Now that the summer is here, it is important that you keep yourself and your children hydrated throughout, especially on the hottest days of the year. This will keep them healthy and well, as well as ensuring they get ample exercise and ample nutritious food throughout the day. Without the proper amount of water to hydrate your children, however, they could become dehydrated, but unfortunately, most kids just do not want to drink as they should. You can get creative, however, to ensure that your children get their proper water intake by using the five tips that are found below.
1. Bring the Fun
When you are wanting to encourage your children to drink water, you need to do so in a fun and exciting way, as this will make them excited about drinking water. You can put a few drops of food coloring in their water or could even put water purification drops to make it seem as if it is a science experiment in which the water becomes cleaner. You can then allow them to choose their own fun cups and to drink through a bendy straw. To keep water cold, buy some fun ice cube trays that will create the ice in a fun way to entertain them.
2. Put in Some Fruit
Most kids love to eat fruit, especially fruit like oranges and watermelon during the summer. Add a couple of pieces of their favorite fruits, whether those be the watermelon and oranges as aforementioned or whether you choose something like a strawberry or a blueberry. These will also give their water a fun color that will again make the whole process of drinking water more fun for your children. If you do not have picky eaters, you can even let your children try new fruits and vegetables that they may enjoy more than others.
3. Make Alerts
When you are first starting to encourage your children to drink more water, you can turn it into a game of sorts. You can even place a chart on the kitchen wall that your children can put a sticker on or can check off for every time that they drink water. You can even set reminders on your phone, allowing them to change their ringtones to what they enjoy the most. This can also help your children to create the habits that they are looking to keep in mind throughout the summer.
4. Create Lessons
If your child enjoyed school, they may enjoy having a fun lesson about the benefits that can come when they drink water. You can show them what happens to a flower when it does not get the water that it needs, for instance. You can also show your child that they can become stronger when they drink water, and allow them to showcase their speed running, for instance, at the beginning of the summer versus their speed at the end of the summer. This will help them to learn firsthand the importance and to have a reason to drink water as they should.
5. Let Them Choose Their Own Water Bottle
If your children are old enough, you can allow them to choose their own water bottle to use throughout the summer. This water bottle can even turn into the one that they use for the school year. This will be a more fun experience for them as they will feel that they are drinking water in a more personalized way. Making your children part of the effort of encouraging them to drink more water is the best way to encourage them to do what they need to.
Final Thoughts
IF you have young children, you want to encourage them to live healthy lifestyles as they should. They can then use what they have learned to even become healthy and keep up these habits well into their adult lives and teenage lives. One healthy habit that is easy to teach your children this summer is to encourage them to drink more water throughout the day. You can do this by involving them in the experience, teaching them the benefits in a fun and creative way, and even making the water more fun for your children.
