Do You Use Food As a Reward with Your Kids?

Today on Momversation, Mindy Roberts of The Mommy Blog asks: Is it okay to use food as a reward with your kids? Will dangling dessert as a reward for eating vegetables come back to bite you later? Or is it sometimes okay to harness the appeal of a candy bar to "grease the wheels" and get things done? Take a look at Mindy's dessert flowchart, and tell us what works in your family.

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John Momv
3 yearss ago

Testing on the live site.

maybebaby
3 yearss ago

I have thoughts on the topic but decided I was probably unqualified to comment because I haven't been tested yet - I don't know if I'll cave under pressure and shove a piece of cake in his or her face for just a moment of silence. I'll have to get back to you on that one ;) But I am adamant about one thing, and that is not rewarding kids for clearing their plates. If they're hungry enough to eat it all, great. If not, that's OK too. By conditioning kids to clear their plates they're being taught to use their eyes to determine when they're "full" and thereby stop listening to what their body is telling them. It's an eating disorder waiting to happen. I know it's tempting because seeing a clear plate is an obvious and measurable goal ("just four more bites and you're done - come on, then we can have ice cream!"), but of all the food "issues" I think this is by far the most damaging in the long run. So what if you introduce your kids to a lifetime of sweet tooth? Its fine as long as they know they're full after four fun-size snickers and not when the bag is empty!

Kimbokarrie
3 yearss ago

I really try hard not to offer up food as rewards, because I struggle with my own weight like many others. I am an emotional eater. I eat when I'm sad, when I'm upset...hell even when I'm happy. Birthday's are about the cake, Christmas is about the cookies...Halloween is about the candy. I don't want my own kids thinking of things in terms of the food that is served at the time.

faydean
3 yearss ago

We try not to do this in our household primarily because my six year old daughter is a Type 1 diabetic. Believe me, using food as a reward can be very troublesome when you have that situation to deal with. What I really can't stand is that food, candy and sweets often times, is used alot in school as a reward for kids. Or parents bring sweets for things such as parties etc. all the time versus healthy snacks. If food is gonna be given as a reward, I wish it could be as healthy, ie as slow in sugar, as possible. It kills me when like a parent at a party could have chosen, say, sugar free pudding versus regular or even lower sugar juice versus like fruit punch. I've only been to one party, where the family had a diabetic in their family and understood, who at least made the effort to make all the treats for the kids (not just mine) low or no sugar. Shouldn't we all aim for that? Just a thought.

Dearharts.com
3 yearss ago

HappyMommyx4..... Ahhh weight issues is the main backing for my own blog forum. So this I feel I can weigh in on (no pund intened....well maybe a little...lol). Growing up it was a big deal to get treats as a reward. H*ll it motivated me to no end. And has I got older I craved and hated the results so much that I turned bulimic. Years apon years till therapy and more therapy....lol I guess what I learned is not to make food a reward. I always tried things like hey if you finish your homework we can go bike riding or any number of extra activities. In fact we had done this so many times my nieces and nephews would ask to stay just for those extra activities. As for what snacks I do have and trust me we have them.... They are either made by myself or bought besificially on lowfat and healthier alternatives. Now I say that...but with everything there is a loop hole (lol...knew that was coming right..). We have dark chocolate and maybe some life savers, etc. as well. A little of this or that on occassion is not bad long as we don't indulge 24/7.

Mindy
3 yearss ago

You know, there is a whole, untapped market in Aerobic Haircut and Styling. I break a sweat every time I give a haircut.

gojennings
3 yearss ago

Because I have my own weight problem, I generally try to avoid food rewards. But in the case of my youngest (21 months), I occasionally have to break my own rule on this. In order to get him to sit even a little bit still so I can cut his incredibly fast-growing hair, I have to bribe him with a Popsicle. In fact, he had a three-Popsicle haircut last night! Sheesh!

mikimootk
3 yearss ago

Living in Japan they have a great system, kind of based on England (I think). We have scheduled snack times. Usually 10 a.m. (for little ones at home) and then at 3 p.m. as well (usually for after school before dinner). There tends to be quite a few sugary snacks included, but hey, it is only a limited amount and when it's done, it's done. Kids seem to do better when they know when it is going happen. Not to say that I don't have lolipops in my purse for emergency melt downs!! Or for praise as well! My 5 year old boy got a flu shot yesterday and cried!! I felt so bad for him, I immediately whipped out a sucker!

Mindy
3 yearss ago

HappyMommyx4, It may seem that we are all thin (and I think I'm the only one who can say this) but I am carrying forty pounds I didn't have before kids. It's a struggle. And I can tell you, it doesn't help being too depressed to do anything about it, even knowing that exercise is the biggest boost and the best way to get healthier. *sigh*

Rikki
3 yearss ago

I was all set to say "nope, I do not! It didn't work so we ..." but then I stopped. Because I was looking at my wall where the tallies are kept - my classes are competing, by playing online games (the online system we use tracks how many minutes each student plays each game) for a pizza party at the end of the year. Test grades have gone up and I am amazed at how many minutes they will play - classes are logging in over 300 minutes in a two-week span (and no, they cannot just log in and walk away, the system only logs active minutes HA!). So, apparently, the answer is no at home, yes at school.

Do You Use Food As a Reward with Your Kids?

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