It is crucial to encourage healthy eating habits in your kids right from the beginning. The eating habits that your child picks up in the early stages of life can determine their lifestyle into adulthood. This is why it’s important to introduce the right foods to your children from a very young age.
How do your child’s food choices affect their behaviour, learning and focus?
As per the Society for Neuroscience reports, multiple studies have revealed that diets with high levels of saturated fats negatively affect learning speed and retention power. If your kid loads up on junk like fries, burgers and desserts all the time, their attention span and their ability to focus diminish significantly.
Normally after a healthy meal, there is a slight glucose spike in the body that gives energy to the body. But when your child has foods with high glucose content, they will experience a “post-food crash”. This leads to fatigue, poor mental performance, irritability and lack of focus.
A diet lacking the required nutrients daily can lead to sleep problems, behavioural problems and even stunted emotional and psychological development. Vitamin D deficiency can lead to impulsive behaviour, aggression, etc. B complex deficiencies will lead to symptoms of anxiety, mild depression and irritability in your child.
You can read this blog: Wholesome Meals – Eating Healthy Is Never A Waste Of Time
Several studies also show the link between certain foods and worsening symptoms of ADHD. For instance, children with ADHD and hyperactivity are allergic to dairy products like milk, cheese, yogurt, etc. Food dyes found in processed foods, including artificial juice, cereal, candy and gluten-rich food negatively impact children diagnosed with ADHD.
Eating wholesome, nutritious food aids the overall growth and development of your child. But it is easier said than done. As a parent, you need to put in the effort to ensure that your child is eating right.
Here are some tips you can follow:
- Roast your veggies and add some zing
Most kids are fussy about eating veggies. But roasting them well and sprinkling on some flavourful herbs can be a game changer. Change up the seasonings to cooked veggies or salads every day to keep your kids enthusiastic about what’s on their plates.
One of the best ways to make your kids eat veggies is in the form of broth. Broths are comforting and contain a whole lot of colourful veggies that your kids will love. We serve the best broth in Singapore that will tempt your kids.
- Make it colourful and presentable
Cut fresh fruits into tiny pieces and make a colourful fruit bowl. Draw a smiley on a grilled vegetable sandwich to add that fun factor. Buy colourful food items like purple cauliflower, yellow tomatoes, yellow and red bell pepper, etc. Adding colour to your kid’s plate makes it healthy and fun for them.
- Add in a bit of goodness
Tossing on a small spoon of mayo or peanut butter will do more good than harm if it can make your child eat a whole bowl of healthy food. If your kid is not into vegetable wraps, try adding flavourful sauces and mayo and make it exciting. If your child hates a homemade banana shake, adding a spoonful of peanut butter can amp it up.
And if you’re serving broth, toss in some boiled noodles to add interest and texture. Broths are the healthiest and yummiest option to keep your kids full for a long time so they don’t binge constantly. You can check out our options for homemade broth made with the highest quality ingredients.
- Teach them the healthy way to snack
Instead of stocking your kitchen pantry with crisps for snacks, load it with fruit bars, granola bars, roasted chickpeas, etc. Even a bowl of broth is a great snacking option since it will make your kid feel full until dinner time. You can check out our options like the all-veggies chicken broth, garden veggies broth, salmon tomato broth, etc.
It is your responsibility as a parent to see to it that your child eats healthily. We hope that following the above tips makes it easier for you and makes food time more appealing for your child.
