Childhood nutrition is highly important for the healthy development of a child. The sad thing is that a lot of kids are malnourished in today’s world and many of them actually go to bed hungry at night. At the same time there are children all around that are considered to be obese and their health is beginning to show the evidence.
As mentioned before, proper nutrition is very important for any person but this is especially true when it comes to childhood nutrition. This is due to the fact that the food that your child consumes today will have a direct impact on their growth and their health throughout their adolescent and adult years. This can either be a negative or a positive impact, depending on what the child is consuming.
If you want your child to grow up to be big and strong and also have excellent health you need to do your part as a parent and make sure that your child is getting all of the nutrients that they need. This task can be somewhat difficult at times but it is important that you remain determined and persistent
Nutrition Basics
It is very important that you are aware of how important proper nutrition is as a parent and that you are knowledgeable of how to properly give your child nutrients.
The following will go over the importance of proper nutrition for your children. You will also be provided with a few tips and guidelines that you should consider following.
If you do not help your child by steering them towards healthier eating habits they will surely have negative effects on their health that you will notice later in life. Providing your child with well-balanced nutritional meals will help to prevent certain eating disorders and other issues such as anemia or obesity.
The following are some examples of why proper nutrition is so important:
Childhood Obesity Prevention
As mentioned before, it is extremely important to make sure that your child eats healthy food that is full of nutrients, especially in their earlier years. That is why it is so shocking that roughly twenty-five percent of children in the United States between the ages of two and eighteen years old meet the criteria to class them as being overweight. That is quite a bit of overweight children. It may be hard for you to believe but that fact comes straight from the CDC so start believing! This increase in obese, overweight children is on the rise even here in Nigeria.
The scary thing is the fact that overweight and obese children have a much greater risk of developing health problems later on in their lives. They will be at risk for joint issues and pain. As well they will be at risk of getting serious problems such as cardiovascular disease or type 2 diabetes. Teaching your child at an early age to eat healthy and choose a piece of fruit over a candy bar will greatly reduce their risk of experiencing these problems.
Healthy Growth
Optimal nutrition is vital for a child to grow in a healthy manner. It is important to make sure that your child is consuming the proper amounts of nutrient dense food such as fruits and vegetables to support optimal growth. Calcium is also very important. This nutrient will ensure that your child grows up to have fully developed and strong bones. Calcium deficiencies can have some very undesired effects on your child’s health so you want to make sure that you are giving you child adequate amounts of calcium.
Nutritional Breakfast
It is very important that you make sure that your child has a nutritional breakfast every day, especially on days that they have school. Studies show that children who have a nutritional breakfast before class do much better and can focus and participate much more. An interesting fact is that children who do not have breakfast or have a unhealthy breakfast are much more likely to have behavioural issues and problems learning while in school. On the other hand, children who are well nourished are much more likely to have better memory and problem solving skills.
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Consequences of Improper Nutrition
As mentioned before, proper nutrition is extremely important for a child, especially in their earlier years. If a child does not consume the proper nutrients they will surely face certain issues in the years to come of their life. For example, lack of proper nutrition as a child can lead to problems such as having a shorter or slumped over stature. Another issue that these children may face is a delay in them reaching puberty and this can have a serious impact on the rest of their life.
As well, children who are not receiving proper nutrition are at a risk of becoming dehydrated or facing certain health issues such as anemia. Their academic performance will likely be affected and this also can have lasting consequences on their life. Then there is always the fact that your child might become over-weight or obese. This can cause the child to experience serious health and social problems in life. It is extremely important that you as the parent make sure that your child is getting all of the nutrition that they need. Your child counts on you to keep them safe and making sure that your child is eating right is part of keeping them safe.
The best part is if you teach your child at an early age to eat healthy, they will likely continue to eat healthy, even when they are grown and have moved out. It may be a bit challenging at first to prepare healthy meals and get your child to eat it but it will get easier with practice and as you become more familiar with what healthy foods your child likes and what healthy foods they do not like.
