How many times have you sat down at the dinner table only to notice that it looks like your child hasn’t had a bath in days, just by noticing their fingernails?! Kids will be kids. They have no reservations when it comes to play. Making mud pies, picking up frogs, and digging in the dirt is their thing. That’s a kid’s life. So it’s a parent’s job to teach their kids about cleanliness, and the same goes for food safety.
Here are 4 easy ways for you to educate your kids on how to be food-safe:
- Share a story that they can relate to. Have you ever been sick in bed for three days because you got food poisoning? You don’t have to go into too many details, but you certainly can share how you had a stomach ache for days and how that kept you from being able to have ‘fun.’ Share an example of food prep that you do that ties into food safety: you wash your hands before handling and cooking foods, you use two different cutting boards—one for raw meats, poultry, and fish and one for produce and ready-to-eat foods, etc.
- Do your part and make sure that your kids are able to easily wash their hands at sinks. Do you need to place a stepping stool near the sink to make getting to the facet easier? Is the soap easy to grab or use? A pump bottle seems to work best for kids.
- Get your kids involved in putting away the groceries, setting the table, food prep, and cooking (with adult supervision and help). Just being in the kitchen is the best place to educate kids about food safety.
- Buy magnets in the shape of foods and stick the food magnets that represent refrigerated and freezer foods onto the fridge.
When it comes to kids and food safety, education is so important.