Every child is unique and so are his/her nutritional needs, which can vary with age. By following some simple tips, you can serve up nourishing meals for your child.
Aim for Variety and Balance
Ensure that your child gets all the nutrients he/she needs by providing a wide variety of food from the Rice and Alternatives, Fruit and Vegetables, and Meat and Alternatives food groups. Bear in mind that food high in fat and sugar should be eaten sparingly.
The Healthy Diet Pyramid will help you plan what your child needs to eat every day and will ensure that your child's diet has all the nutrients he/she needs to grow well and stay healthy.
Include food from all food groups but remember to choose more from the bottom of the pyramid and less from the top. It is important to remember that younger children have smaller tummies so if you find that your child is unable to finish his/her meal at one go, provide him with healthy snacks to help reach his/her suggested number of servings every day.
Develop Healthy Habits
To help your child adopt healthy eating habits, start at a young age and he/she will more likely continue to have a preference for them as an adult. It may take several tries before he/she accepts a new food, so do not give up if he/she does not like it right away. Remember, children learn from their parents, caregivers and teachers. Hence it is important for you, as a role model, to make healthier food choices too.
It may often be tempting to offer your child a particular food as a reward for good behaviour. However, using food that are high in fat and sugar (e.g. candy, cookies and soft drinks) to reward your child teaches him the habit of rewarding or comforting himself with unhealthy food. Instead provide nonfood rewards such as words of encouragement or a small gift of his/her choice.
Cut Down on Saturated Fat
Fat is an essential nutrient in your child’s diet. It provides energy and also helps absorb, transport and store important vitamins in the body. But too much fat, particularly saturated fat and trans fat, can lead to excessive weight gain and many health problems like heart disease and stroke. When choosing fat, the healthier options are the monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat. These fat can lower the risk of heart disease by reducing cholesterol levels in the blood.
Exception:
Children under the age of 2 years grow rapidly so food higher in fat will help meet their energy needs. Low fat food or diets are not suitable for them at this age. For older children aged 2 years and above, reducing food with unhealthy saturated fat in the diet and replacing some of this fat with food containing monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat, will result in a better fat balance. Also, try to minimize his/her intake of food high in trans fat.
Eat Enough Fruits and Vegetables
Fruit and vegetables are rich in important vitamins and minerals; and are excellent sources of fibre and antioxidants. An increased intake of fruit and vegetables is linked to reduced risks of many diseases such as heart disease, stroke and certain cancers. Hence adequate intake of these food is important for your child's health now and also in the future.
Fruit and vegetables provide bulk in the diet which can make your child feel full. If your child eats too much fruit and vegetables, it can limit his/her intake of other important food in the diet and he/she may fail to meet his/her energy needs.
To get the best nutrition and health benefits, brightly coloured red, yellow and orange fruit and vegetables and dark green leafy vegetables should contribute half of all fruit and vegetables consumed in your child's daily diet.
Go for Whole-Grains
A whole-grain has all the 3 parts intact. However, a refined grain has had the bran and the germ removed during processing. This is why whole-grains are packed with more vitamins, minerals and fibre than refined grains, making them an essential component in your child's diet.
The recommendations for whole-grain servings are part of your child's Rice and Alternatives serving needs. For example, out of the 2-3 Rice and Alternatives servings recommended for children aged 1 through 2 years, ½-1 serving should come from whole-grains while the remaining servings should come from the other food in this food group. Whole-grain food includes wholemeal bread, brown rice, brown rice beehoon, rolled oats, oat porridge, wholemeal pasta and whole wheat or whole-grain cereal.
Bone Up on Calcium
Milk and other calcium-rich food are a must-have in your child's diet. Calcium is the key building block for strong, healthy bones and teeth. During childhood and the teenage years bones grow longer and stronger, which makes these years the best time for your child to invest in his/her bone health. The more savings he/she has in his/her ‘bone bank’ now, the lower the risk of his/her ‘bone bank’ being depleted of calcium as he/she grows older.
Breastmilk and infant formulas are the main sources of calcium for children under 1 year of age. As your child gets older, milk should remain an important part of his/her diet. It is a source of many important nutrients, including calcium, protein, vitamin A and some B vitamins.
The best sources of calcium are dairy products, such as milk, cheese and yoghurt (low-fat versions contain similar amounts of calcium). Other good sources of calcium include dark green leafy vegetables, fish with edible bones (e.g. sardines), nuts, calcium-fortified products (e.g. cereals and soybean drink with the Healthier Choice Symbol) and tofu.
Calcium does not act alone in promoting bone health. It works with vitamin D to increase calcium absorption from our food. The action of sunlight on the skin is the best way of producing vitamin D in the body and just 15 minutes of daily sunlight outdoors will ensure sufficient vitamin D for your child. Food sources of vitamin D include fatty fish (e.g. salmon) and eggs.
Limit Salt Intake
Salt contains 40% sodium, which affects blood pressure if taken in excess. Sodium can also be found in sauces, monosodium glutamate (MSG), food preservatives and processed food. By encouraging lightly salted food and reducing overall salt intake, it is possible for your child to consume a low sodium diet.
Reducing salt from the diet is easy. Here's how:
Watch The Sugar
No matter what form they are in, sugar always taste sweet! Most children have a sweet tooth and should be encouraged to consume less food and drinks containing added sugar.
The simplest way to group sugar is:
Added sugar is often referred to as ‘empty calories’ because they provide little nutritional value in your child's diet. So if you are concerned that your child may gain weight if he/she consumes more calories than he/she can burn through physical activity, now is a good time to take steps to reduce his/her intake of sugary food and drinks to ensure a healthy weight.
Bacteria in the mouth use sugar to produce tooth-damaging acid so eating sugar frequently puts teeth at risk of decay. This is especially true for processed sugar, for example, cordials or in food and drinks containing added sugar rather than those that occur naturally in food (e.g. fruit). To help look after your child’s teeth, it is best to avoid sugary food and drinks.
The best drinks for your child are plain milk and water. Fruit juice (with added sugar) and other sweetened drinks should be limited as they are often high in calories. If you choose to give your child sweetened drinks, look out for those with the Healthier Choice Symbol.
5 tips to reduce your child's sugar intake:
The Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA) refer to the recommended daily levels of nutrients to meet the needs of nearly all healthy individuals in a particular age and gender group.
Reference: HealthHub
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