By Vicki Rackner, M.D.

As a caregiver, you make healthcare decisions every day. You make these decisions for yourself, for your loved one, and for your family.

If you care for young children, you impart a legacy of health to your children that goes well beyond the genes you give them. You also pass along your health beliefs and model health-related choices.

Here are some tips that will help your children have a healthy attitude about health:

Instill a Sense of Wonder about the Body

Many adults fear and distrust their bodies.  They believe that the body is fragile, and illness is just around the corner. The myth that you will catch a cold if you go outside without a coat persists (if you do catch a cold, the lack of a coat wasn’t the only reason.  

Your kids listen to you when you look in the mirror and say, “I’m so fat.” Your kids see you scrutinizing your face and hair in the mirror.

The truth is that our bodies are the most miraculous mechanical system on the planet.   Cuts usually heal without a single conscious thought or action on your part.  Your immune system is your own personal homeland security system, protecting you from bacterial and viral terrorists. You never even know about many of the battles taking place within your immune system, but you can rest assured that a constant battle is being waged, and more often than not won by your immune system.

Help your child see how amazing the body is with compliments—for your child’s body and your own. Say things such as, “Wow, that cut healed in no time!”, or “You have such strong, fast legs!”, or “Look at what your hands have been able to draw!” Help your child focus on the positive and incredible things he or she can do.

Remind your child how great it is to have eyes and kidneys and a heart that all work so well, especially if he or she sees a loved one who is not as healthy.

Become a Student of the Human Body

Your kids will inevitably come to you with questions about how their bodies work.  It can be uncomfortable for both you and your child when you don’t have the answers.  This discomfort can teach children that they should avoid questions about how their bodies work, which may, in part, explain why parents themselves are reluctant to ask doctors embarrassing questions.

Remember, no one has all the answers. That’s why your doctor participates in continuing medical education. Your child can remind you of the joy of discovery.  Together, you can look for answers.  I mentioned to my son that bones make blood and he asked, “What about creatures with exoskeletons?”  I said, “What an interesting question.  Let’s get on the Internet and see what we can find out.”  Have a child-appropriate book about the body available and learn and use anatomically correct words.  This medical knowledge will be useful in your caregiving role.   

We Can Listen to Our Bodies

Often it feels as if adults are rewarded for ignoring or overcoming the signals from their bodies.  We actually applaud the “hero” who comes to work with the flu or the mom who ignores her need for food or sleep.  Health is maintained when you know the signals that suggest your body is out of balance and respond in a timely manner when your body indicates it needs something.  Again, the body is incredible. Your body will let you know when it is tired or hungry; you just have to listen to it.

You can also help your kids identify when they’re cold or hungry or tired.  You can say to an infant, “You look hot…so I’m going to take off the blanket?” 

Letting your children know why you make everyday health-related choices (such as taking a sweater or blanket off when hot), helps your children make these decisions for themselves. Give your child some experience regulating his external environment, such as learning how to tell the temperature on the thermostat, and associating the temperature with how warm or hot he or she feels.  Educate your children about pain, and let them know that pain is there to keep them safe. Say, “Injuries are no fun, but they’re there to keep you from burning yourself on the stove or cutting yourself with a knife.  That’s how your body reminds you to be careful.”

Model Healthy Eating Habits

Childhood obesity is a growing problem. Talk with your kids about good food choices and bad choices.  Encourage them to ask themselves, “What kind of food is my body hungry for right now?”, and “Am I full?”, even if there’s still food on the plate.  Pay attention to see if your child is a “grazer” or a “3-squares-a-day” kid, and set an eating schedule that reflects that style.  Decide whether it’s OK to indulge in unhealthy food choices now and then.  When I inquired about the nutritional value of my son’s snack of donuts, he said, “It’s health food for the soul!”

Reward Health

Some of my best childhood memories come from times when I was sick.  In an effort to ease my pain, my mother unwittingly rewarded illness by lavishing attention on me, delivering endless bowls of ice cream and playing games with me.  Who wouldn’t want to be sick?!

Lavish attention on your kids when they’re well. 

When you instill in your children a sense of pride, wonder, and respect for their bodies, you have given them the foundation of health. Doing this will help you stay healthier too, as you model this behavior!