Eating habits are something that people develop from childhood. It is important not to disrupt the child’s normal eating behavior, so that in the future this does not result in serious mental problems. It is equally important to instill a love of healthy eating from an early age, to explain the importance of proper nutrition for the general condition of the body, because it is much easier to start eating right from the beginning than to later, roughly speaking, relearn from chips to spinach. Proper nutrition is the key to health for children!
Healthy food is no less important for children than for adults. A young, restless body needs a sufficient amount of calories and energy for all the activities that a child encounters every day. It is necessary to plan a balanced diet for schoolchildren, because long-term mental work greatly depletes not only the brain, but also energy resources. In addition, proper growth and development cannot occur without a variety of vitamins, minerals, micro- and macroelements that a person consumes with food.
What substances are needed by a growing body?
Without a sufficient amount of nutrients, proper nutrition of a child is impossible. The child's body needs all the vitamins and minerals, such as:
- Vitamin A (retinol) – for vision, “growth vitamin”;
- B vitamins – to support physical and psychological health;
- Vitamin C, or ascorbic acid, is the main antioxidant in the human body;
- Vitamin D ensures normal growth and development of bones;
- Vitamin E – for tissue regeneration, improves blood circulation and clotting;
- Vitamin H (better known as biotin) improves skin and hair condition;
- Vitamin K affects blood clotting; its deficiency is a very rare occurrence;
- Vitamin PP regulates redox processes in the body;
- Sodium regulates cardiac function;
- Potassium is involved in metabolism, helps conduct impulses and nerve contractions;
- Magnesium – for phosphorus metabolism; in older age it is necessary to lower blood pressure;
- Phosphorus – energy metabolism, one of the main components of bone tissue;
- Calcium is an essential micronutrient for bone health. Vitamin D helps calcium to be absorbed. This substance is extremely important for the proper formation and strengthening of the skeleton;
- Zinc – strengthens the immune system;
- Iron – for blood health, an important component of hemoglobin;
- Copper – hematopoiesis;
- Manganese activates the action of enzymes;
- Molybdenum – against the development of caries;
- Cobalt – participates in the metabolism of fatty acids;
- Chromium is essential for maintaining healthy blood sugar levels;
- Selenium – antioxidant, cancer prevention;
- Iodine is needed for the functioning of the thyroid gland;
- Silicon gives elasticity to skin and hair;
- Vanadium prevents the development of caries in children;
- Sulfur increases the body's resistance to toxins;
There is no need to calculate the exact need for a particular substance for a child, since if you follow the rules of proper nutrition for children, they will involuntarily be supplied in sufficient quantities.
Special attention should be paid to fish oil, since many modern parents have heard about it since childhood. Is it really that useful? Should you give it to your child? Fish oil is famous for its large supply of fatty acids and vitamins A and D; it strengthens blood vessels, improves brain function, promotes attention and concentration, and has a positive effect on vision and calcium absorption. However, fish oil as a dietary supplement is not recommended for infants, and its use is useless if the child eats enough fish, likes salmon, tuna, mackerel, and so on.
Basic principles of baby nutrition
A short guide to the basics of proper nutrition for children and adolescents. Following these rules will help you easily teach your child to eat right and instill a love for healthy food.
The most important thing in a healthy diet is variety. Baby food should combine both animal products and plant products; both raw and cooked foods.
You can’t focus only on plant-based, dairy or low-fat products. A peculiar diet can disrupt the development of a child, contribute to excessive weight gain, develop vitamin deficiency or other abnormalities.
Children in any situation remain children, and food should correspond to this. This means that you should give up hot seasonings, sour sauces, exotic combinations or culinary delights; all additives should be as natural and mild in taste as possible, so as not to dull the sensitivity of the receptors. If a child refuses lunch, this does not mean that the food is tasteless. Before emptying the plate, the child evaluates it from an aesthetic point of view, namely, “Is the plate beautiful?”, “Does my food look attractive?”, “Does it smell appetizing?”, and only then tastes it. Young children need to be interested in food first, and only then offered to eat. You will have to fuss with the choice of dishes and serving food.
Don't forget that everyone has their own food needs and preferences. Some people need to eat 5 large portions of food, while others get by with two. These are all normal options; the most important thing is that food helps maintain normal well-being and maintain physical health. Already in childhood, the development of obesity or dystrophy should not be allowed.
The need for food changes with activity. One day, a preschooler may eat as much as an adult, and then completely refuse food for the entire next day. And this is also the norm.
On all walks you need to have enough water with you to be able to quench your thirst at any time. The child's body reacts very sharply to a lack of water, this is especially pronounced in hot weather or when playing sports. It is best to drink clean drinking water, but herbal teas without sugar, water with pieces of fruit or berries will also work. Do not replenish your water supply with store-bought juices, sodas or other sweet liquids.
Child's development level: ways to determine
- Take a closer look at your child. It is necessary to briefly outline on one sheet of paper everything that your child can do or what results he has achieved in his years. Speech development, motor and cognitive processes are taken into account, including self-care skills. Then, on the second sheet, make a list of what you think he should be able to do by his age, but does not yet have these skills.
- Compare the child’s data with the development standards provided for your child’s age category. As a rule, this information takes the form of a table, which was compiled taking into account scientific data obtained during long-term observation of groups of children. Therefore, these indicators are reliable and can be relied upon.
- Find out if your child is successful in any area. Their presence may indicate the child’s giftedness in a certain area, and their absence may indicate a developmental discrepancy. Deviations in the development of children may be indicated by inflated indicators in one area, while in others there is a significant lag. For example, by the age of 2, a child can already read, but does not react in any way to the appearance of his parents, cannot use the potty at all, and is not interested in toys. This is considered a deviation from the norm. Giftedness is evidenced by an advance in any area with normal development in all other indicators.
- See how your child masters the necessary skills according to his age. It is important to note that it is not always possible to obtain a reliable result of the level of development, since a number of skills appear after several days. Parents can independently organize the child’s activities by asking him to show certain body parts of his toy. For example, if you have a girl, you can offer to show her where the nose or eyes of her doll are. Usually, by the age of two, children can easily show where their ears, nose, mouth, arms, legs, etc. are.
- Review your baby's medical record in detail. The main diagnostic indicators indicating the level of development of children include the child’s body weight, his height and the frequency of diseases. Short stature, as well as high weight, may be a manifestation of his genetic characteristics. Taking into account their dynamics, you can determine whether the conditions you have created for the child’s development are effective.
Diet
The child should get used to eating regularly - 3 main meals and 2 snacks. Children should eat hot homemade food at least 1-2 times a day to avoid problems with the digestive system. Here is an example of a universal diet for schoolchildren:
- Homemade breakfast
This meal is the most important. It provides energy for the whole day, so breakfast should consist mostly of complex carbohydrates, such as cereals and cereals.
Not all children like to eat immediately after waking up, so parents should make sure that the child wakes up in advance, because skipping such an important meal is strictly not recommended.
- School breakfast
Rarely do schoolchildren have time to eat normally during recess; at best, this is a salad, but more often a bun or a sandwich. This point doubles the importance of having a full breakfast in the morning!
- Hot lunch
Upon arriving home, after more than 6 hours at school, you need to eat well again. Ideally, these are the first and second courses, but you don’t always want to eat so much, so the portions should be small. Lunch is a combination of proteins, fats and carbohydrates together, and it is also the highest calorie meal of the day.
- Afternoon snack/snack
For an afternoon snack, you can eat a fruit, some nuts or a salad. You shouldn't have a big meal; it's better to wait until dinner.
- Dinner
For dinner, they usually eat protein combined with fats. The last meal should enter the body 3-4 hours before bedtime, this applies not only to adults, but also to children. Everything should be in moderation; there is no need to load your stomach with heavy food in large quantities at night. In addition, you can reduce the calorie content of the evening meal in children who often refuse breakfast, so they will wake up with an empty stomach and a slight feeling of hunger, which means breakfast will not be missed.
Additives that negatively affect the body
The child's body is highly susceptible to the negative effects of various food additives. Children suffer from food allergies more often than adults. A lot has already been said about allergies to chocolate and citrus fruits, but what substances in seemingly harmless food can negatively affect your health?
Preservatives
Their action is based on the fact that all living organisms die in the environment created by these substances, thereby extending the shelf life. Of course, people do not die from preservatives like bacteria, however, this is the most obvious example. The mass of a person is much larger than that of a single cell, so rare consumption of food with preservatives will not cause irreparable harm, but these additives are by no means safe.
Dyes
Every year, more and more dyes are prohibited from being eaten, since it has been scientifically proven that some of them cause allergies, metabolic disorders, negatively affect the liver and even cause the development of malignant neoplasms (oncological tumors). Artificial (synthetic) dyes make food brighter and more appetizing, but their effect on the body is too negative to be given to children.
Sodium benzoate
Sodium benzoate, or E211, is an additive that is used in soda, sauces, and chips. Excessive consumption of this benzoic acid salt is fraught with allergies, and in the worst cases, cancer.
Aspartame
Aspartame, or E951, is the most common sweetener due to its low cost, which is used in “0 kcal” sodas and so on. It has no energy value, but it tastes very sweet, which is why it is often used as a substitute for sugar by those losing weight. But not everyone knows that it disrupts metabolism and brain activity and leads to allergies.
Monosodium glutamate
Monosodium glutamate, or E621, is widely used in fast food. The danger of consuming monosodium glutamate is that it disrupts the activity of the liver and kidneys, reduces concentration, and in certain cases, due to individual intolerance, provokes serious food poisoning.
Too much physical activity also has negative effects on children
Children who play too much sports may end up smaller than their peers. This can affect your child when they are forced to take part in competitive sports where the goal is to win rather than to have fun and enjoy the activity.
When exercising excessively, it is vital to get enough nutrients from food and drink to replenish any minerals lost through sweat. Allow children to rest when they need it.
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Healthy food pyramid for children
At the top of the food pyramid for children are butter, refined rice, potatoes and white bread. The consumption of these products should be limited, but not eliminated.
One step below are dairy products. They should be moderate in a child’s diet.
Below that, fish, poultry and meat are the main sources of protein. Eating animal meat is necessary regularly.
Next are nuts and legumes. They are sources of fiber and help improve the functioning of the digestive system.
The fifth step of the nutrition pyramid is occupied by vegetables and fruits. They are rich in vitamins and other beneficial substances. Vegetables and fruits should be on children's menus every day in abundance.
The sixth step is whole grains and vegetable fats.
And the very base of the pyramid is, of course, water!
Example of a daily menu
The information received will allow you to intelligently think through the diet for your child, but you can use a ready-made example
An example of a balanced diet for a 3-year-old child
At 3 years old, the range of products allowed for a child expands. The daily calorie content of dishes is no more than 1800 kcal. At this time, the most preferable is a four-meal diet*, in which 25% of the energy value comes from breakfast, 35% from lunch, 15% from afternoon snack and 25% from dinner.
Breakfast
A small fruit, 150-170 g of porridge.
Dinner
About 200 g of low-fat soup, a slice of bread.
Steamed poultry cutlet, 150 g of mashed potatoes and cucumber/tomato - to taste.
Afternoon snack
A bun, ice cream, or your child's favorite treat (in moderation!).
Dinner
Two egg omelette with cheese.
*each meal is accompanied by a drink in the amount of 200-250 ml.
Balanced nutrition for schoolchildren -
At an older age, children switch to five meals a day - this is convenient in connection with the daily routine and is enough for full life.
Breakfast
Cheesecakes with jam – 2 pcs.
Lunch
Big apple, banana or sandwich.
Dinner
Noodle soup – 200g, bread.
Baked fish with rice – 100/150 g.
Snack
Cookies – 70 g, orange.
Features of physical development of children 3-4 years old.
According to experts, the development of a child at this age should be close to the following standards:
- height of a three-year-old child - 96 cm, weight - 12 kg, chest circumference - 51 cm, head circumference - 48 cm, number of baby teeth - 20;
- a four-year-old child’s height is 104 cm, weight is 17 kg, chest circumference is 55 cm, head circumference is 50 cm, the process of replacing milk teeth with molars does not begin;
- the volume of a three-year-old child’s skull should be about 80% of the volume of an adult’s skull;
- the heart at this age works normally, provided there are no too intense loads, the blood circulation process occurs quite quickly, normal pressure is 95 to 58;
- the central nervous system gradually develops, the child has the ability to analyze and synthesize;
- the baby has speech, with the help of which he summarizes and clarifies incoming information;
- children make a lot of movements, fuss, constantly talk and suddenly become silent due to the easy dissipation of the processes of excitation and inhibition.
It should be understood that the above standards are very general and may vary depending on the characteristics of a particular child.
If parents discover any discrepancy between the parameters of their child and the generally accepted ones, they should first of all contact a specialist for advice.
Basic skills, knowledge and abilities in 3-4 years
The level of physical development of a child is determined not only by anatomical and physiological age indicators, the results of laboratory tests and medical examination.
Your baby's behavior during activities or games can also help characterize his level of development.
At the age of 3-4 years, normal indicators of child development are the following:
- using two hands while playing;
- ability to walk on toes;
- the ability to walk in different ways (wide, shallow, side step, and also a hopping step);
- ability to regulate walking and running speed;
- walking and running in a certain direction (in a straight line, in a circle, between any objects);
- the ability to jump in place, or moving forward and backward, as well as jumping over low obstacles;
- good accuracy when throwing the ball to a specific place, the ability to catch the ball with both hands;
- active participation in various sports, gaming or choreographic events;
- the ability to consistently perform a variety of movements;
- walking on stairs with alternating legs;
- confident movement of the pedals on a tricycle;
- ability to walk backwards forward.
If the baby copes with the basic tasks described above, his level of physical development should not cause concern.
And the parents of those children who have not yet mastered some skills can always practice with them additionally.
