Back to school: Tips for a healthy and balanced diet

With the end of the summer holidays, the messy feeding system of our children ends, here are some suggestions for a healthy diet!

Back to school: Tips for a healthy and balanced diet

During the summer holidays, there is not much time, effort, and thought in planning and building a healthy and balanced menu for children, as some children spend summer holidays in summer camps and eat within it almost on a daily basis. Because of this, most children’s food during the summer holidays is based on fast food (sausages, hamburgers, etc.).

The importance of proper nutritional habits should not be underestimated, as it is known that food affects the health, growth, and development process of children, and plays a role in supporting the ability to focus and mental abilities, which are very important during the school period.

It is important to make sure that children get accustomed to eating healthy and balanced food in childhood. At this stage, the feeding habits that will accompany the child when he grows up are built, and they affect the structure and health of the body.

Proper nutrition in children, like adults, depends on eating a variety of foods that provide the body with the main nutritional compounds: proteins, carbohydrates, fats, water, vitamins, and minerals in a reasonable amount.

A healthy and healthy diet should contain grains, wheat products (preferably whole grains or whole wheat products), fresh vegetables, fruits, dairy products, eggs, fish, chicken or lean beef, and vegetable fats such as avocados and olives.

The problem is that despite parents’ best intentions, many children bring back fruit from school, leave their plate full of food for dinner, but aren’t willing to give up sweets.

Important nutritional advice

What should we do about feeding children, with the return to school approaching?

Do not get into conflicts with children about nutrition

We must remember that changes must be made gradually, and this applies to the issue of nutrition as well, so it is advisable to suggest a number of options for the child and then reach a common agreement.

It is recommended to give the child nutritional supplements, such as vitamins that are suitable for children and free of sugar, on a daily basis. The function of these supplements is to provide the body with all the necessary vitamins and minerals that the child does not get from his food.

It is known that loss of appetite in children stems from a lack of vitamins and minerals, which is not diagnosed, so taking nutritional supplements (vitamins) contributes to improving appetite and eating more properly, in the long term.

Breakfast is very important

The child becomes calm after eating it, and also has the ability to focus and enough energy to start his school day better.

There is no need to insist that breakfast is at home before going to school because some children do not feel hungry as soon as they wake up in the morning, but after a certain period of time has passed.

In this case, it is best to give the child a healthy snack that contains whole grains, to eat on the way to school.

Before going to school, you can offer the child a warm or lukewarm drink, containing mainly milk, or you can offer light food such as breakfast cereal.

Whole wheat lunch

For the school lunch, you can send the child a sandwich or crackers made of whole wheat (Crackers), as well as white cheese, yellow cheese, avocado or hummus, according to the child’s choice.

You can add a piece of fruit or two to the sandwich, and you can add or replace the fruit with vegetables that can be eaten so that it is complete such as cucumber, pepper or carrot. The child should also be accustomed to drinking fluids, especially water, during meals.

Make sure to send water with the child

It is recommended to bring a bottle of water with the child, although in most schools there are water taps or facilities with cold water.

Many children eat lunch outside the house, within the framework of daycare centers, most of which use the services of restaurants, which provide parents with a copy of the weekly menu.

It is recommended to check the types of food offered by the restaurant, if it turns out that the main meal they serve in most meals depends on fast food, such as hamburger, ready-made chicken or sausage, it can be requested to change this.

Setting meal times

As for feeding at home, it is recommended to accustom the child to eat meals at regular times and in a specific place, preferably in a quiet place, without annoying things such as television.

It is advisable to present different foods in meals, as change and diversification raise curiosity and desire to eat. Even if the child does not eat a certain type of food, there is a possibility that if we continue to serve it, or change the way it is prepared, it will stimulate the child’s curiosity, which may lead him to taste it.

Things to avoid

Give your child sweets or sweetened snacks, sweetened breakfast cereals, sweetened drinks, a sandwich containing white bread, and chocolate or jam.

This is due to several reasons: First of all, foods that contain sugar lead to a rapid rise in the blood sugar level, and then lead to a rapid decline as well, which makes the child feel hungry, after a short period. In addition, it is known that sugar is one of the factors that cause nervousness and insomnia.

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