How to Handle Snacking During Church
A Parents Guide on Managing Children's Need to Eat During Service
May 20, 2009
While infants and babies are often nursed freely, toddlers and preschoolers are just learning to go longer periods of time without a snack. Health Canada states in the January 12, 2008 article, "Choosing Foods: Advice for Different Ages and Stages" that “Because preschoolers and young children have small stomachs, they need to eat small amounts of food more often throughout the day.”
If the church service is held during a time when a child would, on any other day, be snacking or eating a meal, it is particularly important for parents to have food available for their young children. When providing snacks for children during a church service, the following tips can make snacking during the service go as smoothly as possible.
Provide Noiseless Snacks
The sounds made by crunchy foods or snacks wrapped in stiff foils can be distracting for other congregation members and speakers. Snacks packed in crinkly packaging can be repackaged into a soft plastic baggie, a small plastic container, or be wrapped in a soft cloth in order to reduce noise intrusion on other members trying to hear the speaker.
Keep Crumbs to a Minimum
Snacks that don't leave crumbs behind demonstrate respect for the other members who may have to sit near the child in their Sunday attire. It also helps to reduce workload for the persons responsible for maintaining cleanliness in the chapel, which for many churches includes all congregation members including parents. Some examples of healthier snacks that are less prone to crumbs include
- Fruit bars that contain real fruit and less sugars.
- Raisins for children over the age of three, since they could pose a choking risk for babies and toddlers. Handing out only a few at a time can make it easier for parents to keep track if they are being dropped on the floor.
- Banana chunks for children who are old enough to not grind them into the furniture.
- Soft granola bars or other fiber bars that are chewy enough to not crumble when bitten.
- Stringable cheese or cheese chunks of a similar consistency. Processed cheese slices are too soft and as a result are more prone to becoming part of the carpeting.
Snacks Should be Nutritious
Nutrition plays an important role in child development and providing healthy snacks during church can benefit both the children and the parents in different ways.
- Eating healthy snacks and meals can have a positive effect on a persons health. Specifically, Health Canada indicates that eating well can lead to increased energy and “stronger muscles and bones.”
- Role modeling good eating habits by introducing healthy foods to children when they are young can encourage them to make positive food choices on their own when they become independent.
- Nutritious foods are often less appealing to other children whose eating habits are not as healthy. Providing healthy snacks during church could potentially reduce or even eliminate the amount of other children who approach the food provider with the anticipation of being given a share of the snack.
Children who are very young can not generally go for long periods of time without eating. For some families this can become challenging if their children get hungry during a long church service. It is possible for parents to provide snacks for their children during church that will both meet the nutritional needs of their children and not distract the people around them.
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