How to teach your child to eat healthy from an early age

Eating habits are something that people develop from childhood.
It is important not to disrupt the child’s normal eating behavior, so that in the future this does not result in serious mental problems. It is equally important to instill a love of healthy eating from an early age, to explain the importance of proper nutrition for the general condition of the body, because it is much easier to start eating right from the beginning than to later, roughly speaking, relearn from chips to spinach. Proper nutrition is the key to health for children! Healthy food is no less important for children than for adults. A young, restless body needs a sufficient amount of calories and energy for all the activities that a child encounters every day. It is necessary to plan a balanced diet for schoolchildren, because long-term mental work greatly depletes not only the brain, but also energy resources. In addition, proper growth and development cannot occur without a variety of vitamins, minerals, micro- and macroelements that a person consumes with food.

Why is healthy eating important?

Everyone knows that children need to be fed healthy and nutritious food, but it is not so easy. There are a number of obstacles that have to be faced:

• From the first feeding, the baby tries to make his own taste preferences the basis of his nutrition. This can develop into a refusal of any innovations - as a result, he has a monotonous menu, and then it’s not far from improper eating behavior at school.
• Television advertising, the example of other children and lack of parental attention lead to the fact that a child in preschool age acquires bad eating habits, preferring “dry food” and sweets to healthy food.
• Then food becomes a field of struggle between parents and children, this makes family relationships tense, undermines mutual trust, harms health, but does not lead to the creation of traditions of proper nutrition.

This is why you need to instill healthy eating habits in your children (and yourself, if we're being honest!). And if you want your child to eat the right foods correctly, you need to teach him to do so from early childhood.

Vitamins and water

Vitamins are very important in a child's body. A lack of any vitamin can lead to various types of diseases. Teeth deteriorate, vision deteriorates, and pain begins to occur more often.

Vitamin-containing foods: fish liver, butter, egg yolk, wheat bread, tomatoes, radish, rose hips, strawberries and so on.

And of course, water is necessary, which enters the body with food and in the form of drink. Both excess and lack of water are harmful to the body, so water consumption must be strictly controlled.

How to eat right

These tips are universal for both adults and children:

• Small meals 5-6 times a day, with breaks of no more than 4 hours. The last meal is 2 - 3 hours before bedtime.
• 3 main meals are recommended: breakfast, lunch and dinner - and 2 snacks. Breakfast should account for 15 - 25% of the caloric intake of the diet, lunch - 30 - 40%, dinner - 30%. Snacking can account for about 10% of your daily calories.
• Preference is given to natural products with high nutritional value and freshly prepared dishes.
• A varied, balanced diet.
• A menu that takes into account seasonality and area of ​​residence.
• The ratio of proteins, fats and carbohydrates in the diet (for a healthy body) is 15:30:55. It is better to eat protein foods for breakfast and lunch, carbohydrates (mainly vegetables) in the evening.
• It is recommended not to overuse salt and sugar, foods with preservatives, dyes, flavor enhancers, fried and spicy foods - all of this may be present in the diet, but in limited quantities.
• The preferred methods of cooking are boiling, steaming, baking in the oven and grilling, frying without oil.
• The calorie content of the daily diet should be equal to or slightly less than the energy consumed during the day. The approximate daily calorie intake for a healthy person depends on age and gender: for a child from 1 to 2 years old - 1200 kcal, from 2 to 3 - 1400 kcal, up to 1800 - for a child 3 - 7 years old, 2300 - 2500 - for teenagers 11 – 14 years old, 2500 – 2900 – aged 14 to 18 years.
• It is important not to forget about maintaining water balance. Children from 1 to 3 years old are recommended to consume 1100-1200 ml of liquid per day, from 4 to 8 years old - 1600 ml, from 9 to 13 years old - 1900-2100 ml, and adolescents 14-18 years old - 2000-2500 ml. In this case, all liquid entering the body is taken into account: soup, tea, juices, etc.

How should parents behave in order to instill in their child the right eating habits, form and timely regulate eating behavior in general?

Menu for children from one year old

Approximate menu for a child aged one year and older:

• Breakfast - semolina porridge, or omelette, a bun with butter or liver pate, an apple, warm tea or fruit juice.
• Lunch – chicken noodle soup, mashed potatoes, fresh cucumber slice, fruit or berries, a piece of rye bread.
• Afternoon snack – a glass of warm milk or compote, a bun with jam, a pie or biscuit.
• Dinner - cheesecakes with sour cream or rice porridge with gravy, vegetable salad, warm compote, a piece of rye or wheat bread.

The baby's diet should consist of those substances that are in the child's body, then the baby will grow healthy, vigorous and active!

First taste experience

When should you teach your child proper eating behavior? General advice - the sooner the better. Scientists conducted a study in which they observed the eating habits of 1,500 children from birth to age 6 years. It turned out that children who ate few vegetables and fruits before the age of 1 year refused to eat them even at 6 years old.

According to scientists, the best age to introduce children to healthy eating is 11–12 months. Moreover, breastfed children are more willing to try new foods.

A child gets acquainted with tastes even before birth: he acquires the first such experience in his mother’s stomach, when he swallows amniotic fluid, the taste of which depends on her nutrition. Then, receiving mother's milk, the child also experiences the tastes of mother's nutrition. Perhaps this explains the easier adaptation of such children to various foods introduced with complementary foods than in formula-fed children who receive formulas with a stable composition and uniform taste.

Empirically, it has been proven that a child’s perception of new foods differs depending on whether they were present in the mother’s diet during pregnancy and lactation. Take care of your own rational diet at these stages: it is this that has the leading influence on the adequate formation of the baby’s taste.

Some taste preferences are noticeable already in the first months of a baby’s life: he may, for example, favor sweet and salty tastes and reject bitter and sour ones. To some extent, this is a protective function of the body - to avoid foods that may contain poisonous and toxic substances, because they have a bitter taste (however, not all bitter foods are toxic - think grapefruit or persimmon).

What influences food preferences

In addition to taste itself, the formation of a child’s food preferences is also influenced by:

• The smell of food;
• Its consistency;
• Compound;
• Appearance of dishes.

When introducing complementary foods when the baby begins to show interest in food, it is important not to make mistakes and take care of all the components of the product offered to the child:

• It should arouse interest with its design;
• Stimulate appetite by smell;
• The consistency and composition are appropriate for the baby’s age.

Agusha products meet all the requirements for baby food and not only help the baby develop correct eating behavior, but also attract him with interesting packaging.

It is worth noting that if a child categorically refuses food of a certain consistency (for example, with pieces), prefers food of the same color, or eats in unusual conditions (only in the dark or only on the floor), it is worth consulting with a specialist.

What to do if a child refuses certain foods? Naturally, he may not like foods or dishes that are still unknown and introduced into the baby’s diet for the first time. Is it too easy to accept your little gourmet's reluctance to accept this or that new dish? No, you need to patiently and repeatedly offer it to your child, sometimes masking it with your favorite dish. Patience and the parents’ own example, the family’s lifestyle as a whole can help overcome this problem.

Food rules

So, what are the rules that, if followed, will help instill in your child the necessary eating habits and ensure the healthiest diet possible?

• Shape your baby's eating habits during pregnancy. Healthy eating during pregnancy is the path to healthy eating after the baby is born. The way a pregnant woman eats also influences her baby's future eating habits. It is important to understand that “healthy” primarily means “balanced”, and a complete rejection of everything “tasty” is not meant here: a balanced diet can include all foods, but you should limit the intake of foods high in salt, sugar and saturated fat.
• Think over your menu during breastfeeding. Many people know that mother’s breast milk provides the baby’s immunity and reduces the risk of food allergies. But besides this, it gives mothers an additional opportunity to form correct eating habits in their baby. The baby can “get used to” the foods included in the mother’s diet already in infancy.
• Don't give up if your baby refuses to take the healthy foods you introduce. The best way to encourage your baby to eat healthy is to offer healthy foods on a regular basis. You shouldn’t give up if he refuses them over and over again - sometimes you just need to patiently offer them several times (5, 10, 15 times - on the 16th the baby gives up and starts eating). Your position should not be rigid, but persistent. It is important that you have patience, so clearly formulate for yourself what you want to teach your baby to do, strictly follow your rules and do not give up.
• Follow the diet. Try to organize the daily routine so that the baby has 4 to 6 meals a day in small portions (it’s better for the baby to ask for more than for the half-eaten half of the plate to go to the trash can), preferably at about the same time. This will help maintain blood sugar levels, protecting the brain from starvation.
• Eat in a specially designated and equipped place. Eat at a properly set table. Provide your child with his own individual set of dishes; If the baby is already old enough, he can choose his own plate, cup and cutlery in the store. This aspect should not be underestimated for one simple reason: this is how the baby understands that food is important, and in the future he treats this area of ​​his life more responsibly and with attention.
• Maintain variety in your diet. Your daily diet should contain all the necessary vitamins and minerals. For health and good spirits, the body requires a sufficient amount of fluid, proteins, fats and carbohydrates, and microelements. But take care of the varied menu. Eating the same thing over and over can lead to a deficiency of essential vitamins, get bored and the baby will begin to refuse previously favorite foods.
• Calculate the portion size correctly. We are used to hearing from parents that there should be nothing left on the plate. However, much greater harm can be done to health if we eat when we are already full! We should give up the habit of finishing everything on our plate and not teach our children to do the same. An interesting system in this sense is the system of measuring food portions “by the palm of your hand”: the portion size is the food that “fits” in your hand.
• Eat together. At least once a day, combine your own meal with feeding your child - this way you will not only instill healthy eating habits in your child, but also help him learn table manners and observe other rituals associated with food.
• Surround food with positive emotions. A child should have exclusively positive emotions associated with food: eating is not only about saturating the body with useful substances, but also about pleasure. Don’t force your child to eat, give him as much food as he willingly eats, don’t rush, coax, or intimidate. If your child refuses a “tasteless” but healthy product, experiment with ways of preparing and serving it, but do not scold or punish your child for refusing. Continue to offer this product in different forms, without unnecessary pressure and with long pauses. In the end, your baby’s refusal of this or that food may be a signal of a hidden food intolerance, and if you insist on your way, you may not only not achieve any benefit, but also cause harm.
• Create rituals associated with eating. Warn in advance about meal times, teach to wash hands before and after meals, help adults with serving, sit upright at the table, eat carefully, use cutlery and napkins correctly, clear the table after eating, wash dishes - simple steps to create the right food culture. The child will more than once appreciate your efforts when he finds himself in a society where table manners are scrupulous.
• Eat food in a calm environment. While eating, you need to remove all toys from the child’s field of view, turn off the TV and eliminate other irritants. This way, the baby will be able to focus on the food itself, listen to signals of satiety, and enjoy the dish. Even conversations (except for reinforcing ones at the stage of introducing complementary foods) should be postponed to another, more appropriate time: when I eat, I am deaf and dumb!
• Choose products and prepare food together. The child will be happy to try something that he himself has put a lot of effort into creating. Prepare healthy food with him, tasty and imaginative, so that the baby understands that “healthy” does not mean “tasteless.” Master new recipes with your child, let him also show his imagination.
• Make sure you have healthy snacks between meals. Small snacks can serve as second breakfasts and afternoon snacks. Fresh fruits and vegetables, cheese, grain breads, nuts, dried fruits - try to keep these snacks in your home and always available to your child.
• Prepare healthy analogues of your favorite industrial “delicacies” yourself. However, sometimes you can indulge in industrially produced “delicacies”! In addition, you can cook almost everything at home: potato chips or other root vegetables, chocolate, marmalade, jelly, ice cream, caramel. Candies can be replaced with fruits, yoghurts, nuts and dried fruits, chocolate bars with dark chocolate, ice cream with homemade berry sorbet.
• Be sure to praise. It has already been proven more than once that praise works much better than punishment and positive reinforcement gives a much stronger result. Praise your child when he chooses the right foods, encourage him if he cleans up after himself from the table, tries to eat carefully and does not spill, when he finishes eating, follows the rules, and sits calmly at the table. There are many reasons for praise; don’t miss the chance and please your child with your approval.
• Do not manipulate with food. Food should not be a comfort, reward or punishment. Also review your eating habits. Even a very small child notices everything: if you constantly eat candy, then he will definitely want to try it, and you will not be able to explain to him that it is harmful.
• Be attentive to the clues your baby sends you. Try to follow the principles of intuitive eating. You may not even notice that your baby “on his own”, easily and without coercion, chose healthy foods as the basis of his diet: after all, he is just following the natural needs of his growing body.
• Avoid looking at a screen while eating. It has been scientifically proven that this way you eat much more food than necessary. And if the TV is constantly on in the house, the child becomes not only dependent on the screen, but also a victim of advertising, to which young children are very susceptible, so dose the incoming information.
• Personal example. Until now, psychologists and teachers have not found anything that would work better than personal example. It is very important to have family feasts, when the child will watch how dad eats and what mom does at the table. Of course, when both parents work and the child is in kindergarten, it is difficult to organize this, but it is still possible. Let it be at least joint breakfasts or dinners, or maybe just weekend feasts.
• The whole family should adhere to the same rules. Try to agree with all family members (even those who live separately, but with whom your child regularly sees) about common approaches to the principles of healthy eating and food culture. Similarly, the prohibition on regular absences from the table during mealtimes to watch the TV or for other “important matters that cannot be urgent” should be supported by all family members caring for the child’s upbringing.
• Family dinners. In many families, it is no longer customary to have family dinners, when everyone gathers around a large set table, discusses the events of the day, plans for the future, and expresses emotional support to each other. With the modern pace of life, a warm family dinner at the end of the working day is sometimes the only opportunity for a family to unite again, recharge with energy and tune in for the next day. Keep this tradition and pass it on to your children: the family gathered at dinner is our support and support, our safe haven.

What substances are needed by a growing body?

Without a sufficient amount of nutrients, proper nutrition of a child is impossible. The child's body needs all the vitamins and minerals, such as:

• Vitamin A (retinol) – for vision, “growth vitamin”;
• B vitamins – to support physical and psychological health;
• Vitamin C, or ascorbic acid, is the main antioxidant in the human body;
• Vitamin D ensures normal growth and development of bones;
• Vitamin E – for tissue regeneration, improves blood circulation and clotting;
• Vitamin H (better known as biotin) improves skin and hair condition;
• Vitamin K affects blood clotting; its deficiency is a very rare occurrence;
• Vitamin PP regulates redox processes in the body;
• Sodium regulates cardiac function;
• Potassium is involved in metabolism, helps conduct impulses and nerve contractions;
• Magnesium – for phosphorus metabolism; in older age it is necessary to lower blood pressure;
• Phosphorus – energy metabolism, one of the main components of bone tissue;
• Calcium is an essential micronutrient for bone health. Vitamin D helps calcium to be absorbed. This substance is extremely important for the proper formation and strengthening of the skeleton;
• Zinc – strengthens the immune system;
• Iron – for blood health, an important component of hemoglobin;
• Copper – hematopoiesis;
• Manganese activates the action of enzymes;
• Molybdenum – against the development of caries;
• Cobalt – participates in the metabolism of fatty acids;
• Chromium is essential for maintaining healthy blood sugar levels;
• Selenium – antioxidant, cancer prevention;
• Iodine is needed for the functioning of the thyroid gland;
• Silicon gives elasticity to skin and hair;
• Vanadium prevents the development of caries in children;
• Sulfur increases the body's resistance to toxins;

There is no need to calculate the exact need for a particular substance for a child, since if you follow the rules of proper nutrition for children, they will involuntarily be supplied in sufficient quantities.

Special attention should be paid to fish oil, since many modern parents have heard about it since childhood. Is it really that useful? Should you give it to your child? Fish oil is famous for its large supply of fatty acids and vitamins A and D; it strengthens blood vessels, improves brain function, promotes attention and concentration, and has a positive effect on vision and calcium absorption. However, fish oil as a dietary supplement is not recommended for infants, and its use is useless if the child eats enough fish, likes salmon, tuna, mackerel, and so on.

Should children be forced to eat?

How can you convince your child to eat healthy food if he refuses? There is a huge gap between persuasion and compulsion to eat. When a mother convinces, she is not offended by the child’s refusal and does not demand that he continue eating.

“Until you eat everything, you won’t leave the table”—familiar words? It is clear that our grandmothers simply had no choice, but there is no point in continuing this tradition of food tyranny.

Yes, it’s a shame when a lovingly prepared dinner remains on the plate practically untouched. It seems that the child neglects our care - all the effort that was spent on obtaining food and preparing it. And as if overcome by spirits from a distant Soviet childhood, we furiously repeat the words of our grandmother: “So many people are starving, and you! Mom and dad are trying, working, but you are wandering around! If you don’t eat, you’ll remain small and weak!”

But think better about the fact that such words are dictated not by care, but by a selfish feeling of resentment for the fact that our love and care were rejected.

According to many studies, there is a connection between a child's upbringing and eating disorders in his adult life. Parents around the world behave in similar ways, but justify food pressure differently.

In the West, adults are guided by the fact that it is “tasty”, “healthy”, “expensive” and “should be eaten fresh”, and in countries such as Mauritania, a mother will be ashamed of her skinny child, since all the neighbors their family will be considered poor. This is especially true for girls, who in Arab villages are still fattened up to the standards of the 1001 Nights fairy tales, according to which a woman’s navel should “hold an ounce of peanut butter.”

The harmful consequences of forced eating: food as comfort.

But eventually, obedient children stop eating because they are hungry and begin to use food for other purposes. The food eaten turns out to be a way to earn mom's praise and thus experience pleasure. And in their adult lives, they will also turn to food to comfort themselves when they are stressed or sad.

Unfortunately, too much control on the part of parents regarding nutrition very often leads to similar results. The same applies to prohibitions on harmful products: the child stops perceiving them as food and sees in them only an inaccessible pleasure. When we force a baby to eat a healthy product, which he persistently refuses, he again ceases to perceive it as food. For him, this forever remains a lost battle, in which he was defeated by a stronger opponent.

72% of people who were forced to eat specific healthy foods as children eliminated them completely from their diets as adults.

What is intuitive eating

The concept of “intuitive eating” counters the idea of ​​being forced to eat. It is based on the ability to listen to your body, trust it and proceed from the true needs of your body, and not from average recommendations. There are different ways to approach this technique, but intuitive eating in response to signals coming from the body truly harmonizes our relationship with food.

And most importantly, a person remembers that he can be attentive to his feelings, emotions, needs and rely on them in his choice.

• It doesn't take much effort to follow these approaches. Especially when we are talking about little gourmets. After all, children, whose bodies are not yet familiar with an unbalanced menu, stress, and unhealthy habits, know when, in what quantities and what kind of food they need to feel good, and often give us, adults, hints with their behavior. Unfortunately, we often turn a deaf ear to them, even when driven by the best intentions: to feed generally accepted healthy food... and more of it!
• The best thing parents who are wondering how much average standards and indicators should govern their children's lives can do is to abandon stereotypes. It is very important not to drown out the baby’s natural wisdom by insisting on your adult, “correct” ideas about healthy eating patterns.
• But if your baby prefers kefir every day, meat no more than once a week, and always refuses milk altogether, trust him: in addition to the fact that he intuitively corrects some imbalance in the body (perhaps right now he lacks bifidobacteria), he also wants to teach you something very important and well forgotten by you - the ability to trust yourself.

The eating habits that a person develops from childhood will remain with him throughout his life, and then he will teach his children to eat the same way. That is why it is so important right now, while the child is small and eats mainly what we prepare and offer, to establish the right habits that will help maintain his health. Discipline yourself, follow the principles of healthy eating and lifestyle, and pass them on to your children. Health to you and your families!

Article on our Yandex.Zen channel

Expert advice

Experts advise parents to follow several rules in order to teach their child to eat properly:

1. Lead by example. It is important not only to feed your child healthy food, but also to consume and cook it with him.
2. Don't force anyone to eat. All children differ from each other in metabolic rate and absorption of useful elements: for one, it is enough to eat a tablespoon of porridge to satiate, while for another one standard portion is not enough. Food consumption standards are conditional indicators that parents should not rely on.
3. Give the child freedom of choice. Parents should allow their child to eat on his own if he wants to.
4. Expand your taste horizons. New age-appropriate foods are gradually being introduced into children’s diets. You should not completely exclude a dish from your child’s menu if he has refused it several times. Perhaps in the future he will like a previously unloved product.
5. Reduce the amount of simple carbohydrates you consume. Experts believe that fructose, glucose and sucrose, consumed in excessive quantities, are the main cause of diabetes, hormonal disorders and excess weight in children.

Doctor of Medical Sciences Mariyat Mukhina

The doctor identifies several foods that should be completely excluded from the child’s diet. One of the most dangerous ingredients is chips.

Over the course of 1 year, they add 3-4 kg of excess weight and lead to hormonal imbalances in the body. Another unacceptable product on the children's menu is soda.

The abundance of sugar in the drink leads to gene mutations, diabetes and even cancer. Mariyat Mukhina also includes chocolate bars, shrimp, and crab sticks on the list of foods prohibited for children.

The doctor advises giving children store-bought rolls and cakes in limited quantities. A huge amount of dyes and flavors in store-bought baked goods leads to early obesity.

Practicing pediatrician, gastroenterologist Alina Vladimirovna Eremeeva

She draws attention to the fact that parents should not overfeed their child. Adults need to pay attention not to how much the child ate, but to how much weight he gained.

Poor appetite is not always a sign of health problems. Often its cause lies in a slow metabolism or the individual age characteristics of the child.

Symptoms of anxiety may include abdominal pain and bowel movements. In this case, the child must be urgently shown to a gastroenterologist so that he can prescribe a suitable drug treatment regimen and provide advice on nutrition.

If a small child has a poor appetite, then he should be given food in small portions to stimulate the digestion process. It is advisable that dishes for little ones contain as much protein as possible.