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What every parent can do about nutritional concerns
Healthy eating in childhood is important for proper growth and development and to prevent various health conditions. Despite parents’ focus on kids, many parents are still confused and worried, especially when it comes to what kids eat.
How much do our kids need? Are they getting enough calcium? Enough iron? Too much fat? Whether you have a toddler, nutrition is important for his or her physical and mental development.
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020–2025 recommend that people aged 2 years or older should follow a healthy eating pattern that includes the following:
⮚ A variety of fruits and vegetables
⮚ Whole grains
⮚ Fat-free and low-fat dairy products
⮚ A variety of protein foods
⮚ Oils
These guidelines also recommend that individuals limit calories from solid fats (major sources of saturated and trans fatty acids) and added sugars, and reduce sodium intake.
So, what’s the best nutrition to fuel your child’s growth and development? Below are some of the nutrition basics for girls and boys of various ages.
Consider these nutrient-dense foods:
- Protein – Choose seafood, lean meat and poultry, eggs, beans, peas, soy products, and unsalted nuts and seeds.
- Fruits – Encourage your child to eat a variety of fresh, canned, frozen, or dried fruits – rather than fruit juice. If your child drinks juice, make sure it’s 100 percent juice without added sugars and limit his or her servings. Look for canned fruit that says it’s light or packed in its juice, meaning it’s low in added sugar. Keep in mind that one-quarter cup of dried fruit counts as one cup equivalent of fruit. When consumed in excess, dried fruits can contribute extra calories.
- Vegetables – Serve a variety of fresh, canned, frozen, or dried vegetables. Aim to provide a variety of vegetables, including dark green, red and orange, beans and peas, starchy, and others, each week. When selecting canned or frozen vegetables, look for options lower in sodium.
- Grains – Choose whole grains, such as whole-wheat bread, oatmeal, popcorn, quinoa, or brown or wild rice. Limit refined grains such as white bread, pasta, and rice.
- Dairy – Encourage your child to eat and drink fat-free or low-fat dairy products, such as milk, yogurt, cheese, or fortified soy beverages.
You can also add nutrition to your child’s diet with PediaSure. PediaSure is a delicious nutrition drink that complements a healthy diet for kids who are behind in growth and the new PediaSure has Arginine and Vitamin K2 as well which help support longer and stronger bones. I was part of the virtual launch of the new PediaSure recently and learned about this. [i] PediaSure gives visible growth in 90 days. Another interesting fact is that the vanilla flavour contains 30 percent less sucrose and yet does not compromise on taste. You can give your child 2 full servings of PediaSure per day for optimal results. Try to use it as part of a healthy diet.
Aim to limit your child’s calories from:
- Saturated and trans fats – Limit saturated fats – fats that mainly come from animal sources of food, such as red meat, poultry, and full-fat dairy products. Look for ways to replace saturated fats with vegetable and nut oils, which provide essential fatty acids and vitamin E. Healthier fats are also naturally present in olives, nuts, avocados, and seafood. Limit trans fats by avoiding foods that contain partially hydrogenated oil. [ii]
- Sodium – Encourage snacking on fruits and vegetables instead of chips and cookies. Check nutrition labels and look for products low in sodium. [iii]
Tips for child nutrition:
Teach the importance of good nutrition, and help your children establish healthy eating habits. The more your child understands nutrition, the more excited he/she will be about eating healthy.
Nutrients are important, but portion size matters too. Half of your child’s plate should be fruits and vegetables. Choose fresh foods over highly processed foods. [iv]
How you cook and prepare foods can affect the nutritional value. For example, try grilling, steaming, baking, or broiling vegetables instead of frying or boiling them. It’s not just food that’s important. Drink water instead of sugary, sweetened, carbonated drinks. Different foods provide different nutrients, so make sure your child gets a good variety of fruits and vegetables. Find nutritious foods that children enjoy.
As a mother, I have always been concerned about my child’s proper growth and nutrition. The above pointers have helped me.
I hope you find them helpful too!
Disclaimer: If you have questions about nutrition for kids or specific concerns about your child’s diet, please consult with your child’s doctor or a registered dietician.
[i] https://pediasure.in/about-pediasure/pediasure-overview
[ii] https://kidshealth.org/en/kids/fat.html
[iii] https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/children-sodium/index.html
Child’s nutrition is a continuous struggle. Your post is quite detailed. Tips are practical and useful.
yes child nutrition is an important aspect of child’s growth. you have shared really great tips in this post. pediasure is a great brand. I had used this for my girls and had a great experience with it.
I liked your tips buddy as children tend to get fussy and I am glad Pediasure comes to their rescue. An insightful piece
Undernutrition causes children to have less energy and less interest in learning during their childhood. As a mother, I have always been concerned about my kid’s proper diet and nutrition. The above pointers are really helpful.
We all are striving to give our kids the best. Even we have started using Pediasure now for the kids.
I am happy that my son love to eat healthy food- fruit, meat,milk,vegetables, soup ,nuts and where as my daughter is fussy eater.
Children’s nutrition is the focal point, now more than ever. These are good tips which are easy to incorporate – definitely a good learning for us to keep these in mind as we plan meals.
Having a balanced diet is definitely essential to maintain good health. Glad that you have listed out in detail about child nutrition. Pedisure i definitely trustworthy
As a parent, I am always worried about the nutrition of two kids. I feel it is my duty to provide them complete nutrition so they can grow up to be healthy kids. PediaSure is the best nutrition drink in the market right now and we have been using the same for ages now.
Having a balanced diet is definitely essential to maintain good health. Glad that you have listed out in detail about child nutrition.
Informative post. I particularly find it difficult to add fruits to my kids meals. And this is a concern that needs to be addressed. I so agree as you said, portion size matters to
Not a mom but I know that children need proper nutrients stay healthy and strong. However, your points and the guidelines that you have set are really wonderful
It’s important to take care of kids nutritional intake for every parent and I am so glad that you have shared such an informative article for all parents!!
I always believe in a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle, but in a rush we often forget the complete nutrition sometimes is needed from the supplements. A great elaborative post here.
Having a balanced diet with kids mood swings is really challenging with Pediasure we can make the diet nutritional with all worries at the bay.
What a lovely post is this. Am surely sending this to all my friends with children they will thank you.
My son loves drinking a glass of pediasure milk in the morning. I am quite impressed how the brand is making efforts to make the drink more nutritious for kids by including all the essential nutrients in one pack.
We too try to prepare meals including all the nutrients, it is indeed important to pay attention to our kid’s meals for their proper growth and development.