Picky Eater Kid Nutritional Guidelines

Although many children are picky eaters at some stage in their lives, the experts say not to worry. Unless you are feeding him or her chips and cookies three times each day, these children will most likely meet their weekly nutritional quotas.

However, if you are concerned about their developmental progress, make an appointment with their pediatrician for confirmation. In the meantime, you may want to include a multivitamin in your child's daily diet to balance his intake of nutrients.

Instead of looking at what types of food your child is eating meal-by-meal or even day-by-day, round out the picture by looking at your child's diet week-by-week.

Most children do not eat a balanced diet every day, but over the course of a week or so, their diet will usually fall within healthy eating guidelines. This perspective can help provide you with the total nutrient intake and you will probably feel much better after discovering that they really are eating more nutritional foods overall.

Here are some nutritional guidelines that can help you when looking at your child's dietary needs:

• Children need between 24-28 grams of protein a day, which can be found in just two servings of cheese, beef, chicken, fish, eggs, yogurt, dried beans, milk, or peanut butter

• Approximately 800 mg of calcium (3-4 servings) are needed daily, which can be found in macaroni and cheese, yogurt, orange juice, or a glass of milk

• Children need at least 5 mcg of Vitamin D, which is available in a glass of milk or by playing outside in the sunshine for a few minutes every day

• The requisite 5 mg of iron can be found in lean meats, poultry, fish, legumes, or whole grains

• Vitamin A (500 mcg) can be readily found in vegetables, including carrots and sweet potatoes

• Likewise, Vitamin C (45 mg) can found in fruits such as blueberries, strawberries, oranges, and cantaloupes

Of course, whenever in doubt, the Food Guide Pyramid for Young Children ([http://www.usda.gov/cnpp/KidsPyra/]) remains the standard for nutritional eating for children between the ages of 2 and 6. This includes Bread, Cereal, Rice, and Pasta (6 servings a day); Vegetables (3 servings a day); Fruits (2 servings a day); Milk, Yogurt, and Cheese (2 servings a day); Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs, and Nuts (2 servings a day); Fats, Oils, and Sweets (use sparingly).

Snack Time

Snacks will typically not ruin your child's appetite an hour or so before dinner because he or she has a small stomach. Because your child may not receive enough nutrients during dinner, snacks should be viewed as an important time to meet those needs, especially if they are offered at a regularly scheduled “snack time.”

However, beware of snacks that provide little more than calories such as chips, candy, and sodas. Elizabeth Ward, MS, RD, a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association, says, “If you are going to offer snacks, make sure they are supplementing meals, not sabotaging them.”

Here some healthy snack food suggestions:

• Graham Crackers

• Popcorn

• Pretzels

• Milk

• Cheese

• Yogurt

• Hard Cooked Eggs

• Fruit

• Raw Vegetables

• Crackers, Rice Cakes, Celery with Peanut Butter

• Applesauce

• Dried or Canned Fruit

• Low-fat Pudding

• Animal Crackers

• Home-made trail mix made from dried fruit, nuts and dry cereal

• Bread Sticks

• Baked Chips and Salsa

• Dry Cereal

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Special Vitamin Needs For Children - Do Kids Really Have Different Nutritional Needs Than Adults?

Encouraging both children and adults to eat a healthy and well balanced diet has always been advised by nutritionists the world over. In fact teaching children to make the right food choices is in their best interest as they will retain these good habits even as they grow older. However, most children today don't know how to make the right food choices simply because their parents aren't aware of what the 'right' food choices are.

The essential vitamins and minerals required for a child's growth are all found in healthy foods like fruits,vegetables,lean meat and dairy products. However most often children pass up such healthy options for the more unhealthy junk food that is so readily available these days just because it tastes better.

For a child, consuming ice cream,candy,pizza,fizzy drinks and drive through fast food sounds much more appealing than the drab health foods they should be eating.

In the food pyramid junk fatty foods form just a tiny percentage and should be consumed only in small quantities. Yet we find many children eating such unhealthy foods at every meal or in between as snacks.

The main reason why children today suffer from obesity and weight problems is because they are consuming unhealthy and processed foods which hardly supply the daily recommended doses of vitamins and minerals . As a result they end up with vitamin deficiencies because the body is able to process only a few on its own and the rest of the nutrients have to be supplied through healthy nutritious food.

During the growing phase , a child needs a lot of Vitamin D. It is essential to the development of healthy teeth and bones. However because of unhealthy food habits diseases such as Rickets which was once thought to be under control have resurfaced. Its symptoms include a thin brittle skull and bones that are soft and deformed. If a child suffers from Rickets their teeth may not grow properly and other bones in the body such as the joints and ribs may experience abnormal growth. Thus, the entire skeletal system is adversely effected.

Many parents are unaware that a problem might exist because deficiencies in other vitamins do not produce such obvious effects. Vitamins provide the backbone for proper bodily functions including vision,growth hormones, production of red blood corpuscles and aid in the proper development of the immune, circulatory and digestive systems as well.

It is high time we paid attention to the kind of food our kids eat. Try and introduce more vitamin enriched foods into their diet. Also try and encourage your child to take a vitamin supplement that will be beneficial to them. These supplements are readily available to chew or swallow and not only do they taste good they also help in their growth and development.

Tired of reading outdated fitness and health articles on the web? Well, wait no longer, check out http://www.1-stop-fitness.com for up-to-date information on vitamin supplements and children and benefits of vitamin d.

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