Contents:
- Medical Video: 18 Harmful Foods We Keep Giving to Children
- Chips and biscuits
- Fast food
- Candy and chocolate
- Carbonated drinks
- Juice
Medical Video: 18 Harmful Foods We Keep Giving to Children
A healthy and balanced diet can help ensure your baby has enough vitamins and nutrients for growth. So what foods and drinks do you have to limit as your baby grows? The following is a list of these foods and drinks:
Chips and biscuits
Eating too much chips and biscuits can make your child ignore nutrient-rich foods.
Chips and biscuits, like many processed food products in general, have high salinity. Babies only need very little salt: less than 1g (0.4g sodium) per day until they are 12 months old. Your baby's kidneys cannot digest more salt than that amount.
Before your baby is six months old, he will get all the salt needed from breast milk or formula milk. When babies start eating solid foods, you should not add salt to baby food even if you think it tastes bland. If you cook with a block broth, choose a low salt.
Toddlers also need a very small amount of salt. The maximum daily amount of salt recommended for infants aged 1 to 3 years is 2g per day (0.8 g sodium). If your toddler occasionally eats chips as a snack, give only three to four pieces, don't give one package.
Cream cheese, fresh fruit, or cut vegetables are a much better choice if your child needs a quick snack. Rice cakes and mini sandwiches are also better alternatives.
Fast food
Fast food for older adults and children usually has a high salt and sugar content, because that is not suitable for babies. Making the same food at home can be a cheaper and healthier alternative. Nutrition specialists will give you some ideas for healthy food.
If you are very busy and do not have time to prepare food, make sure all prepared foods are suitable for newborns, compared to toddlers or older children. Don't share your fast food with your baby.
Candy and chocolate
It's hard to keep children away from sweets and chocolate, but high sugar levels in candy and chocolate make acid which then attacks the enamel in your child's mouth.
You can give candy to your baby while eating. When he eats, saliva in the mouth increases. Saliva helps neutralize the effects of acids that attack teeth.
Fondant is safer for baby teeth than candy like toffee, because fondant dissolves faster. If you give your baby candy, make sure they spend it directly. One serving of four chocolate chips, is safer for his teeth compared to one piece every half hour for two hours.
You can give your child a piece of cheese as soon as he finishes the candy to neutralize the sugar. Then make sure he brushes his teeth properly.
Carbonated drinks
Your child does not need soft drinks or carbonated drinks. This drink does not have good nutrition, and the acid can damage your baby's newly-growing teeth. Plus high sugar levels, and some carbonated drinks, such as cola, contain caffeine.
Your baby only needs to drink regular milk and water. Carbonated drinks make babies feel full faster. If your baby drinks carbonated drinks to get rid of thirst, this can eliminate the appetite for the nutritious food he needs. Then, sugary drinks are high in calories, and your baby can be overweight in infancy if he often drinks it.
juice
Fruit juice may sound like a healthy choice, but it's better that you don't give it to your baby for the same reason you should stay away from carbonated drinks and soft drinks. Fruit juice has high natural acid content and is acidic, meaning fruit juice can damage your baby's teeth.
Water and breast milk or formula milk are the best drinks for your baby until he is one year old. After that, he can drink cow's milk as the main drink because it contains important vitamins and minerals such as calcium, vitamin B2, and vitamin B12.
