How To Encourage Your Kids To Drink More Water
When your kids are active all day by running, playing, and participating in sports, they must drink enough water to keep themselves hydrated.
However, if your kids don’t naturally enjoy the taste of water or prefer to drink less nutritious drinks instead, it can be challenging to ensure they’re getting the hydration they need. In this article, we’re sharing our tips for how to encourage your kids to drink more water to make this process simpler.
Add Frozen Fruit, Not Ice Cubes
Kids commonly avoid drinking water on their own because this beverage does not appeal to them. Children are more likely to reach for a drink packed with flavor rather than sipping on the neutral taste of water. Consider using frozen fruit to chill your children’s drinks rather than ice cubes for an added flavor incentive.
Frozen fruit will cool your water down with the same effectiveness as ice cubes and will add a burst of naturally sweet and citrusy flavors to your kid’s water. Exploring other options to make your beverages more flavorful for children will also help make these drinks more enticing to your kids.
Add a Silly Straw
If you’re unsure how to encourage your kids to drink more water without feeling like you’re forcing them, consider how you can make drinking water a more enjoyable activity. For most adults, drinking water is not a special event; however, there are many ways to make hydration exciting for kids.
For example, add a silly straw into their glass. Buy a collection of colorful straws to give your kids when they ask for a glass of water. Having this fun incentive will encourage them to drink water more frequently.
Give Them Their Own Water Cup
As you teach your child to drink more water, it’s also important to help them understand the importance of staying hydrating and taking care of their health. Explaining this responsibility can be difficult with younger children, but here’s a tip that can help. First, buy them their own water cup.
Choose a fancy, creative, and fun cup they’ll love and call it their water cup. Your child will be more likely to drink water from this glass because it’s special to them.
Make Your Own Flavor Ice Cubes
Parents can also create ice cubes to include in their children’s water. Consider taking lime juice, lemon juice, or any other fruit concentrate and freezing this liquid overnight in an icetray. In the morning, you can add these unique and delicious ice cubes into your kid’s water as an added flavor for them to enjoy.
Reward Them for Being Healthy
Although it may seem pointless to reward your kids for simply drinking a glass of water, there’s a massive benefit to reinforcing how vital health is to your children. When you positively reinforce their healthy behaviors, they’re more likely to repeat those behaviors with less resistance in the future.
Now, rewarding your child does not mean they should earn a piece of candy every time they take a sip of water. Instead, create a tally sheet of how often they drink water throughout the week.
For example, if they hit their recommended daily amount of water every day for a week, then reward your kids with a bike ride or fun family activity.
Don’t overcomplicate your kid’s hydration. Instead, follow these tips to naturally encourage your kids to drink more water so you can help them build a healthier mindset.
