Rainbow Plate is a book designed to engage young children in discussion around healthy eating habits. As a GP, Preeya is constantly discussing diet with parents of children and she often uses colour charts and the ideas of a rainbow plate and tummy to encourage her young patients to try and get more colours on their plate (fruit and vegetables into their diet). As the mother of a 3 year old she has employed the same techniques to make healthy eating fun in her house; she is constantly cooking with her daughter, talking about colours and how many they can get rainbows on their plate and in their tummy.This book reflects the way in which she, as both a mother and GP, has made fruit and vegetables fun for lots of children including her own. The illustrations are engaging for young children with lots of potential for discussion for parents (i.e. what colours can you see? Can you see asparagus? Do you know what that fruit is?). The book attempts to make fruit, vegetables, healthy eating fun for children in a magical and fun way.
The unique point about Rainbow Plate is that it is written by a GP with qualifications in the area of paediatric health and nutrition. The recent Australian Health Report indicated that the majority of Australian children do not get enough vegetables in their daily diet - with obesity-related disease on the rise in Australia, healthy eating habits are now more important than ever! The letter to parents and caregivers at the front of the book gives some practical information for parents which also makes it a great book to share with other parents who you know might be struggling with starting solids or fussy eaters. The information shared in this is all evidence-based information.
