Nutrition is important to every one big and small. Eating healthy is something that needs to be started at a young age to help the child with their growth and development. Throughout the stages of a child’s life the nutritional needs will change as they grow and develop from an infant to a toddler to a school age child.
An infant grows faster during the first year than at any other time of their life. (Robertson 2010, pg. 295) Toddlers and preschool age children’s nutrition needs change as they transition from toddler to school age child. School age children are still growing and developing, but at a slower rate than when they were a toddler. No matter the age of the child or adult good nutrition is important. In 2005, a children’s version of the MyPyramid for Kids was introduced to address obesity among elementary school aged children. (Robertson 2010, pg. 219) Teachers and parents can use this pyramid to help make healthier choices for their child.
Children learn many things from their parents and other adults in their life. Good eating habits are just one of the many things that children will learn from their elders. The kinds of food provided for children help to determine how the child will eat and grow. (Robertson 2010, pg. 323) Early in the child’s life is when the parents and teachers have the most influence on what the child will or will not eat. Teachers and parents have many opportunities to teach children good eating habits and exercise. Social environment that is provided at mealtimes has a direct relationship to the child’s dietary quality. (Robertson 2010, pg. 325) One way to help children influence a child’s eating habits is to let the child help prepare the snack or meal that they will be eating. If they start at a young age then they will have developed skills for cooking and preparing healthy foods.
With today’s technology and fast paced environment, many kid friendly recipes can be found with the click of a mouse. Parents and teachers can easily search thousands of recipes online in a matter of seconds. While searching through hundreds of sites for recipes that are not only healthy, tasty, and kid friendly I found this website, www.healthychild.org that has all kinds of amazing information for teachers and parents about children and nutrition. They also have recipes that are healthy and kid friendly.
One of the recipes that are on there is a smoothie called Tropical Treasure Smoothie. It is a fun and simple way to help kids get the proper amount of servings of fruits and vegetables. Parents and teachers can change this recipe however they want. This smoothie is made with at least three different fruits, your choice. Then just blend and serve, it’s that simple. Smoothies like this one are easy to make and can be spiced up and changed to suit that person’s needs and requirements. Especially with children, one can make a smoothie that is pink by mixing certain fruits and vegetables that will give it that color or you can mix certain fruits and vegetables to make it green. Food coloring can also be added to change the color. Younger children love colors and pretty things. Many of them are not concerned about what is actually in the pretty colors. Another fun and easy recipe is called Pink Princess. This recipe calls for fruits, honey, and Greek yogurt which has double the protein than regular yogurt. In this recipe it is a simple combination that makes a tasty Popsicle that everyone can enjoy.
This website offers many recipes for all kinds of different yet healthy foods that even some claim picky eaters will enjoy. One of these recipes is called Maple Fruit Yogurt Dip; a simple dish that is paired with many different fruits of your choice. Any recipe that is found on this site is kid friendly and parents and teachers can have little helpers working on different parts of the recipe and then they can enjoy the fruits of their labor afterwards. Many recipes, even the ones that are not so healthy can be kid friendly if the adult is willing to take the time to allow the child to help.
References
Robertson, C. (2010). Safety, nutrition, and health in early education. (4th ed ed.). Belmont: Wadsworth.
It's true children do learn a lot from parents and adults, therefore we must model good eating habits and exercise. It gives them a strong foundation in healthy eating.
ReplyDeleteNutrition is the key to excellent health in kids. You made some good points on why it's important for adults to role model healthy eating habits. I liked the smoothie and pink princess recipe. I'm going to make those with my three year old! They sound so yummy and healthy at the same time!
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