There is a stage in childhood when food is wonderfully simple. A banana is something to peel. A roti can be rolled into a little tube. A bowl of curd can become a place to mix, dip and experiment. A handful of peas can be counted before they are eaten. A child may know the taste of a favourite snack long before they know what nutrition means. Then, gradually, adults begin explaining food.
Eat your vegetables. Drink your milk. Have some fruit. Finish what is on your plate. This has protein. This has vitamins. This is good for you. The advice comes from a place of care. Every parent wants a child to grow well and have the nourishment needed for an active childhood. The early years are an important period for growth and development, and the foods introduced during this stage contribute to children’s nutritional needs while also helping them become familiar with different tastes and textures. WHO describes the period from six months onwards as an important stage for establishing healthy dietary patterns and learning to accept a variety of nutritious foods.
There is another part of this learning that deserves attention: the meaning children attach to food. A child watches before a child chooses. Children watch the adults around them with remarkable attention. They notice what appears in the kitchen every morning. They see a parent cut fruit while packing lunch. Food has colour. Food has texture. Food comes from somewhere. Some foods are eaten often, some occasionally. Meals can be prepared together. The child is learning all this long before anyone asks them to remember the food pyramid.
Give children a place in the process.
There is something different about eating a food that a child has helped prepare. The same cucumber that was ignored on a plate can suddenly become interesting when the child has washed it, sliced it with help and arranged it beside the other ingredients. Sesame Workshop India’s Healthy Habits initiative brings nutrition, movement and play, and sleep into one broader conversation about childhood well-being. Its India resources include Aahaar Cards, storybooks, flash cards, a Healthy Calendar and activity-based material designed to help children and caregivers explore healthy routines.
A healthy childhood is built through several everyday routines. There is the food a child eats, the water they drink, and the habits around hygiene and daily care. These parts of childhood often overlap. Sesame Workshop’s current Healthy Habits programme follows this wider approach, using play-based activities and family resources to make healthy routines easier for children to understand and practise.
A useful routine is one that a family can repeat. Over time, these small experiences can give children a sense of what caring for themselves looks like. We can give children information about nutrition, and we can also give them experiences that make healthy choices understandable. Let them ask why a carrot is orange. Let them choose between two fruits. Let them help stir the yoghurt. Healthy habits are like a language in themselves for children.
Sometimes it sounds like a question: “Can I help?”
Sometimes it sounds like curiosity: “What is this?”
Those moments may seem small to an adult. For a child, they are part of learning.
The writer is the Managing Trustee of Sesame Workshop India Trust; Views presented are personal.