Healthy Food Choices for Infants, Toddlers and Preschoolers
How can you ensure that your child is well nourished? Your child should consume a variety of foods from the five major food groups. Every food group is a source of important nutrients, including vitamins and minerals.
Here are the important food groups that must be included in your kid’s diet, be it infant, toddler, or preschooler.
Protein:
Foods that are rich in protein are lean meat, fish, chicken, eggs, beans, lentils, chickpeas, tofu, and nuts. These foods play a significant role in the physical and mental growth of your child. They promote muscle development which enhances mobility in young children. Apart from protein and amino acids, this food group also consists of vitamins and minerals like iron, zinc, vitamin B12, and omega-3 fatty acids. Iron and omega-3 fatty acids from red meat and oily fish are particularly important for your child’s brain development and learning.
Dairy:
This food group includes food items like milk, cheese, and yogurt. These foods are good sources of protein and calcium and provide nourishment to your child’s developing bones.
Dairy foods can be introduced from around six months of age. But make sure that breastmilk or infant formula is your baby’s main drink until around 12 months of age. Later on, add full-fat cow’s milk along with a balanced diet.
Fruit And Vegetables:
Fruit and vegetables provide tons of energy, vitamins, antioxidants, fiber, and water to the human body. These essential nutrients protect babies and toddlers from diseases later in life, including diseases like heart disease, stroke, and some cancers.
So, try to incorporate fruit and vegetables at every meal for your child. Make a smoothy, or give them as a snack. Many Nurseries in Dubai encourage Preschoolers to bring veggies and fruits to lunch to promote healthy eating. Try to choose fruit and veggies of different colors, tastes, and textures, both fresh and cooked. Don’t forget to wash fruit to remove dirt or chemicals, and leave any edible skin on.
Grain Foods:
Grain foods include bread, pasta, noodles, breakfast cereals, couscous, rice, corn, quinoa, polenta, oats, and barley. Children get the energy they need to grow, develop and learn from these foods.
Grain foods with a low glycemic index, like wholegrain pasta and pieces of bread, have added benefits. They provide your kids with longer-lasting energy and keep them feeling fuller for longer.
It’s best to limit the amount of junk food in your child’s everyday meals. limit sweet drinks for your child, including fruit juice, cordials, sports drinks, flavored waters, soft drinks, and flavored kinds of milk. Sweet drinks are high in sugar and low in nutrients. Some parents prefer ready-made food for lunch when sending their children to a Dubai preschool. However, the teaching staff at Mosaic Nursery in JLT, encourage healthy lunches. Have more room for healthy, everyday foods when making meal plans.
