How My Newborn Can Solve Healthy Lifestyle Dilemmas

I am a Registered Dietitian with a Master’s Degree in Nutrition Science. I’ve practiced nutrition for years and even taught at the college level. However, nothing has been a better teacher of a healthy lifestyle for me than my newborn little boy.

My son is 3 months old now and his lifestyle is one that most Americans could benefit from modeling theirs after. While I know many of us would love to sleep in fuzzy jammies, be carried around all day and have books read to us, what I’m talking about are healthy decisions made each day to make for healthier bodies and minds.

Eat every 3-4 hours

My son never goes more than 3 to 4 hours without eating, which, according to the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics, is how often adults should eat in order to maintain energy throughout the day. Be sure to include nutrient-rich dairy in your meals and snacks for even more energy to take on your To Do list!

Stop When Full

While this sounds simple, it is much easier said than done. Babies recognize when they are full and refuse to eat more than they need because they understand their true hunger cues. However, the same can’t be said for many of us, as we tend to eat due to boredom, stress and a slew of reasons other than true hunger.

Insider Tip: Include healthy snacks throughout the day, like cheese sticks and yogurt, to prevent overeating at meals!

Get Enough Sleep

Nearly 70 million Americans are not getting enough sleep, which can lead to increased risk for heart disease, diabetes and obesity. While many of us may not be able to “sleep like a baby,” we can learn from infants to make the most of the time that we do have to get some shut eye.  One of the best ways to do this is to include dairy in your diet, which helps to promote good sleep patterns.

Our children teach us many things in life and the gift of learning healthy habits is certainly one of the best!

Lanier Dabruzzi, MS, RD, LD