With the advent of the child in the family, parents should look at the problem of nutrition with new eyes and from the very beginning show an example, gradually accustoming the baby to how to eat properly. Baby food is not only a physiological topic, but also a problem with many psychological, sociological and behavioral components.
1. The basis of the basis - a variety of mixed foods. A healthy diet consists of a combination of animal and vegetable products, consumed partly in the raw, partly in the processed form. When mixed nutrition does not need special enriched foods.
2. Uniformity in nutrition is not useful. Strictly vegetarian food, high-calorie food (a lot of fat, protein), a dairy diet in the long term lead to a shortage in the body of important nutrients (trace elements, vitamins, amino acids, fatty acids). Fixing taste preferences - to sour, salty, sweet, hot - dulls the perception of the main taste of food and imperceptibly generates a monotony in food. Teach your baby to eat at least a small portion of each dish.
3. Cold and hot food complement each other. For breakfast and dinner, there is not necessarily only a hot meal. It is important to have milk, black bread, cheese, butter, sandwiches with ham or boiled meat on the table, providing the body with protein, calcium, phosphorus, copper, vitamins A, B, B1, B2, as well as ballast substances. Hot food with potatoes and vegetables or a salad with a small portion of meat or fish promotes the assimilation of iron, protein, zinc, iodine, vitamins B1, B6, C and folic acid. The second breakfast (a snack before lunch) with fresh fruit or fruit juice supplies the body with vitamin C.
4. Children are not adults, especially the day diet. The food should be prepared and served with children's age. This means: spicy condiments, fresh spicy herbs instead of table salt, an attractive serving, not filled to the brim with a plate. The general picture of the meal is completed by a calm, friendly atmosphere and good drinking manners. The child should not sit at the table alone. Wait for him in advance if he does not like breakfast. Active short rest after returning from school increases appetite.
5. Everyone has his own food needs. Existing tables with dietary recommendations give only averaged indicators for different age categories. But this does not mean that every child must observe them.
6. Appetite is different. It is clear that children do not eat the same amount of food every time - and this is normal. If a child does not eat well for several days in a row, this usually does not mean that he is in short supply. No need to immediately give him arousing appetite juices or any restorative means. On the other hand, a child who has recently become, is much larger than usual, will not immediately become fat. With longer deviations in food, it is necessary to harmonize this question with the child's doctor in order to exclude the unbalanced nutrition of the child.
7. Water is the most important food product. The smaller the child, the more sensitive it is to the lack of fluid in the body. In hot days, during sports activities or games, the need of healthy children in water can increase more than twice. The ideal quencher of thirst is pure drinking water, mineral water (for small ones - without carbon dioxide), unsweetened herbal and fruit teas. Natural fruit juices for thirst quenching should be diluted at least in a proportion of 1: 1. vitaminized juices with a variety of mixed nutrition are not needed. Drinks with fruit juices, nectars, pops, colas, malt (nonalcoholic) beer for quenching thirst are not suitable - due to too high sugar content.
8. Milk is an indispensable product in baby food. Milk and dairy products provide sufficient supply of children's body with calcium, phosphorus, protein and vitamins (A, B1, B2). It is best to eat pasteurized whole milk with a fat content of 3.5%. In low-fat milk (1.5%) and features in skim milk, as well as in the corresponding dairy products, fat-soluble vitamins (A, D) are absent. Ready-made dairy products often contain a lot of sugar. Therefore, it is better to prepare them yourself. Buy plain yogurt without whole milk or curdled milk and just mix fresh crushed fruit. Puddings cook with a little sugar. If the child completely refuses milk, the supply of calcium will provide him with cheese and cottage cheese. True, the cheese has a negative side: a high salt content.
9. Meat - moderately, but regularly. Meat contains a high-value protein and well-assimilated iron. In vegetables and grains, iron is not easily digested. Large portions of meat are undesirable. Already a small portion of liver sausage from pork or veal liver improves the supply of the child's body with iron, and lean pork - vitamin B1. in baby food avoid sausages that contain a lot of fat. Meat should not be too fried - fried foods are harmful to health. For small children, choose something that is easily sulky (for example, chopped meat).
10. Sea fish is an important source of iodine. This fish, especially salmon, cod and haddock, is a necessary food that provides the body with iodine. Iodized salt can also supply iodine. However, the salt should be given less - in principle!
11. The quality of fat "hidden", for example, in sausage, fried haddock, in cakes, biscuits and chocolate is usually worse in terms of the physiology of nutrition. Therefore, such food should be as little as possible. The thing is, what kind of fat is it. More valuable are the "visible" fats - butter, vegetable oil (primarily olive oil).
12. Gray bread and cereals are valuable not only contained in them carbohydrates. Flours of fine grinding, starch, white bread, except for carbohydrates, almost do not contain bathroom nutrients. Unlike them, wholemeal bread, whole-grain bread, dry rye bread, oat flakes and cereals supply, in addition to carbohydrates, many minerals, trace elements, vitamins and ballast substances from the shell of the seed germ. Advice: give preference to gray bread, often change grades of bread, bake from a flour of a rough grinding, independently prepare muesli, because ready-made thoughts contain a lot of sugar.
13. Potatoes deserve special attention. In terms of the content of important substances, it is more valuable than rice and pasta. If possible, use fresh potatoes, dilute the puree with milk and add butter. French fries, chips, etc. contain a hidden Ir. Give potatoes at least 5-6 times a week, rice or pasta 1-2 times natural rice, steamed rice and pasta from wholemeal contains more valuable nutrients than refined foods (ground rice, pasta from fine grinding flour, etc.)
14. Vegetables and fruits are rich in irreplaceable microelements. If it is impossible to get fresh vegetables, it is recommended to use fresh-frozen foods (if possible without seasonings). Treat vegetables gently. Do not soak or cook them for too long (it also leaches), regularly offer them to children in their raw form. For small children, light vegetables are preferable (carrots, kohlrabi, cauliflower, fennel, broccoli). Cabbage and legumes contain valuable nutrients, but, unfortunately, are more difficult to digest. If the child refuses from time to time, you should take care of sufficient consumption of potatoes and fruits. Fruit is better to give fresh - in canned little useful substances and a lot of sugar. Variety and choice of mainly local fruits and vegetables provide good nutrition.
15. Sweets - moderately and at the right time. Most children adore sweet things. But if they get too involved, it's easy to get caries, overweight, the food becomes unbalanced. Therefore, it is necessary to avoid excessive consumption of sweet from birth. A lot of sugar hides in ready-made dishes, desserts, drinks, confectionery, ice cream and many other products. Never offer a sweet meal in between the main meals. Even if you give, a little and after eating. Honey, yellow sugar, cane sugar, etc. from the point of view of the physiology of nutrition do not have any advantages over ordinary table sugar.
Children from an early age should learn the habit of regular nutrition, which implies three basic meals. Once a day - for lunch - there must be a hot meal. For breakfast and dinner eat something with bread. In addition to these three main meals, two more snacks - school breakfast and afternoon snack with fruit included.
Balanced nutrition reduces the likelihood of obesity, diabetes, gastrointestinal and caries diseases. As you grow up, food can become more diverse, but it must remain childish. Children should get enough to drink, preference should be given to low-calorie beverages: mineral water, unsweetened fruit and herbal teas, juices with mineral water in a ratio of 1: 2.