Top reasons why children need all the right nutrients

It doesn’t come as a surprise to parents that providing the right nutrients for children is essential for proper growth and development. But, not many parents delve deep into how nutritional balance helps the child to become a happy and healthy adult in different ways. Proper nutrition also keeps many illnesses at bay by boosting immunity in kids. Hence, if a child gets adequate food and balanced meals with both macro and micro nutrients, it will help him or her to perform well at school.

And of course, apart from nutrition, genes and the environment are also important in defining the overall well-being of a child. So, in this article, we will take a look at how balanced nutrition can benefit your toddler and pre-teen.

• Various studies suggest that during the growing years of a child, proper nutrition is essential for their health and educational performance in later stages. A healthy and well-balanced diet is necessary for your child to perform to his fullest potential in studies or sports, and to maintain energy levels.
• Importance of childhood nutrition cannot be ignored as it is essential for the development of brain, behaviour and attention span too.
• Consumption of unhealthy food or nutrients can negatively affect the growth of bones, muscles, and reduce the healing power of tissues. It can affect learning ability and concentration. Even snacks should be healthy and filling.
• Food has an impact on your child’s energy levels too. If the right amount of food is not consumed, it can result in lethargy and tiredness. Some foods like sugar increase the energy levels drastically but a fall can instantly drain your kid’s energy too. Proper and healthy nutrition provides strength, stamina, and power for studies, fighting against the odds, and outdoor activities.
• A poor diet but healthy weight is linked with health hazards that can give rise to many lifestyle diseases. Risk of health conditions such as heart ailments, blood pressure, type-2 diabetes, osteoporosis, and other kinds of cancers shoots up. By making wise and healthy food choices, your child can stay protected against these.
• An unhealthy eating habit and an increase in weight starts from a young age and results in long-term diseases or conditions like blood pressure or type-2 diabetes. Healthy food-related habits formed in childhood are carried into the adult phase, so it is essential to teach your kids about healthy eating to remain healthy throughout their life.
• There is an association between proper nutrition, decreased long-term disease or health issues, and complete health that cannot be ignored. An individual can go a long way, by reducing the intake of junk food or empty calories, getting proper nutrients from all major food groups, and participating in exercises or workouts.
• Good nutrition can help develop a child’s social skills and behaviour too, enhancing his confidence, ability to communicate, think, and solve problems. Good food can reduce stress, anxiety and even depression.

So, make sure your little one is consuming a healthy and well-balanced diet rich in all the nutrients, i.e. carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals. There is a link between nutrition and child development which cannot be ignored.

It is essential to remember that malnourished kids get ill frequently, miss school, are unable to play as much as they want to, and grow up to be unhealthy adults. Inadequate nutrition can also hamper height gain. School going kids should especially consume a wholesome breakfast to perform better and stay active.

Hence, it is sensible to introduce foods like whole wheat cereals, breads and rice, fresh veggies and fruits, proteins like fish, egg, chicken and dairy products like milk, yogurt, cheese and cottage cheese in their diet.

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