Any parent of a middle school girl will tell you a major concern is whether their daughter is on a diet, and getting the food they need throughout the school day. I’m seeing an increase in the number of diets for kids. Especially in girls who don’t want to eat school lunch in front of other kids, backed up by comments I hear from students like, “Nobody’s eating school lunch.” Unfortunately, our girls seem to worry an awful lot about what peers think about their eating habits, and an environment like middle school makes this subject a very challenging one. We owe it to our children to educate them properly on the dynamics and psychology of food, allowing them to get the nutrition they need without worrying about what their classmates are thinking of them. School lunch should not be a battleground! [bctt tweet=”“I’m hearing the same thing everywhere I go, whether it’s a fancy private school or a public school in a city – parents are feeling under pressure, kids are feeling under pressure and it’s starting younger and younger.” @katiefhurley” username=”pediRD”] This week, my guest Katie Hurley is going to help us dig into what is going on with our girls when they’re at school, eating school lunch, and what you can do to help. Katie is a child and adolescent psychotherapist, speaker, and the author of The Happy Kid Handbook and No More Mean Girls as well as the founder of Practical Parenting. She has extensive experience in helping children and adolescents with stress, anxiety, and low self-esteem, making her the perfect guest to address this subject. Want to nourish your child’s brain and body? Learn what and how to feed your ADHD child so you can promote the behavior, attention, and growth your child needs for optimal learning and daily functioning. The ADHD program is open — check it out!

What You’ll Learn about Diets for Kids at School:

• The different factors at play for middle school girls that can complicate their diet.
• Why the playing field is not level for kids in America.
• How kids comparing their diets to other kids’ diets becomes dangerous.
• What parents can do to avoid the dangers of comparison.
• Why food peer-pressure in adolescence can lead to eating disorders.
• How to spot anxiety in your children and the differences between child and adult symptoms.

Listen to the Full Episode:

Featured on the Show:

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• The Nourished Child Blueprint
• The ADHD Diet for Kids
• Katie Hurley: Practical Parenting | Twitter
• The Happy Kid Handbook: How to Raise Joyful Children in a Stressful World by Katie Hurley
• No More Mean Girls: The Secret to Raising Strong, Confident, and Compassionate Girls by Katie Hurley
• Eating Disorders in Children Guide
• If you’d like to share your Let’s Get Real story, send me an email at jill@jillcastle.com

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