Help with borther?!
Help with borther?
my brother is coming down to stay with me for a week and usually all he eats is junk, how can i encourage him to eat the healthy things that we eat. i don't want him to eat rubbish but i don't want him to starve either!! i'd love it if he could sit at the table with us and enjoy a nice meal. any suggestions welcome!!
Answers:
if there's no junk food in the house, i suppose short of going out & buying some, he'll hopefully sit & eat what's put in front of him & be thankful that he has a sister who cares.
this is difficult, as i realise you don't want to start a war over food but sit him down & explain all the benefits from a decent, balanced & healthy diet.
fingers crossed he may get the hint that you're concerned about his health & well-being.
from personal experience i didn't realise the damage i was doing to myself by not eating properly.
i didn't eat junk, i just didn't eat at all! my daughter came to stay & i rediscovered good wholesome food.
might be a good idea to try to get him to help preparing a meal, he'll find out that it's not that difficult & the smell of whatever it is cooking, should help too.
just be honest & have a down-to-earth chat about food, before he even thinks about going off in search of junk-food, it should i hope do the trick.
sometimes people need to be reminded what's good & what's bad, they usually already know but prefer to ignore their bad habits.
Good Luck.
i hope it's not as bad as you're dreading/thinking it will be.
he's one very lucky man to have a sister who cares for him as much as you do.
How about a taco (from taco bell yummy!)? It has lettuce and cheese, but it can also be considered junk food!
roast rice gravy peas sweet tea
How about making your own healthy burgers, using all fresh ingredients,put them on brown baps with salad, that way he would feel at home
Make something like spaghetti bolognaise or chili con carne, but add chopped up (very small) bits of veg - carrot, peppers, mushrooms. You could even puree them. Then he'll eat a tasty meal without knowing the secret healthy ingredients!
Or, even sausage and mash, with other veg added to the mashed potato!
make a list of things you like and compare it with his own list. try to make a compromise.
Give him both, just balance out the junk a bit...
So few sit down to eat as a family now a days. When I have my family members stay for a visit, they know that what is offered is what is eaten I don't force anyone to eat what they don't like. However, I expect that all foods should be tried, even if it is only one pea or a green bean. I also have a family member who only eats eggs and pizza and junk food. He knows that he must try what is offered. Let your brother understand your house rules and the one that says food will be healthy and consumed with other members of the family. Good luck to you on your brothers visit.
What about pasta ?, with a tomato based sauce, you can put all sorts of veg in it and its tasty too.
Jacket potatoes !.
Chili with lots of tomatoes,onion, garlic, red & green peppers, kidney beans.
Turkey stir fry.
You can prepare healthy versions of "junk" food. Hamburgers, taco salad, quesadillas, spaghetti, etc. Encourage him to try other foods; he may eat junk because he hasn't explored other foods. Have healthy snacks available, and don't buy the junk. If he wants the junky snacks, he'll have to buy them himself.
Well why don′t you go with him to the supermarket and together pick up things that he may like to eat ( that are on the healthy side) that way he won′t really want to eat junk food.
Just a thought..
Good luck..
Bcn_mimosa from Barcelona
I have the same problem with my 20 yr old son...he won't eat anything. I buy him things like Hot Pockets, Frozen Pizza, TV Dinners, Mac & Cheece, Deli Meats, basically anything that could go in a microwave. I also find the he will eat just about anything (including healty stuff) if I put a few peices of bacon on it. Well good luck I know you'll need it since I fight this battle everyday.
lemon pepper chicken
chicken tacos
turkey burgers
turkey meatloaf
roast chicken
you can take some of his favorite foods and just re-work them. bake don't fry, grill on bbq not in frying pan. steam veggie not boil them. use chicken or turkey in place of beef or pork. If your brother is anything like mine, if you cook it he will eat it.
if he likes peanut butter then make ants on a log.