What children should eat to grow properly

Knowing dinner is served at approximately the same time every night and that the entire family will be sitting down together is comforting and enhances appetite.

Poor nutrition among toddlers and young children is an increasingly common problem with serious physical and medical consequences. According to a recent report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on child health, 70 per cent of children from affluent families in Kenya are either overweight or obese.

Parents can play an important role in helping their children develop healthy eating habits that will reduce the risks of obesity or diabetes, which are on the increase among children. And the earlier they start doing this, the better.

Where do poor eating habits stem from?
Unfortunately, kids are bombarded by messages that can counteract your efforts. With the constant television commercials promoting junk foods, getting children to eat well might be an uphill task. Also children develop a natural preference for the foods they enjoy the most; so the challenge is to make healthy choices appealing. The childhood impulse to imitate is strong, so it is important you act as a role model for your kids. It is no good asking your child to eat fruits and vegetables while you eat chips
with soda in front of him or her.

How to promote healthy eating habits in toddlers and young children
There is no great secret to healthy eating. However, there are simple steps that parents can take to instill healthy eating habits in their kids, without turning mealtimes into a battle zone. By encouraging healthy eating habits now, you can make a huge impact on your children’s lifelong relationship with food and give them the best opportunity to grow into healthy adults.

Common approaches parents can take to develop healthy eating habits in their young children include:

• Guide your family’s food choices rather than dictating. Make a wide variety of healthy foods available in the house. This practice will help your children learn how to make healthy food choices.
• Encourage your children to eat slowly. A child can detect hunger and fullness better when eating slowly.
• Eat meals together as a family as often as possible. Try to make meal times pleasant with conversation and sharing and not the time for scolding or arguing. If meal times are unpleasant, children may try to eat faster to leave the table as soon as possible. They then may learn to associate eating with stress.
• Involve your children when shopping for food and when preparing meals. These activities will give you hints about your children’s food preferences and provide your kids with a feeling of accomplishment. In addition, children may be more willing to eat or try foods that they help prepare.
• Plan for snacks. Continuous snacking may lead to overeating, but snacks that are planned at specific times during the day can be part of a nutritious diet, without spoiling a child’s appetite at meal times. You should make snacks as nutritious as possible without depriving your children of occasional chips or cookies, especially at parties or other social events.
• Discourage eating meals or snacks while watching TV. Try to eat only in designated areas of your home, such as the dining room or kitchen. Eating in front of the TV may make it difficult to pay attention to feelings of fullness and may lead to overeating.
• Encourage your children to choose water as their beverage. Over-consumption of sweetened drinks and sodas has been linked to increased rates of obesity in children.
• Try not to use food to punish or reward your children. Withholding food as a punishment may lead children to worry that they will not get enough food. As a result, children may try to eat as much food as possible whenever they get a chance to do so.

Similarly, when foods such as sweets are used as a reward, children may assume that these foods are better or more valuable than other foods. Make sure your children’s meals outside the home are balanced. Find out more about their school lunch, or pack their lunch to include a variety of foods. Also, select healthier items for them when dining at restaurants.

Tips to promote healthy childhood eating

• Have regular family meals. Knowing dinner is served at approximately the same time every night and that the entire family will be sitting down together is comforting and enhances appetite. Breakfast is another great time for a family meal, especially since kids who eat breakfast tend to do better in school.
• Cook more meals at home. Eating home-cooked meals is healthier for the whole family and sets a
  good example for kids about the importance of food. Restaurant meals tend to have more fat, sugar and salt. Save dining out for special occasions.
• Make a variety of healthy snacks available instead of junk calorie snacks. Keep plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grain snacks and healthy beverages (water, milk, pure fruit juice) around and easily accessible so that kids become used to reaching for healthy snacks instead of empty calorie snacks like soda, chips or cookies.
• Limit portion sizes. Do not insist your child cleans the plate, and never use food as a reward or bribe.
• Do not impose a total ban on eating of sweets. Having a ‘no sweets’ rule is an invitation for cravings and overindulging when given a chance to eat them.
• Cut down on processed foods such as white bread and cakes, which cause blood sugar to go up and down, and can leave kids tired and sapped of energy.
• Avoid processed, packaged, restaurant and fast food. Processed foods like canned soups or frozen dinners contain hidden sodium that surpasses the recommended limit. Many fast foods are also loaded with excess sodium.
• Go for fresh or frozen vegetables instead of canned ones.
• Cut back on salty snacks such as potato chips, and choose low salt or reduced sodium products.
  Childhood can be challenging for parents when it comes to promoting healthy eating for young children but the tips listed above will go a long way in helping your child develop good eating habits.

END: BL 42/14-15