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| Introduction |
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Childhood nutrition has a significant influence
on health and development throughout life. As children grow,
their nutritional needs are much greater than those of adults
and the consequences of a poor diet will be long lasting. A
good diet will protect against everyday illness and ensure the
development of strong bones and teeth, firm muscles and healthy
tissues.
Choosing to bring up your child as a vegetarian is a positive
step towards a healthy and morally sound diet for your child.
Nutritional research has shown that a vegetarian diet can provide
all the nutrients necessary for a child's growth and development.
Well-informed dietitians, doctors and other health professionals
now accept that vegetarianism is a healthy option for infants
and children of all ages. The pre-school child, whether vegetarian
or not, is almost totally dependent on others for its food.
The eating habits of parents and other carers will be the ones
that the child imitates and acquires. Some pre-school children
are naturally sensitive to the use of animals for food and occasionally
refuse all meats even if their parents aren't vegetarian. Whether
vegetarian or not, it is vital that children have a well balanced
diet. This is particularly important during the pre-school years,
as this is a time of rapid growth and development. The nutrients
to particularly watch are calcium, iron, zinc, protein, vitamin
B12 and vitamin D.
Children should be offered a variety of foods which they can
enjoy and should not be forced to eat anything if they are determined
to resist. Food and eating should not be allowed to become an
issue as children can be very fussy at this age. Good eating
habits should begin now, as likes and dislikes will be influenced
by what is offered in these early years. High fibre, low fat
diets, recommended for adults, are not suitable for children
of this age, as explained below. The emphasis should be on family
eating habits that are healthy and sensible. Foods containing
a lot of sugar and salt should be avoided.
As they are growing very rapidly, young children need a lot
of dietary energy (calories) relative to their small size. A
diet that is too high in fibre or very low in fat will not provide
sufficient concentrated energy or nutrients. Frequent meals
containing food of relatively high nutrient and energy density
are important, although young children often have marked fluctuations
in appetite.
Nutritious snacks between meals will help ensure that enough
food is eaten. Try and avoid shop-bought sweets, biscuits and
cakes, sweetened fizzy drinks and salty snacks such as crisps.
Offer sandwiches, fruit, scone or malt bread and home-made cake
or biscuit instead. Sweets given occasionally as a special treat
will not do any harm.
Unless your child is prone to being overweight you can try to
increase the energy density of foods. Vegetable oil can be added
to foods like mashed lentils or beans. Include nut and seed
purees such as tahini and smooth peanut butter, cheese, yoghurt,
soya products, such as tofu and veggie burgers, and if liked,
avocado.
Try to include as wide a variety of foods as possible, bearing
in mind that children may be fussy or find some foods too strong
in taste. Consumption of fresh, frozen or juiced fruit and vegetables
should be encouraged. Assessment of a child's growth should
be made over a period of time, as growth at this age is often
very uneven and interspersed with sudden increases in height
and weight |
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| Sugar and Teeth |
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| Children naturally like the taste of sugar
and sweet foods. Though sugary foods do provide calories, they
have little else of nutritional value and are a major cause
of tooth decay. Whilst it may not be practical to ban sugar
altogether, it should be limited. It is better to discourage
the development of a sweet tooth now. A small amount of sugar
with otherwise healthy desserts such as yoghurt, soya puddings
and rice pudding is fine and better than using artificial additives
for sweetness. |
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| Milk |
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| Children under two should not be given semi-skimmed
milk and children under five should not be given skimmed milk
because it lacks the fat soluble vitamins A and D. Young children
also need the energy from fat. Soya milks should be fortified
with calcium, vitamin B12 and vitamin D if used as an alternative
to cow's milk for young children |
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| Salt |
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| Salt should be avoided in the diet of young
children as their kidneys are not mature enough to cope with
large amounts. Many common foods such as cheese, manufactured
soup, packet meals and bread are quite high in added salt. Avoid
too many salty snacks, such as crisps and other snack foods.
Spread yeast extract thinly or use the low salt varieties. |
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| Nuts |
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| Whole nuts and seeds must be avoided until
the age of five as young children can easily choke on them.
Ground or pureed nuts and seeds are fine and nutritious, for
example smooth peanut butter, tahini (sesame seed paste) or
ground almonds. |
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