It’s a fundamental fact: Healthy eating is vital for children. It fuels their rapid physical and brain development while promoting overall well-being and better academic performance.
Good nutrition builds strong bodies, stabilizes energy for learning and play, helps maintain a healthy weight and reduces the risk of chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease later in life.
“Good nutrition is essential during childhood, as it is a time of rapid growth, development and activity,” says Michelle Ann Jimenez, MD, a pediatrician who serves as a hospitalist at South Texas Health System (STHS) Children’s. “Healthy eating helps children achieve and maintain a healthy weight, reducing risks of obesity and related health problems.”
Parents play a vital role in teaching kids healthy eating by being role models, creating a positive food environment, educating them on nutrition and fostering a healthy relationship with food through moderation, not restriction.
“It’s all about fostering positive attitudes about nourishment, not restriction, which builds lifelong positive relationships with food,” says Dr. Jimenez. “Moreover, eating habits established during childhood often carry into adulthood, which increases the chances of a healthy future and reduces the risks for obesity and eating disorders later in life.”
While around 90% of parents in the United States recognize the importance of healthy eating for kids, more than half of them struggle with implementation, according to Mott Poll data, with many feeling unsure about what's truly healthy, finding it difficult to provide convenient/affordable options and lacking confidence in their ability to shape habits.
Nearly 20% of U.S. children and adolescents are considered obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with unhealthy choices, lack of supervision and parental modeling of poor diets strongly linked to the increase in obesity among American youth.
“Combating childhood obesity begins with education, involving comprehensive strategies aimed at teaching kids and parents about nutrition, activity and healthy habits,” says Dr. Jimenez. “But it requires a holistic approach with consistent modeling, environmental changes and family involvement for true success.”
To help parents and caregivers better understand the importance of good childhood nutrition, STHS Children’s will dedicate its latest Let’s Talk Children’s Health webinar to healthy eating.
Broadcast live via the STHS Children’s Facebook page on Wednesday, January 21, 2026, from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m., the online seminar will shine a spotlight on the guidelines for a healthy diet that feed a child’s growth and development, as well as highlight strategies to encourage healthy eating in kids.
For more information on the webinar, visit the STHS Children’s Facebook Events page. To watch previous Let’s Talk Children’s Health Seminars, visit STHSLetsTalk.com.
Who: South Texas Health System Children’s
What: FREE virtual seminar entitled “Let’s Talk Children’s Health – Healthy Eating”
When: Wednesday, January 21, 2026, from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m.
Where: Online via STHS Children’s & STHS’ Facebook pages
About South Texas Health System
South Texas Health System is a multi-facility healthcare system serving patients throughout the Rio Grande Valley. The system includes four acute care facility campuses with specialties in pediatrics, heart and vascular services, maternity and women’s health and trauma services. Inpatient and outpatient treatment for behavioral health needs and addictive disorders is also provided through the system's South Texas Health System Behavioral facility. South Texas Health System is affiliated with the South Texas Clinical Partners ACO, Prominence Health Plan and Cornerstone Regional Hospital. The system operates an advanced Level I Trauma Center at South Texas Health System McAllen, the first freestanding children’s facility and pediatric ER at South Texas Health System Children’s, the region’s only freestanding heart hospital and specialized cardiac ER at South Texas Health System Heart and seven freestanding emergency rooms located in and around Weslaco, Mission, Edinburg, McAllen, Pharr and Alamo. For more information about the system and its comprehensive services, please visit www.southtexashealthsystem.com.
