You are what you eat. Food dictates your mood, actions, and thoughts and is the foundation of a healthy lifestyle. Eating the right food is crucial for everyone, but it holds greater importance for senior citizens and young children in rural India.
Unlike their urban counterparts, rural Indians suffer from overconsumption of processed foods. People’s Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR) and PIPAL conducted a study titled ‘Children Nutrition and Ultra-Processed Food.’ They surveyed Varanasi and Gaya to understand the unhealthy food problem in rural India.
Among other things, the study found Dalit families spend over 90 per cent of their income on food, and about 10-15 per cent of it was spent on ultra-processed and packaged foods like chocolates, carbonated drinks, and chips.
Therefore, ensuring nutritious meals for the entire family should be a priority in India, as the prevalence of malnutrition and lifestyle diseases is a growing concern. A well-balanced diet promotes physical well-being and strengthens the bond between family members.
Read on as we explore the importance of healthy meals for the family, provide practical family meal plans, and offer inspiring ideas for nutritious meals.
The Importance of Healthy Meals for the Family
A healthy family meal plan is vital for several reasons. It provides essential nutrients for supporting growth and development, especially in children. Proper nutrition during childhood can help prevent stunted growth, boost cognitive function, and reduce the risk of chronic diseases later in life.
Healthy meals also help senior citizens stay fit and active, keeping them away from illnesses. However, most importantly, regular family meals encourage communication and strengthen family bonds.
How to Create a Nutritious Family Meal Plan?
Creating a family meal plan can be a game-changer when it comes to providing nutritious meals. Families in rural, as well as urban India, can focus on the following to ensure nutritious meals:
- Balanced Diet
The importance of a balanced diet is well-known. Families can incorporate foods from various food groups to ensure a balanced diet that develops all organs. Including whole grains, lean proteins, fruits, vegetables, and dairy products in meals can help maintain a balanced diet.
- Plan in Advance
Planning meals beforehand is an excellent way to inculcate healthy eating habits in families. Ensure you set aside time each week to plan your meals, as it will help you make healthier choices, save time, and reduce last-minute stress. Involve family members to ensure everyone’s dietary restrictions and eating habits are addressed.
- Healthy Ingredients
The most important part of keeping the family healthy is choosing the right ingredients. Spend time researching to know the ingredients of the dishes you want to cook. Remove unhealthy raw materials from the dishes and find healthier alternatives. Later, find companies that provide the highest quality ingredients.
- Stick to the Plan
Nutritious meals aren’t always popular because they do not include additives and artificial ingredients that satisfy taste buds. As a result, it is difficult for everyone, especially children, to stay motivated and make healthy meals a habit. Therefore, ensuring they stay motivated is vital. Educating them about the importance of healthy meal options and leading by example are two ways to ensure kids become addicted to the right meals.
Healthy Family Meal Ideas
Mentioned below are a few healthy family meal ideas you can try:
- Power-packed Fruit Breakfast
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. While there are various breakfast ideas, eating fresh fruits during breakfast is healthy. Watermelons, bananas, apples, and oranges are a few options you can include in your breakfast. They are healthy and help improve various organs and boost immunity. You can also include vegetable omelettes and whole eggs in your breakfast.
- Salads for Snacks
Salads are incredibly nutritious and healthy but often overlooked. They make a great snacking option and should be encouraged among family members. You can also choose yoghurt with nuts or vegetable sticks with hummus as a healthy snacking option.
- Wholesome Lunches
If your family has less time for breakfast, ensure you compensate for the lack of nutrients with a power-packed lunch. Add nutrient-rich lunches for school or work. Also, consider whole wheat wraps with grilled chicken and vegetables, colourful salads with lean protein, or homemade vegetable soup with whole grain bread.
- Light Dinners
Dinners should be light, but that doesn’t mean compromising on your family’s health. Prepare light dishes with steamed vegetables, curry with rice, or whole wheat pasta with roasted vegetables.
Clothing Thoughts on Healthy Meals for Family
Nutritious meals for the whole family play a pivotal role in building a healthier rural India. By incorporating a balanced family meal plan, you can provide the essential nutrients needed for growth, development, and overall well-being for your family.
Smile Foundation through its women empowerment programme, Swabhiman is ensuring that young women, especially mothers are able to prepare easy-to-make nutritious meals for themselves and their families. Low-cost, high-nutrition recipe workshops conducted by certified nutritionists are one of the key features of the programme.
The workshops seem to have high participation rates that also see the distribution of healthy food baskets and women sharing their positive feedback with the project coordinators in their next sessions. You can consider making a thoughtful donation here to help healthy meals reach more women, their children and families at large.
You can make mealtime a joyful experience by trying out diverse and healthy recipes that appeal to everyone’s taste buds. Remember, when it comes to creating a healthy India, the journey starts at the family table.
