While most people enjoy some chocolate and a hot cross bun or two at Easter, parents are advised to go for quality over quantity for children.
Professor Lynne Daniels, head of QUT’s School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences and PEACH program director, said it was easy to overdo it at Easter.
“For one thing Easter eggs and even hot cross buns appear in the shops straight after Christmas so the novelty of them being a special treat for Easter can be difficult to maintain,” Professor Daniels said.
“Then on Easter Sunday, waking to a chocolate egg or two on Easter Sunday is a pleasure most children look forward to, but try not to shower kids with a mountain of chocolate they will be eating for weeks to come.
“Sometimes parents and grandparents do go a bit overboard with the sweet Easter treats. Considering one in four Queensland children are overweight or obese, families should give some thought into the kind of experience they create for their children at Easter time.
“It’s not about spoiling fun or giving kids a stick of celery instead of chocolate eggs but Easter can still be magical for them without being too excessive.”
Professor Daniels said parents could think a little differently and surprise their kids in ways they won’t expect, including with non-food gifts.
“For most kids the appeal of a treat gets lost when they are presented with lots of it. A treat is meant to be occasional; not every day,” she said.
“A bucket-load of eggs is not necessarily better than receiving one of quality with special meaning.”
Professor Daniels has the following top tips for a healthier Easter
- Tweak the Easter egg hunt – instead of trailing only chocolate eggs mix it up with trinkets such as fruity flavoured lip gloss, scented pens or pencils, sparkly hair ties, matchbox cars, stickers or bouncy balls. Or for older kids do a hunt with clues that lead to a larger surprise.
- Quality over quantity – for example individually select handmade chocolates with special meaning for your child like animal shapes, their favourite ingredient or flavour combination.
- Give kids a DIY chocolate egg making kit or plastic mould and help them make their own Easter eggs. It’s a fun way to spend time with kids in the kitchen.
- Non-food gifts – toys like plaster dinosaur eggs are fun for kids and being eggs are still loosely related to Easter. Other ideas include bunny slippers, bunny ears and egg cups.
- Chocolate covered fruit – get kids to help make a platter of fruit such as strawberries or banana pieces dipped in a variety of milk, dark and white chocolate.
- Dye and decorate boiled eggs – a fun, crafty activity for kids and makes a nice centrepiece for the dining table.
The Queensland Government funded PEACH (Parenting, Eating and Activity for Child Health) program promotes healthy weight in children. This year a new online version of the free program was launched for Queensland families with primary-school aged children.
The online version offers as an alternative format to face-to-face sessions and features 10 interactive sessions, a parent forum and ‘live-chats’.
Families can register for the PEACH program at www.peachqld.com.au or 1800 263 519.
QUT is part of a national collaborative group of five major Australian universities that form the ATN (Australian Technology Network of Universities).
Media contact:
Amanda Weaver, QUT Media, 07 3138 9449, amanda.weaver@qut.edu.au
After hours: Rose Trapnell, 0407 585 901, media@qut.edu.au
