eating diet food, talking about your chunky thighs or eating plain lettuce for dinner, while your family eats a meal together. You MUST look at your own behavior. It is my goal to help every woman in America become a Fed Up Girl. And our children look straight to you for an example. You know if you are behaving in an unhealthy way if you don't want your kids to do the same thing. Or if you do and realize it is not healthy behavior.

2. Do not restrict foods, times to eat, etc. A child is born with an internal voice and system that we call hunger signals and satiation. As we women begin to diet and restrict we lose this internal voice, and my program is designed to GET IT BACK. So why would you want to squash the very thing that is guiding your child to take care of their body appropriately? Give the child choices and treat them like an adult. My advice is to not even discuss this, as kids are really perceptive and also very adaptable. Let them choose what they want to eat, how much, where and when.

3. Eat at least one meal as a family. Sharing a meal and the same food as a family together is an important lesson in meals as a social activity. Studies prove that when people eat alone they often overeat. Your daughter will have plenty of chances to eat a bagel in the car when she is grown up. Give her the gift of a family meal and allow her to choose how much of the shared meal she eats. I don't believe in bribing or making deals. She can put the food on her plate and eat or not eat it. Period.

4. Let the kids eat whatever they want. For some of us who have been actually restricting our children's diet, this means they might go hog wild with the sugar at first. But remember a child is very sensitive to their body and after a few too many sugar highs and crashes, their body will reprogram.

5. What about their nutrition? Give them a multi-vitamin. And if things are really awful, you can always pull a Jessica Seinfeld and blend fruits and veggies into foods they like. But I am 99% sure, the child knows what their body needs and they will not malnourish themselves by choice. Also, it is nice to have a child develop tastes for fruits and veggies that are genuine. I love broccoli all by itself and I am 31 years old. Don't you want your child to have the same pleasure when they are grown.

Good luck! Always test and tweak. In my experience the best thing to do is remove ALL restrictions and give the child input when grocery shopping, eating family meals and most importantly what they want to eat.

Ask your daughter what she would like for breakfast. It might be cheesecake for a few days, but I bet you very soon it will turn into scrambled eggs, milk, etc.

You are giving your child the gift of CHOICE and the ability to listen to their internal voice/body to regulate itself. Don't take this away from a kid. It takes a long long time to get back.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bridget_Loves

How does a friend sit back and watch someone he or she loves suffer from an eating disorder? What can I do to help them is a common question asked. Unfortunately, no straight forward answer is available to this question. Every individual has many variables that combined make up why they developed Anorexia Nervosa. Family and friends want to help so much that they try to control and do things to help that the Anorexic needs to do for themselves.

It sounds so easy to say to an Anorexic "eat" and they should do that "eat." When they don't people around them tend to be frustrated and annoyed at the Anorexic. If possible put yourself in that person's shoes for a minute, perhaps that experience will allow you to be empathetic for what they are experiencing.

The Anorexia disorder didn't just start a month ago. By the time someone recognizes the signs and symptoms of Anorexia and realizes something isn't right their friend has been engaged in this destructive behavior for a significant period. Anorexia Nervosa is a learned behavior that gives them a false sense of control and power.

If possible associate Anorexia Nervosa as an addiction then perhaps see the pattern of addictive behavior. It may help you to understand what the Anorexic is going through. Understand also that it took time to develop this eating disorder behavior. It will take at least that amount of time to undo the behavior.

Going into an eating disorder treatment program allows the individual the opportunity to learn new coping skills to deal with life without restricting food. Eating disorder will require a lifelong constant vigilance in order to live in freedom from food.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joanna_Painton

I remember the first time someone publicly embarrassed me about my size. I was mortified, humiliated, ashamed, embarrassed the list goes on. I guess somehow as long as no one spoke of my weight it didn't exist. I always felt different and out of place and now my secret was out. Denial is really truly powerful and it does protect us. Food had become my world it gave me temporary relief.

My mother had become very ill and she was hospitalized for several month's. I was young and didn't understand what was happening only that my mother wasn't there and my father was either at work or the hospital to be with her. I can remember how excited I would get over going to someone's house that had soda and potato chips.

As my eating disorder grew so did my size. I would hide food I tried everything to control myself but my compulsive eating disorder had a life of its own. My family and friends always commented on my size and had suggestions. The more attention was focused on the food the more food I ate. I was truly in a cycle of food addiction.

I battled with my food addiction from the age of 9 to 31 years old. It wasn't until I went to inpatient treatment program that I was finally able to get a hold of my eating disorder. Today I know through that experience that I am allergic to certain foods. That I had to develop new coping skills in order to deal with life effectively, food could no longer be my coping mechanism. Today I have an amazing life and I share my story with others affected by eating disorders to give them hope. They too can recover from their eating disorder.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joanna_Painton