We all want to see our children grow up to become healthy great individuals. This is what motivates many of us to do everything in your capacity to promote their growth and development. Among the things every parent has to do is to provide a healthy diet and also get them the best childcare in Macquarie Park.
Given how busy many of us are, you may be tempted to prepare hasty meals or let your child pick their food all the time. But this is ill-advised as it affects their growth.
Instead of feeding your child to keep them full, you need to pay particular attention to what you put on their plate. Below are the reasons your child should practice healthy eating at an early age.
For A Happier Child
Poor dieting can raise irritability in children. Processed foods and snacks like candy increase the production of the feel-good hormone dopamine but only for a short while.
If your child is fussy most of the time, try checking their diet and replace the processed foods with whole-grain meals, yogurt, fruits, and green leafy vegetables like spinach. These foods lift your child’s moods by reducing depression and stress.
Adding them to your child’s plate in adequate amounts promotes the production of neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine all known to keep your baby happy.
Healthy Eating Promotes Physical Growth
A balanced diet acts like the fuel your child’s body requires for physical growth. Protein-rich foods are essential for muscle development and should be incorporated in healthy portions. They also enhance tissue repair, keeping your child’s body in good shape. Some like beans prevent delayed growth by maintaining your child’s red blood cells.
Green leafy vegetables preserve bone health while dairy products like yogurt contain growth-promoting antibiotics.
For Better Sleep
Adequate sleep plays a very key role in a child’s growth. That is why providers of childcare in Macquarie Park incorporate naps in their schedules. Even though children fall asleep easily, unhealthy eating can distort their sleep patterns, slowing their growth and making them easily agitated.
To help yours get enough sleep, ensure they have plenty of poultry, meat, dairy products and whole grains. These foods regulate the hormone melatonin, which in turn regulates your baby’s sleep.
Better Brain Development
Did you know that your child’s brain’s functionality is well-established by the time they reach the age of 5?
Many educators in centres that provide the best childcare in Macquarie Park attest to the fact that children who have a history of poor feeding slack in class and have trouble concentrating.
Your child’s memory, the understanding of their environment, reliable decision making and even mood changes depend heavily on how their brain develops in those early years. This means you need to constantly serve your child a diet that promotes brain development.
Omega-3 fatty acids found in salmon, trout and sardines take care of this, paving the way for a healthy brain.
Healthy Eating Boosts Immunity
As obvious as this sounds, there are parents who let diseases sneak up on their children by failing to observe healthy eating. A poor diet lowers your child’s immunity allowing many diseases to thrive.
Regular colds, touches of flu and other illnesses are seen repeatedly in children who lack an adequate supply of immunity boosters such as broccoli, citric fruits, fruits and nuts.
Other than preventing disease, these foods help heal wounds faster, give your baby better digestion and prevent general weakness.
It Is A Source Of Energy
You already know that children love to stay active. In childcare centres, they engage in many fun and educative activities all of which require constant movement. They hardly sit still and require energy to support their discovery stage for good learning.
Owing to their high metabolism, your child runs out of energy and needs to refuel to keep going. Grain-rich foods like bread, rice, corn and barley give your child the energy they require and keep them full for longer.
By now, it should be clear to you just how important healthy eating is for your child. You have every reason to serve them a balanced diet. This not only promotes their physical growth but also plays a huge role in them having a good functioning brain. To get it right, you can work with the caregivers from your child’s daycare and know what meals are served. Make sure they are also receiving the best childcare Macquarie Park. Our caregivers at Kids Planet Academy are always open to sharing with you interesting ways to serve the foods that will promote your child’s health, growth and development.