Healthy Diets

HEALTHY CHILDREN ARE HAPPY CHILDREN!

By teaching your children healthy eating habits, you can help your children maintain a healthy weight and normal growth. The eating habits your children pick up when they are young will help them maintain a healthy lifestyle when they are adults.

Ideas to develop healthy eating in your home:

  • Encourage your children to eat slowly.
  • Eat meals together as a family as often as possible.
  • Involve your children in food shopping and preparing meals.
  • Plan for snacks.
  • Discourage eating meals or snacks while watching TV.
  • Encourage your children to drink more water.
  • Make sure your children’s meals outside the home are balanced.
  • Pay attention to portion size and ingredients.
  • Reduce the amount of sugar sweetened drinks and salt in your child’s diet.

 

Consider these nutrient-dense foods:

  • Protein. Choose seafood, lean meat and poultry, eggs, beans, peas, soy products, and unsalted nuts and seeds.
  • Fruits. Encourage your child to eat a variety of fresh, canned, frozen or dried fruits — rather than fruit juice. If your child drinks juice, make sure it’s 100 percent juice and limit his or her servings.
  • Vegetables. Serve a variety of fresh, canned or frozen vegetables — especially dark green, red and orange vegetables, beans and peas.
  • Grains. Choose whole grains, such as whole-wheat bread, oatmeal, popcorn, quinoa, or brown or wild rice.
  • Dairy. Encourage your child to eat and drink dairy products, such as milk, yogurt and cheese.

 

Why Water? 

 

Water is essential to your child’s health. Water aids digestion and is vital for proper blood circulation. It also helps transport nutrients and oxygen to cells, cushions joints and protects organs and tissues, regulates body temperature and also helps to maintain a healthy weight.

Soft drinks, cordials, sports drinks and flavoured mineral waters often have large amounts of sugar.

In fact, a can of soft drink contains around 12 teaspoons of sugar.

Drinking too many sweetened drinks can cause a range of problems including tooth decay, poor appetite, picky eating and putting on excess weight. These drinks should only be consumed occasionally – not every day.

 

Fruit-Infused Water Recipes that Children Love: 

(Muddling is mashing/grinding to intensify flavours)

 

Blueberry & Mint Water
2 cups blueberries

2 sprigs of mint, muddled

Add water

 

Strawberry & Basil Water
10 strawberries, thinly sliced

3 basil leaves, torn into quarters and muddled

Add water

 

Citrus Blend Water
1 orange, thinly sliced

1 lime, thinly sliced

1/2 a lemon, thinly sliced

Add water

 

Berry Water
10 strawberries, thinly sliced

2 cups blueberries, slightly muddled

Add water

 

And Enjoy!