Features: Magazine | Literary Review | Life | Metro Plus | Open Page | Education Plus | Book Review | Business | SciTech | Friday Review | Young World | Property Plus | Quest | Folio |

Special little meals

Significant care should be taken to meet two-year-olds' dietary needs

In general my children refuse to eat anything that hasn't danced in television.

Erma Bombeck

Kids need the same nutrients that adults require in their daily diet.

With a few exceptions like alcohol, kids can have pretty much everything their parents eat.

However, quantities and proportions matter. This article deals with the dietary requirements of children in the third year of life.

Children in this age require up to 1400 Calorie per day. Unlike adults, two-year olds can have up to 40 per cent of these calories as fat.

For fat

Dietary fat in this age helps in brain development.

The fat should be healthful polyunsaturated or monounsaturated fat like sunflower oil, olive oil, soybean, nuts and nut pastes, of course, and not the spoonfuls of ghee that some pour into children's food to fatten them up.

Children need the calcium found in approximately 250 ml of buffalo milk (500 mg), and around 130 gm of whole grain carbohydrate.

This amount of whole grain carbohydrate easily supplies the 20 gm of dietary fibre that two year-olds need daily.

For fibre

Beans, lentils, peas, fruit and other vegetables are also good sources of fibre. Grains do not contain enough calcium, and milk should be part of every child's daily diet.

Too much milk, however, irritates the gut and can lead to iron deficiency. Fruits and fruit juices are excellent sources of minerals, vitamins, fibre and natural antioxidants.

They also satisfy the craving for sweet foods.

Too much fruit juice, however, kills the appetite for more nutrient-rich foods. Fruit juice is not a substitute for a regular meal.

For protein

Two-year olds also need protein equivalent to around 15 per cent of their total calorie needs. This is a reasonable quantity and does not amount to heaping the plate with pieces of meat.

The allotted whole grain carbohydrate by itself makes up a big chunk of daily protein requirement.

All the meal requires is some beans, lentils or dried peas to complete the protein profile. Sodium intake should be no more than 1000 mg per day.

This rules out potato chips and other salt-heavy foods. Allow small frequent meals. Children have small stomachs and need to eat frequently.

RAJIV. M

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail