Nutrition for kids is fundamentally important for their overall health. Good kids nutrition can prevent a host of medical problems, including becoming overweight, developing diabetes, weak bones, respiratory and cardiovascular problems and other problems caused by vitamin or mineral deficiencies.

Not only that, but proper nutrition for kids is essential to ensure they physically grow to their full potential.

On of the best ways you as a parent can promote good nutrition for your children is to set an example to them from as early an age as possible. Healthy eating habits and regular exercise should be done as a family to make it a routine that is followed daily. If everyone is following the same guidelines in the house, eating the same healthy foods and doing physical activities together, your child is more likely to get involved and and they’ll enjoy the time spent together too.

To make it easy, for yourself and your children, it would be better to avoid keeping any unhealthy foods in the house. This will help you and your kids resist temptation. Things like ice creams, sugary or salty snacks, soft drinks and ice cream should be left off the shopping list and replaced with more natural, wholesome foods and regular old water.

Kids Nutrition Rules

There are a few basic rules you can follow to achieve excellent nutrition for kids. The include encouraging them to:

• Eat a variety of different foods
• Balance the food with regular physical activities
• Choose a diet with plenty of natural foods including fruit, vegetables, eggs, and lean meats like chicken or beef.
• Avoid highly processed foods or those that have a high salt or sugar content.
• Obtain the recommended daily dose of vitamins and minerals (this can be topped up with kids supplements)

While many people, including the government, recommend the food pyramid for kids as a sensible guide for kids nutrition, there are a few fundamental errors with it which cause a number of health problems.

The first problem is that it recommends 6-11 servings of bread, cereal, rice or pasta. Although these foods are a staple in our diets and the diets of our children, they actually have a high carbohydrate content with little to no real nutritional benefits. In fact, many of them are so heavily processed that they cause massive insulin spikes in the body. This is a leading factor in the aggressive mood swings that children are prone to and in the long-term is a major contributing factor to the development of diabetes.

Instead of using breads, rice and pasta to complement a meal, you can opt for something more natural and nutritional such as sweet potatoes or yams. They taste nicer too so your kids will probably prefer them!

Second, the food pyramid for kids recommends limiting fats and oils. Bad fats (known as trans fats) found in processed butters, margerines and other man made foods should most definitely be avoided. It is also sensible to avoid deep fat frying as well.

However, a moderate to high intake of healthy fats and omega-3 fatty acids when used in place of complex carbs can actually give your kids more sustained energy, which improves mood and mood swings as well as many other health benefits.

Nutrition for kids is very similar to nutrition for adults and one final tip that can help you to choose foods wisely is to learn how to read labels on products. This way you can check to make sure you are buying quality foods rather than foods with chemical fillers and poor ingredients.

Further reading

Heart Disease in Kids – Learn the most effective ways to prevent heart disease in children and build a healthy heart to improve their quality of life.