If you think your child is eating less than he should, then worries about reaching his growth and even intellectual potential follows. My 5 year old son although very smart, still has a lot of room for improvement when it comes to his eating habits.
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I’ve written about feeding picky eaters but today, let me share with you the best food choices for our children. These are some of the tips I picked up from NIDO Growing Up Milk’s mommy talk that allowed NIDO users like me to ask questions from their nutritionist and get a one-on-one consult about our kid’s eating habits.
1. Growing up kids require 1200-1600 calories per day
This is quiet a lot and contrary to their small stomachs, they need this much energy/calories to support their growth and level of activity. My 5 year old is very active, he likes to run, jump, etc. even when he is just inside our house. I try to feed him every 2 hours especially after getting back from school.
A regular meal i.e. lunch and dinner is just about 300-400 calories, add the fact that children get easily bored with food and leave the table with unfinished plates. To meet the daily caloric needs, we must be serving them at least 6 meals including snacks per day.
2. Give kids more water and less juice
No matter your kids age, they need water above any other type of drinks. If you don’t know yet – powdered juices are packed with sugar that are high in calories but low in nutrients. This is why sugar is a source of empty calories. Sugar is also the main cause of obesity.
Most of us want our children’s weight to improve but I for one would never want my child to suffer from obesity. Mommy Lace tip: Instead of serving colorful powdered juices, try making smoothies out of real fruits (here’s our favorite banapple smoothie recipe), get your kids involved in the kitchen so they are more encouraged to actually eat and drink.
3. Serve real food vs. processed and fast food
Cooking and serving home-cooked meals everyday can be a challenge but are the best food choice for our children. Real food made with real ingredients like complex carbohydrates, vegetables, and meat are the top pick of nutritionists. Real food are full of nutrients unlike processed food that are high in calories but low in nutritional value.
Mommy Lace tip: Try cooking and batch cooking in advance. Freeze leftovers and/or cooked meals for easy access during busy days. This will not only be good for your health but also your budget.
4. Follow and play the Food Rainbow game
The Food Rainbow game is a game where you let your kids draw a rainbow with full colors (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet) and bring this rainbow to the table. Every time he or she eats food, she gets to match and check that color with her rainbow. The goal is to encourage kids to try new food especially fruits and vegetables. You may reward your child for eating and checking all the colors of the rainbow.
5. Prepare and serve age-specific quality growing up milk
Not all growing up milk are equal, some are laden with sugar to taste more attractive to kids. If you want to find out for yourself, the people at NIDO challenge moms to do a taste test between NIDO 3+ and 5+ versus other growing up milk brands.
I organically (meaning not given an incentive or paid to tell you) serve NIDO 5+ and NIDO Forti-grow to my son. NIDO 5+ is enriched with CALCI-N to help build healthy bones by providing better calcium absorption. It is suitable to a 5 year old who likes to run around and be active 24/7.
For younger kids and when Ashton was just 3 years old, his pediatrician recommended NIDO 3+ that has Lactobacillus PROTECTUS and other essential nutrients such as Prebio 3, DHA, ALA, LA, Folic Acid, Taurine, and high levels of vitamins A, B3, C, D, E and Zinc to support overall growth and development.
FREE NUTRITION CONSULTATION
If you want to be 100% sure of what foods to give your child and if you have other concerns with regards to his/her eating habits, do take advantage of FREE consultations from NIDO. Licensed nutritionists of NIDO® 3+ and NIDO® 5+ are available in select groceries and supermarkets nationwide starting February 2016.
You can find the exact locations and schedule on their website: www.lakingamazing.ph
Eat well Mommies & Babies!
Mommy Lace is a blogger from the Philippines. She started this blog to share information on pregnancy, breastfeeding, childcare, family, and health.
