Tovah talks about food and young children
How to Avoid Spoiling Your Child
First-time dad learns how not to be the kind of parent he fears becoming.
interview with Tovah P. Klein from time.com/money
Excerpt from article.
I started thinking about the nature of toddlers and their stuff, and I’ve been mulling over a few issues ever since. The first has to do with spoiling. I know that you can’t really spoil a baby—infants’ needs must be met. But am I developing habits of indulgence now that will ossify over time and lead me to spoil Luke when he’s older? Am I setting myself up to be a bad parent? The second issue has to do with the presents themselves, the catalyst of my spoiling concern: there must be a better use for all that money.
On the first question, the experts are clear. “You’re not going to spoil a baby,” says Tovah P. Klein, assistant professor of psychology at Barnard College and author of How Toddlers Thrive. “They need to be comforted and cared for.”
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Stop the Health Food Madness Before We Harm the Children
Talking less about food helps children eat better & avoid obesity
Published by Tovah Klein Ph.D., Jun 05, 2014 in Our Thriving Children
Excerpt from article.
When does too much focus on a good thing backfire? When we are trying to instill healthy eating habits in children. Our national obsession with good (healthy) and bad (junk) food translates into an unnatural obsession with food. With skyrocketing obesity rates, even amongst children, could there ever be too much talk of healthy eating? Research shows that for growing children the answer is a resounding yes. Back off, say less, eat well yourself and children are more likely to develop healthy eating habits.
From healthy eating, organic, sustainable farming, balanced diets and food pyramids to banning bake sales at school all the way to the realistic concerns about fast food, junk food, sugar and processed food, discussion of food fills the air that children breathe. Rather than creating good eating, this food over-focus has potentially serious negative consequences over a lifetime. Here’s why, and what parents (and other adults involved with children) can do instead to ensure healthy diets and eating habits. >>Read more
Tovah P. Klein- FOX News
Combating Childhood Obesity
Discussing childhood obesity and Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” campaign with Gerri Willis
