Like all other Moms I always wish to give nutrient rich food, a right balanced nutrition to my child. Since childhood, I heard and read about a balanced diet and nutrition. One must have balanced diet for a healthy life. But, Do we always eat a balanced diet? The food I offer to my child is it Balanced diet? These question always troubled me.
All about nutrition for your child. by themommytale
So I started my research and I read online, offline and took help of nutritionist and pediatrician of my child about healthy balanced nutrient rich diet. I referred many nutrition facts from books as well.
Balanced Diet is a meal consists of essential nutrients you intake.
Essential Nutrients are those growth or required nutrient which our body cannot generate on its own or if generating it is not in required quantity.
We need these 6 essential nutrients in the form of our diet. These 6 essential Nutrients hold a real importance in your child’s daily diet and functioning of body. As they are responsible for growth, tissue repair and cell function of the body.
All about nutrition for your child. by themommytale
With all my research and experience. Here, I share the 6 essential growth nutrients required for a child’s meal.
Essential Nutrition 1. Carbohydrates.
We always talk about reducing the carbs to get a healthy lifestyle. But, for a child Carbohydrates is an energy powerhouse. Carbohydrates are the energy source for the body.
All about nutrition for your child. by themommytale
Best Source:
Rice, Wheat, Pasta, Potato, Sweet Potato, Bread, fruits, and Cereals.
Importance:
Carbohydrates are the main source of energy for the brain. In growth years kids need extra energy which is fulfilled by carbohydrates.
Suggestions for meals:
Whole grain and fruit options are rich carbohydrates with fibers. My doctor always advised giving carbs less in sugar and high in starch with fiber to my child. The right time to include or have high carbs meal is breakfast. If the first meal of your day i.e. breakfast is rich in carbohydrate, so you will feel full of energy entire day.
Oats, Pancakes, Indian Parathas, and sandwiches are the best options for breakfast.
Essential Nutrition 2.Protein
Protein is the building block of our body. 16 % of our body is made up of Proteins. Each cell requires protein for regeneration, division, and growth.
All about nutrition for your child. by themommytale
Best source:
No doubt Milk, of course with all dairy products, Eggs, Meat, Nuts, Beans, Fish etc.
Importance:
Protein is the most important building blocks for muscles, skin, hair, nails, bones, and blood.The body requires protein to make enzymes, hormones, to build and repair cells and tissues and other important chemicals. Protein also helps to carry oxygen to the brain.
Suggestions for meals:
As we know the body needs proteins for the healthy bone and tissue. For a child, the best time to have proteins in a meal is post play time. Kids go out for sports, dance classes and physical exercise after physical workout muscles need protein to grow and repair. That is the best time to feed protein rich food to kids.
Essential Nutrition 3. Fat.
Yes, Fat is a nutrient and it works as a fuel for energy. The child’s body needs energy in store format here, fat plays an important role. Fats add extra taste and texture to a meal, but if consumed in excess is always fatal.
All about nutrition for your child. by themommytale
Best source:
Butter, Oil, Clarified butter or ghee, Nuts, whole milk, Fish, and Meat.
Importance:
As we know Fat is the fuel for a child’s body, Fat is also required to dissolve vitamins A, D, E and K. So If child’s body does not have the fat, body will not absorb vital nutrients like Vitamins. Fats are essentially required for building Nerve tissues and smooth functioning of our nervous system.
Suggestions for meals:
As per my pediatrician the best time to feed fats to a child is breakfast and Lunch. This helps fats to absorb well during the entire day and can easily digested.
Essential Nutrition 4. Fiber:
The adequate amount of fiber rich food will keep the gut of your child always healthy. Fiber rich food we know are fruits, leafy greens, and vegetables are rich in dietary fibers.
All about nutrition for your child. by themommytale
Best Source:
Fruits, Vegetables, Whole Grains, Nuts, seeds etc.
Importance:
Fiber rich food helps the smooth functioning of the digestive system. Fiber rich food also prevents constipation in kids. Dietary fiber food gives a feeling of fullness and has no calories, which even do not support over eating.
Suggestions for meals:
It is good to include fruit in your child’s meals and snack in the form of salad or at snack time.
Essential Nutrition 5. Vitamins
Vitamins are essential and important in a child’s growth year. Almost every mom knows and talks about Vitamin rich food.
All about nutrition for your child by themommytale
Best Source:
Vitamin A – Carrots, Squash, Broccoli, sweet potatoes etc.
Vitamin B12 – Milk, Milk products, eggs, rice, and cereals.
Vitamin C – Oranges and other citrus fruits, Kale, Strawberry, and Guava.
Vitamin D – Eggs, Cheese, Fish, and sunlight.
Importance:
Vitamins play very important role in the development of bones, eyes, they are rich source energy and helps to repair the wounds or cuts.
Suggestions for meals:
From breakfast to dinner, I make sure that vitamins are part of food that my child take. But, it is advisable to have vitamins rich diets during day meals like breakfast, lunch or snack time. I always offer a bowl of fruits to my daughter between lunch and at snack time.
Essential Nutrition 6.Minerals:
Body needs Minerals same as Vitamins for growth and healthy functioning. This includes Calcium, Phosphorus, Sodium, Magnesium, Iron, and Potassium.
All about nutrition for your child. by themommytale
Best source:
Almonds, figs, dates, apricots, rice, spinach, papaya, strawberry etc.
Importance:
Minerals support various body functions like the building of strong teeth and bones, skin, hair, blood, support metabolic processes and nervous system functions.
Suggestion for meals:
The meal of the day should be planned in a way to fulfill needs of minerals to a child’s body to balance the intake from breakfast to dinner.
As a Mom, I always ensure my child should have a right diet and nutrition. A right balance of all essential Nutrients. I know there might be chances of hits or miss while planning my child’s diet. But, with the right planning of weekly diet or meals in advance, one can easily overcome that.
Be a nutrition smart mom with the right planning.
Please do share your thoughts and tips on giving tips on nutrition planning for your child below in the comment box.
Disclaimer. This post is based on my personal experience and research I did for my child’s nutritional need. If you are facing any kind of medical issue or nutrition deficiency please consult your doctor or dietitian.
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Very informative post! Need to watch over what I eat now! ????
Really wonderful post! I agree, it’s super important to get the right nutrition to your kids.
Great detailed read. I loved all your meal suggestions and didn’t realize I should be giving fat at breakfast and lunch vs dinner so I’ll have to focus on that more. We almost always have eggs in the morning but maybe I’ll add some toast with butter. Thanks for all the suggestions.
Great suggestions! I strive to give my kids a balanced diet too.
Fantastic Post. Nutrition is so important for those little ones! Just like you said, keeping it simple and eating real food is key. It also teaches them how to make good food decisions as adults! Love it.
Loads with good and healthy information. Love the post.
Proper nutrition is really important ????And the biggest challenge is to make kids eat
It’s interesting to see all the research you’ve done on this topic – I am very impressed! I admit that when feeding my kids, I have mostly defaulted to the same healthy habits on which I was raised, even though they run counter to what most of American society believes/does these days: I strive to make sure that my kids get plenty of (and a variety of) fruits and vegetables every day, fresh/locally grown whenever possible, as well as protein, dairy, and a carbohydrate or grain at every meal. We also avoid processed food as much as possible.
Very informative and wonderful post thanks for sharing this.
Great, informative post! Not just for kids but for everyone! Balance diet is necessity! ❤
Great post and very useful information for moms so that they can give best nutritional food to their kids. Thanks for sharing
I so love this post for I am so concious when it comes to the nutritious food that I am going to serve for my toddler. Thanks for sharing it.
These are great tips. I’m always in pursuit of finding the right meal combination for my little one-especially while she’s at school.
It’s always so Important to feed our kiddos as healthy as possible… your tips are wonderful ideas to fit in proper nutrition throughout the day.
What a beautiful post here, thank you so much for sharing all the nutritiousness required in kids meals. I have been giving my daughter a well balanced diet but reading the expert tips of doctors on timings is important. Keeping a note of this.
Great suggestions! I like how you point out that carbs (healthy) are important! Most people forget about that.
I really need to take care of what I eat… Must read post for all
I’ve got to practice this more! Very informative
Your spot on. So easy to get the kids did the fats in the carbohydrates. It’s so hard to get to eat the vegetables and fruit which give them the fiber they need.
You have wonderfully broken down the nutrients and the food groups. Loved reading your article. Good one!
Its important to give you child a Nutrition rich food to prepare them for future. The article is very informative and goibg to help me plan meals for my son. Thank you.
Very informative.
Very useful post and you have done a great job in compiling the whole article. Happy to see I follow most of it.
Thanks for an informative post.
Loved every pointer, it is useful for both adults and children. 🙂
We moms always remain worried about what to feed and how to feed. Your research will be beneficial to moms like me. I really liked the way you had explained and tried to help us plan the day meal with all nutrients
This is a great post. It is so important to eat a balanced diet. It’s something that I’m trying to get through to my kids!
Such a detailed and informative post.I am lagging behind in planning a good and complete meal. Will make sure I do that in future.
Wow! This is great information. It will surely help me in providing my kids with more balanced diet. Thanks for sharing!
wow! I just loved reading this post. I always try to keep eating healthy food and make sure I am feeding balancrd diet to my son as well. This post helped me to quickly brush up my knowledge on nutrition and health. Thanks for sharing it.
That’s quite an information shared here definitely pinning it for daily reference
Thanks for sharing such informative article. Healthy food with proper nutrients is really important for healthy life.
This is such a helpful & in formative article. I am sure a lot of us (like me) think we provide a balanced meal to kids bjut sometimes miss few micro nutrients.. Thanks for sharing this.
I liked the nutrition based suggestion that you have listed. You have listed all the macro as well as micro nutrients. A very detailed and informative post.
I need to watch what I eat . I am struggling to include protein in our diet. My toddler hates eggs.
Thankyou for informative post.
Super informative and useful post. I often ignore my own health while taking care of the kids. This post is a reminder that a balanced diet is essential for all, including moms.
I loved ur blog page.. and this is such an informqtive post mumma