Nutritious food is essential from an early age for a child’s proper growth, intelligence development, and healthy living. Nutrition is important at every age. Kids need proper nutrition at the right age to stay healthy and strong. Early childhood is a good time to establish a foundation for children’s nutrition, healthy eating habits, and proper nutrition knowledge that a child can apply throughout life.
Diet, exercise, and a conductive lifestyle is the key to health. The five main food groups include grains, dairy, protein, vegetables, and fruits, which is a good starting point for any diet.
Understanding each food group is important for children to develop a balanced and nutritious diet:
Grains:
Grains can be of two types, whole, and refined grains. Whole grains are more nutritious because they contain grain kernels. Oatmeal, whole-wheat flour, and brown rice are included in whole grains. Refined grains are prepared by milling and processing, which results in the loss of valuable nutritional value. Refined cereals include cereal, tortillas, white bread, and white rice.
Vegetables:
It is important to include a variety of vegetables in your daily diet to replenish the body, provide nutrition, and keep the body healthy and wholesome. Food scientists have suggested that an adult should have 400 grams of fruits and vegetables. And, more 110 grams of vegetables, 75 grams of flowers, fruits, and stalks, 75 grams of roots, and 110 grams of fruits per day. Fresh vegetables are high in vitamin C, which loses about 80% of the heat during cooking. So it can be eaten as a salad.
Fruit:
Fruits are one of the main sources of vitamins and minerals for children. When the fruit is eaten raw or ripe, it provides complete nutrients. Fruits generally play an important role in digestion, digestion, metabolism, appetite, growth, and elimination of constipation. Anthocyanins, an anti-cancer ingredient, and lycopene, an antioxidant, protect various fruits from life-threatening diseases.
Protein & Dairy:
Protein should be included in children’s diets every day; otherwise, the body becomes deficient in protein. All proteins are made up of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. Fish, meat, milk, and eggs are the main sources of protein. Also, pulses, nuts, soybeans, peas, seafood, bean sprouts, etc., are important for healthy hair and nails and boost immunity. According to experts, everyone needs to eat 0.8 to one gram of protein per kilogram of body weight. 30 percent of a person’s daily caloric needs can be met from protein.
Dairy foods include milk, yogurt, and cheese. Milk, yogurt, lamb, and cheese are able to meet the body’s needs for calcium, phosphorus, and protein. According to experts, 2-3 servings of milk or dairy products should be taken daily.
Milk, yogurt, and seeds are rich in calcium, which strengthens bones. Legumes, lamb, spinach, and quinoa are rich in iron, which makes healthy blood. Fish, avocados, and nuts contain essential fats that help the body absorb other vitamins.
The main purpose of food intake is to stay healthy, strong, and functional. It is possible to fill the stomach by eating any food, but it does not meet the needs of the body to stay healthy. So a regular balanced diet should be taken.