Thanksgiving Snacks Kids Will Crave Their Whole Lives

In the United States, November is a month of both celebration and change. Sundays are filled with football; plans for Thanksgiving preoccupy our minds; and for most of us, temperatures edge closer to freezing as the sun seems to have better places to be past 4pm. There’s also the sudden rise in the appearance of moustaches across the land as “Movember” launches and men align in solidarity to support men’s health issues – the “Mo” being short for moustache, and all. In the spirit of these two themes (celebration and change), we thought we’d offer-up a few dead-simple, good-for-you food switcheroos to help you celebrate!

Thanksgiving Snacks Set the Stage

When it comes to the perfect opportunity to ingrain good habits early on, there’s hardly anything better than testing out a few new food tricks at Thanksgiving. After all, you’ve got a captive audience, your kids will be starving by the time they get to grandma’s, and most times, they’ve even got their own table! Why not use this opportunity to slip in some healthy snacks and see what happens? Here are two super easy ideas that have worked forever for families all across the land:

Fresh fruit: You wouldn’t believe how quickly kids will devour fruit when it’s all cut up into bite-sized pieces. For parents, everywhere, half the struggle of getting kids to eat more fruit is overcoming the labor of all the cutting and peeling. You know how good fruit is for them – so if you find yourself in that boat, swing by the supermarket and pick up a fruit platter. Then watch it disappear at the kid’s table.
Dips: Thanksgiving doubles as game day for football fans, and with the family gathering around the TV before and after the meal, snacks are going to be in high demand. Moms, dads and kids all love feasting on de rigueur snacks like chips with ranch dip -- but there are so many substitutes that even the staunchest fan of creamy ranch will enjoy.

Hummus, tzatziki, baba ganoush, guacamole, salsa and nut butters will all be received well, so try them on for size. There are also a host of healthier chip options out there too that’ll keep many a chip fan happy. Bean chips, taro chips, you name it – it’s all available. Even seaweed, which is so good for teeth and bones might win a few folks over. Oh, and don’t forget grandma’s favorite! Fresh carrots and celery. Kids will love the crunch all throughout the game, and you’ll be providing their teeth with self-cleaning fiber that’ll keep ‘em healthy for many years to come. Festive snacking doesn’t have to be a guilty indulgence – in November, or any other time of the year. Getting your kids to snack healthy this month can help establish a great, healthy habit to last them a lifetime.