Healthy eating for children

 

Is your child hooked on junk food? We offer you simple tips that will help instill in your child the basics of proper nutrition without turning every meal into a battlefield.

Benefits of healthy eating for children

Peer pressure and television advertisements for unhealthy foods make it difficult to educate children about the importance of proper nutrition. Considering parents' busy schedules, it also makes sense why so many children's daily menus are based on convenience and food that can be easily taken with you. 

But you must understand that giving up junk food and switching to a healthy diet has a big impact on your child’s health: it helps maintain optimal weight, stabilizes mood, sharpens mental abilities and avoids other problems. Proper nutrition is also important for emotional and mental health because... helps prevent depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), bipolar personality disorder, etc.  

A healthy diet promotes proper growth and development of your child and may even play a role in reducing the risk of suicidality. If your child already has diagnosed mental health problems, proper nutrition will help him cope with symptoms and take control of his health. 

It is very important for parents to understand that a child is not born with a love for fried potatoes and pizza and an antipathy for carrots and broccoli. Eating habits develop over time, when the child gradually becomes aware of the huge selection of unhealthy and tasty foods. However, it is not only possible, but also necessary, to reprogram this system and change the child’s taste preferences towards healthier foods.  

The sooner healthy foods appear in a child’s diet, the easier and faster he develops the right relationship with healthy food, which he will have for the rest of his life. This process can be much easier than you might imagine. With the help of the tips we will offer you below, you can change or instill in your child good eating habits, and give him the opportunity to grow into a healthy and mentally balanced adult. 

Encourage healthy eating habits

It doesn’t matter what age a child is, be it a toddler or a teenager, he develops taste preferences for the foods he likes most. To encourage healthy eating habits, you need to make choosing the right foods more attractive.

Here are some helpful tips to assist you with this:

Pay attention to the content of the menu as a whole, and not to individual products.

The child needs to eat as much whole food as possible with a minimum of processing, i.e. close to natural form. And, accordingly, fewer processed, store-bought foods.

Become a role model.
The desire of children to imitate adults is quite strong, so it is wrong to teach your child to eat vegetables while you yourself are constantly eating junk foods, such as chips.

Try to disguise healthy foods.
For example, you can add mashed carrots to mashed potatoes or pour sweet sauce over apple slices.

Include more home-cooked meals in your diet.
The food you buy at a restaurant or cafe is high in sugar and unhealthy fats, so homemade meals are much healthier for your children. If you cook in large quantities, then after standing at the stove several times, you can feed your family for the whole week, which will save your time.

Involve your child in grocery shopping and cooking.
Explain about the products and what information about them can be obtained from the labels. 

Make healthy snacks available to your child.
Fruits and vegetables should be available in the home, as well as water, milk and fruit juices. Then the child will be able to avoid consuming harmful foods such as carbonated drinks, sweets and chips. 

Determine your serving size.
Avoid insisting that your children finishes everything on their plate and leaves it spotless, and refrain from using food as a reward. 

The right children's menu starts with breakfast

Breakfast is a very important part of a child's diet. A child who eats breakfast every day has better memory, more stable mood, energy, and also has good grades in school. If your child is overweight, eating proteins such as yogurt, milk, cheese, eggs, meat and fish for breakfast can help him achieve a healthy weight.

Breakfast should not only be healthy, but also convenient to eat quickly. You can, for example, offer your child a boiled egg, in addition to low-sugar cereal and an apple. 

On the weekend, you can make burritos filled with scrambled eggs, cheese and chicken/beef that can easily be frozen and reheated during the week, saving both you and your baby time. 

On the way to school, you can easily eat an egg sandwich, Greek yogurt or cottage cheese, or whole grain toast with peanut butter. 

Make mealtimes more than just healthy food

Try to set aside time for the whole family to have a home-cooked lunch or dinner. This will not only serve as a great example of the importance of healthy eating, but will also help make your family friendly, because even teenagers love to eat delicious food!

1. Family meals, as part of the daily routine, provide emotional comfort. When a child knows that the whole family sits down at the table at the same time every day and spends this part of the day together, this can be a pleasant pastime for him, which increases his appetite and improves his mood.   

2. Family meals make it easier for you to learn about your children's daily routine. When you gather around the same table, it provides a great opportunity to talk and listen to your child without the distractions of work, the phone, or the TV. 

3. Interaction with the parent and family is very important for the child. A simple conversation over lunch can go a long way in relieving stress and improving your mood and self-esteem. It also gives you the opportunity to understand what problems your child is having and address them early. 

4. Having lunch together allows you to teach your child by example. Family lunches, breakfasts or dinners give children the opportunity to see that you too are eating healthy foods, controlling portions and limiting junk food. However, it is worth paying attention to the fact that at the table you must refrain from constantly counting calories and commenting on your own weight, because... This can cause negative associations with food in children.  

5. Family meals provide insight into a child's eating habits. This is especially important for older children, because they spend a lot of time outside the home, for example at school or with friends. If it turns out that your child's food choices are not good, the best way to change this is to teach them about the short-term consequences of unhealthy eating. For example, regarding appearance or athletic capabilities. You can cover topics like: “Calcium will help you grow taller” or “Iron will help you do better in exams.”

Limit the amount of sugar and refined carbohydrates in the children's menu

Refined (simple) carbohydrates are foods that lack fiber and nutrients. These include: white bread, rice, flour, pizza dough, ready-made breakfast cereals. Such foods cause a spike in blood sugar levels and, as a result, fluctuations in mood and energy levels. 

Complex carbohydrates, on the other hand, are very rich in nutrients and are digested slowly, resulting in longer-lasting satiety and energy. Foods with complex carbohydrates include whole grain bread, brown rice, nuts, fruits, and non-starchy vegetables.

A child's body can obtain the natural sugar it needs for health from foods that contain it. Extra artificial sugar adds extra calories, increasing the risk of diabetes and obesity, as well as promoting hyperactivity and mood disorders. 

How to reduce your sugar intake

It is recommended to limit sugar consumption to 3 teaspoons per day, i.e. no more than 12 grams.

 

A bottle of lemonade contains about 40 grams of sugar, while cocktails or sweetened coffee drinks contain many times more. Sugar is also found in canned vegetables, frozen ready-made meals, and fast food. Approximately 75% of store-bought foods contain added sugar. 

1. Don't ban sweets completely.
Banning sweets only encourages cravings and sugar abuse when the opportunity arises. 

2. Give sweet dishes a new twist.
Many recipe options will not taste any worse if you add less sugar or replace it with a more natural one.  

3. Limit sugary drinks.
Instead of ready-made drinks, try adding fruit juice to pure sparkling water or making a smoothie with milk and berries. 

4. Replace store-bought ice cream with homemade ice cream.
You can, for example, freeze fruit juice in an ice tray with popsicle sticks. also try making ice cream with pieces of fruit and berries. 

Avoid foods that worsen the child's psychological state

Eating a diet high in foods such as fried foods, sugary desserts, and snacks may increase your risk of anxiety and depression. 

Children who drink more than four cups of soda or other sugary drinks per day also have a higher risk of psychological health problems. This is because such drinks contain a lot of caffeine, which aggravates depression and other disorders and can cause excessive activity of the nervous system. 

Find alternatives to junk food

Fast food usually contains a lot of unhealthy fats, sugar and is very high in calories. Such food, however, is very attractive to children, so do not rush to give it up completely, but rather try to reduce the amount of fast food and, if possible, choose the most useful and healthy. 

Kid-friendly junk food alternatives:

1. French fries - oven-baked French fries, lightly salted

2. Ice cream - yogurt, smoothie or sorbet with fresh fruit 

3. Fried chicken – baked or grilled chicken

4. Donuts and cakes - various bagels, muffins, homemade cakes with a little sugar

5. Chocolate Chip Cookies - Fig bars, waffles, fruit dips

6. Potato chips - baked vegetable chips, nuts 

Dining out with children

Skip the French fries.
Better bring carrot slices or other fruits and vegetables with you 

Watch your portion size.
Choose small portion sizes on the children's menu. Order pizza not whole, but in slices - then the child will eat less unhealthy food.
Ask to replace some items on the children's menu.
Often what is important to a child is the toy on the children's menu, not the food itself. When ordering, swap the soda and fries for something healthier and healthier.

Opt for chicken and veggies over a big bowl of mac and cheese.

Choose your side dishes wisely.
High-calorie and unhealthy side dishes such as onion rings, chips, noodles and rice - a variety of grilled and steamed vegetables, baked potatoes, and corn on the cob are suitable instead.

Be careful about fats

For proper development, children definitely need fats in their diet. Healthy or unsaturated fats help keep your baby full for a long time and improve your child's mood.

Healthy fats:

·   Monounsaturated. Can be found in avocados, olive oil, nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, pecans), pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds.

·   Polyunsaturated. Also includes Omega-3 fatty acids. They are rich in: fatty fish (salmon, sardines, herring, mackerel), flaxseed oil and walnuts.

Bad fats: 

Trans fats. Their content is high in crackers, candies, fried foods, baked goods, and cookies. Any amount of trans fat is not considered healthy for a healthy diet.

Encourage picky children to eat a wider variety of foods

Advertising on TV or the Internet is very often repeated in order to persuade you to buy a product. In the same way, a child needs to be presented with a new product about 8-10 times before he accepts it into his diet.

Don't just insist that your child try something new; instead, consider the following tips:

Instead of simply insisting that your child eat a new food:

1. Offer new foods when the child is hungry. 
2. Follow the rule: only one new dish at a time. 
3. Add some fun. Try cutting the product in some unusual shape or create a whole composition on a plate, for example, broccoli will make excellent trees, pumpkin will make the sun, etc. 
4. Offer new dishes along with your child’s favorite ones, this will help increase the perception of other foods. For example, you can add a new vegetable to a soup that your child likes. 
5. Involve your child in the cooking process - he will be more willing to try what he himself has prepared. 
6. Reduce the number of snacks between meals. 

Make fruits and vegetables more attractive

Children, even if they are not picky eaters, do not always want what is healthy for them, especially fruits and vegetables. But there are a few simple ways to make these foods more tempting for your child. 

The primary measure involves restricting access to unhealthy sweets and salty snacks. It will be much easier for you to explain to your child that an apple is a treat if there is no packet of cookies nearby. 

We offer you some more tips on how to enrich your child’s diet with fruits and vegetables:

Let children choose their own foods.
A child may be interested in seeing all the different types of fruits and vegetables and then choosing the ones they like. Or, for example, try some new dishes.

Add vegetables to familiar dishes.
You can add grated or chopped vegetables to a stew or sauce to pair them with. Cauliflower can be used as a substitute for Mac and cheese, and zucchini and carrots can be used to make healthy bread or muffins. 

Keep plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables available to your child. Products must be washed and cut so that the child can always take them right away. For extra protein, you can add yogurt or hummus to your snacks.  

GMOs and pesticides: keep your children safe

Genetically modified organisms are being developed to make food crops resistant to herbicides or to produce insecticides. The child's body is more sensitive to toxins, because... is in the process of development. Eating natural, organic foods reduces pesticide levels in children, but eating it properly is quite expensive. 

How can you provide safe and healthy food for your children if you are on a tight budget?

1. Eating a lot of vegetables and fruits, whether they are farmed or not, is very beneficial because... The positive aspects of such nutrition will still be greater than the risks. 
2. Try to choose foods that do not need to be peeled before eating, such as berries, tomatoes, and lettuce. Choose fruits and vegetables with thick skins, such as bananas, avocados, and oranges. 
3. Try to find markets or stores that sell non-super expensive farm products. 
4. Wash vegetables and fruits using a brush. This method will not remove pesticides from the inside, but will help remove residues on the peel. 
5. When purchasing meat products, choose farm products - those that your budget allows. Farmed meat is safer and does not cost much more than industrially produced meat. 

Don't ignore weight problems

Children who are overweight are at greater risk for heart disease, bone and joint disease, low self-esteem, and health problems in adulthood. 

Solving the problem of excess weight requires a clear plan that combines both proper nutrition and physical activity.

The goal of this plan is to reduce the rate of weight gain or stop weight gain altogether, allowing your child to reach an optimal healthy weight.

Don't fall into the low-fat diet trap. Fats contain a lot of calories, but a small amount of them allows the child to maintain a feeling of fullness for a long time.

Try to include protein in your morning routine (yogurt, milk, eggs, cheese, fish), because... may help overweight children eat fewer calories throughout the day. 

Encourage physical activity

An important point is, of course, the benefits of playing sports. Regular physical activity can help motivate your child to make healthy nutritional choices. 

Play more with your children. Football, cycling or walking, swimming, skating or rollerblading - choose what you and your child like. 

Help your children find interesting sports activities by showing them the wide range of possibilities and types of physical exercises and games.