Family is the most important bond in human life. The presence and contribution of a family in one’s life is immense. Parents play the role of the provider and protector till the child doesn’t become capable of doing so on their own. Family i.e. Parents, Siblings, Cousins and Grandparents etc is the first teacher we have, as we see and learn good things from them, which maybe about life’s lessons or regarding our health and nutrition.
Eating habits are learnt from observing and seeing the surrounding and people we are often associated with. For a child, the beginning of learning and adapting healthy food practices starts from home. Parents and siblings are the role models of the child and they imbibe on good food and nutritional food choices at an early age. If a child is served healthy fruits and vegetables instead of readymade and unhealthy junk food, they learn to adapt good food habits and grow up with a stronger immunity and are healthier than their counterparts.
Eating habits have become like lifestyle challenges. As we age, we are influenced on our food choices by peers, friends, relatives, work environment etc. If we are in school, healthy eating habits are formed as they are mostly influenced by our interaction with parents. As we age and are in college, the social pressure to remain a part of the group and to be accepted makes us try unhealthy food habits as well as unhealthy practices such as smoking or drinking to fit in a certain set of crowd. Seeing a peer or a friend eating junk food tempts us to also try it.
Our lifestyle, affects our food, like if there is a birthday party thrown by a friend or an office meeting or conference, or a social family function like a marriage ceremony, we are obligated to try unhealthy food leading to various disorders in long run. In the latter years, pressures of life and work make us opt for easier and faster ways of food habits or convenience foods which may not always be healthy and leads to complication in health later on.
Healthy eating and food habits should be adopted as a way of life. Eating fresh fruits, vegetables, our daily intake of proteins, calcium, fiber etc arms us with good health and a sharp mind to combat all the problems in life head on.