Snacking Habits in Children: Which Is Healthy, Which Is Not?

Medical Video: Kids! Small Steps to a Healthy You

Children love snacking. Yes, snacking or snacking may be the thing most kids are waiting for. In fact, many children prefer snacking instead of eating the main food.

Most people might think that snacking is a negative habit that should be avoided, because it can cause weight gain or increase the risk of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease. This happens because usually individuals eat unhealthy foods as snacks. Generally has a sweet, salty and fatty taste.

However, make no mistake, snacking is also useful for donating or adding some calories and nutrients needed by children. So, you should choose healthy snacks.

How about healthy snacks for children?

As we know, childhood is a time when children are experiencing a lot of growth and development. That means children need a lot of nutrients to support their growth and development.

To fulfill it, children cannot rely solely on two or three meals. Children need snack food or commonly called a snack to help meet their needs. However, do not just choose snacks, wrong-wrong can have a bad impact on children.

The following are examples of healthy snacks for children.

Oatmeal

You can prepare oatmeal as a small snack for children. Why? It is feared that if given in large portions will make a child full for a long time so that it can interfere with the child's main meal time.

Oats contain high soluble fiber, so they cannot cause weight gain, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and heart disease. This fiber can help absorb cholesterol and blood glucose. In addition, oats also contain high carbohydrates which are certainly needed by children.

Other fiber-rich foods that can be used as snacks for children are cereal or whole wheat bread.

Yogurt

Yogurt contains many proteins that are important to support children's growth and development. Choose low-fat or fat-free yogurt if you want to get more benefits.

However, there are tips for you: don't just believe in claims of being low or fat free on many food packages. If the fat content has been removed or reduced in the food, the amount of sugar may be increased to keep the food taste good. So, many low-fat or fat-free foods (low-fat or non-fat) which has almost the same calories as a full fat version of food (full fat) We recommend that you see what and what is contained in a packaged food on the label of nutritional value information on food packaging.

Fruit

The healthiest snack food for children is fruit. Natural fruits contain many vitamins and minerals needed by the child's body. In addition, it feels good to make children like to eat it. Children only need to get used to eating fruit every day.

Fruit can be served as a snack by eating directly, made as a salad, made as a drink, such as fruit ice or juice. However, when made as a drink, what must be considered here is the addition of sugar. Don't let the added sugar in this drink make the child "addicted" to sweetness.

How about an unhealthy snack?

As we discussed earlier, the habit of eating bad snacks can cause weight gain, increase bad cholesterol levels in the blood, increase the risk of children experiencing cavities, and much more.

The following are examples of unhealthy snacks that should be avoided.

Potato chips or snacks in the packaging

Potato chips are one of the snacks that kids love. The taste is salty and tasty, making children addicted to eating it. However, behind the delicious taste, potato chips only store very little nutrition for children. In fact, potato chips usually contain high calories and sodium, which of course can have a negative impact on health. In addition, potato chips also contain very low fiber.

Granola bar

You might be surprised to hear that. Yes, granola is one of the seemingly healthy snacks. Granola bars contain lots of certain vitamins and minerals that are good for the body, but also contain lots of fat, including poor trans fats, and also contain lots of sugar. Many granola bars that only contain a lot of direct carbohydrates, without fiber and other important nutrients. Again, you should read the information label on nutritional value in food packaging before buying it. Pay attention to what and what is contained in it.

Sweet drinks

Many kinds of sweet drinks that children like, such as sodas, packaged tea drinks, bottled juice drinks, and many more. However, unfortunately this drink contains very much sugar, so the child should be limited in consuming these drinks. Don't make it a habit for your child to drink flavored drinks or sweet drinks every time he wants to drink, this will shape the habits of unhealthy children. Water is the best drink for children.