Food That Is Safe for School-Age Children to Eat: The Five Types of Food

 

  Key points

1.	All five healthy food groups-vegetables, fruit, grains, dairy, and protein-must be consumed by school-age children.
2.	Nutrients essential to learning, growth, and development can be found in healthy foods.
3.	Reduce your intake of foods high in sugar, salt, and fat, as well as foods low in fiber and beverages high in sugar or caffeine.

 What Foods Are Good for Kids To Eat?

A wide range of fresh foods from each of the five food groups are included in nutritious meals for school-age children: -

Vegetables

Fruit

Grain Products

Dairy With Less Fat

Protein

Your child's body needs different nutrients from each food group to grow and function properly. Because of this, we need to consume a variety of foods from each of the five food groups.

Veggies and Fruits

Your child will get energy, vitamins, antioxidants, fiber, and water from fruits and vegetables. Your child can avoid later illnesses like heart disease, stroke, and some types of cancer thanks to these nutrients.

At every meal and snack, encourage your child to choose fruits and vegetables. This includes both raw and cooked fruits and vegetables in a variety of colors, textures, and flavors.

Wash fruit to get rid of chemicals or dirt, but leave any edible skin on because it also has nutrients in it.

Grains In Food

Grain foods include bread, pasta, noodles, breakfast cereals, couscous, rice, corn, quinoa, polenta, oats, and barley. Children get the energy they need to grow, learn, and develop from these foods.

Your child will feel fuller and have more energy for a longer period of time if they consume grains with a low glycaemic index, such as wholegrain bread and pasta.

Dairy Products with Less Fat

Milk, cheese, and yogurt are important dairy foods. Calcium and protein are both found in abundance in these foods. Try to give your child a variety of dairy products every day, like milkshakes, cheese slices, and yogurt bowls.

Dairy products with less fat can be consumed by children over the age of two.

Talk to your pediatrician, general practitioner, or child and family health nurse if you're thinking about giving your child dairy alternatives.

Protein

Lean meat, fish, chicken, eggs, beans, lentils, chickpeas, tofu, and nuts are all sources of protein. Your child's growth and muscle development depend on these foods.

Additionally, these foods contain omega-3 fatty acids, iron, zinc, vitamin B12, and other useful vitamins and minerals. Red meat and oily fish are particularly rich in iron and omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential for your child's learning and development.

Get-Well Drinks: Water

Children benefit the most from drinking water. It is also the least expensive. Fluoride is added to the majority of tap water to help strengthen teeth.

Drinks And Foods to Limit

Limit your child's intake of "occasional" food as much as possible. As a result, your child will have more room for nutritious meals.

Fast food, takeout, and junk food like hot chips, potato chips, dim sims, pies, burgers, and takeout pizza are considered "occasional" foods. Cakes, chocolate, lollipops, biscuits, doughnuts, and pastries are also included.

"Sometimes" foods may be low in fiber and high in sugar, saturated fat, and salt. Consuming these foods on a regular basis may raise one's risk of developing diseases like type 2 diabetes and childhood obesity.

Additionally, you should limit your child's sweet drinks. Cordials, sports drinks, fruit juice, flavored waters, soft drinks, and flavored milks are all examples of this. Sugary drinks lack nutrients and contain a lot of sugar.

Too many sweet drinks can cause tooth decay, obesity, and unhealthy weight gain. Your child may experience less hunger for nutritious meals as a result of these drinks. When children drink sweet drinks on a regular basis when they are young, it may start a bad habit that lasts a lifetime.

Children shouldn't eat or drink anything with caffeine because caffeine prevents the body from properly absorbing calcium. Additionally, caffeine is a stimulant, giving children artificial energy. Coffee, tea, energy drinks, and chocolate are among these foods and beverages.

Alternatives For Desserts and Snacks That Are Healthy

Your child should be encouraged to select snacks from the healthy food groups. This could include things like cheese, nuts, low-fat yogurt, and fresh fruit or vegetables, like carrot and celery sticks with dips like tzatziki, guacamole, or hommus.

The same is true for dessert after a meal. Healthy alternatives include yoghurt or fruit slices. Try making banana bread at home if you want to serve something extra special. Cakes and chocolate, which are seriously sweet, should only be served on special occasions like birthdays.