What is healthy eating for children?

Food is one of the foundations for a healthy life, so it is essential that the little ones in the house eat well. In addition, staying active and exercising, as well as respecting the hours of sleep, are also fundamental factors for their healthy development.

It is important that the diet be complete and balanced, based on healthy foods rich in nutrients and avoiding less healthy options with a high content of sugars, salt, saturated fats...

In addition, it is important to create healthy habits from a young age. Eating habits acquired as a child have a major influence on future eating habits as an adult.

What does healthy infant feeding consist of?

A healthy children's diet is a complete and balanced diet that provides children with all the nutrients necessary for their correct development and growth, that is to say, that covers all the nutritional needs of this stage of childhood (taking into account the child's age and the amount of physical activity he/she carries out).

The diet of children, like that of adults, should be varied to ensure that it includes all the main groups of nutrients: carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals. However, in order to have a balanced diet, the amount of each of them that is ingested is also important.

What should children's nutrition be like?

On the other hand, a healthy diet for children reduces the risk of cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, diabetes, overweight and obesity.

Healthy foods for children

Foods that are healthy for children are the same foods that are healthy for adults. These foods should be rich in nutrients, but low in added sugars, saturated fats, refined flours, salt... In general, we can mention the following healthy foods:

• Fruits, vegetables and greens: it will be ideal to include 3 pieces of fruit daily, as well as vegetables at lunch and dinner each day. They provide a large amount of vitamins, among other nutrients.
• Proteins: can be obtained from legumes, eggs, dairy products, fish and meat (poultry and lean). Avoid large fish (swordfish, dogfish, pike...) due to their mercury content.
• Farinaceous: bread, rice, pasta... (in its integral version, better than with refined flours) and potato.
• Healthy fats: are those that come from foods such as avocado, nuts (without added salt and crushed or as spreads, never whole or in pieces until they are older because of the risk of choking), olive oil, or those present in fish (such as omega-3 fatty acids).

Foods to include in a healthy children's diet

It is essential that these healthy foods are present and offered in a varied manner in children's diets to ensure that all the necessary nutrients are provided. In addition, it is important to opt for fresh or minimally processed foods, avoiding precooked and ultra-processed foods.

Unhealthy foods

There are certain foods that, although they may be pleasant to children because of their taste, are best avoided because they are unhealthy. Among these foods are:

• Sweets (such as candies, sweets, chocolate...) and pastries. Their consumption should only be occasional, as they are loaded with sugars.
• Snacks and fried foods, with high fat and salt content.
• Ultra-processed foods and fast food.
• Yogurts or sweetened milk preparations.
• Juices. Even if they are natural, it is always better to avoid them and eat the whole piece of fresh fruit in bites. Therefore, avoid bottled juices to a greater extent.

Foods to avoid in children

In addition, soft drinks, sweetened or sweetened beverages, energy drinks and, of course, alcoholic beverages should be avoided. The healthiest thing is water.

How to distribute children's meals?

A good way to distribute meals throughout the day is to have 5 meals. In this case, there will be 3 main meals and 2 other meals that can be used to supplement the main meals.

The main meals will be breakfast, lunch and dinner; while the complementary meals will be mid-morning (lunch) and afternoon (afternoon snack).

The meal, on the other hand, is usually the main intake within the day and should be complete (with all types of nutrients, in their proper proportion). The snack will also complement the main meals and the dinner will be as complete as the lunch, even if it is a lighter preparation and eaten in smaller quantities.

Amount of nutrients in a healthy diet

In order to know how much of the main nutrients is adequate in a main meal, so that the diet of both children and adults is balanced, it is important to keep in mind the harvard plate.

According to this graphic representation, half of the total amount to be eaten should be made up of vegetables. The other half is divided into two equal parts, one for proteins and the other for farinaceous foods (bread, rice, pasta, potatoes, etc.). In addition, it should be cooked or dressed with olive oil and food should be accompanied with water for drinking.

The Harvard plate

Dessert can be a fruit if not enough vegetables have been eaten, or, for example, a dairy product if not enough protein has been ingested in the meal.

In this way, the right proportions of the different nutrients are respected. The total amount (respecting these proportions) will depend on the child's age and appetite, as the child should not be forced to eat.

How to get children to eat well?

Some of the main recommendations to try to get children to eat in a healthy way and acquire good eating habits would be:

• Be an example for them. If the parents have a healthy diet, the child is more likely to acquire these healthy eating habits.
• Enjoy eating together as a family. Meals should be a relaxed, unhurried, pleasant time, without pressuring the child or forcing him, for example, to eat everything on his plate. Food is also not a means of negotiation and should not be used as a punishment or a reward.
• Establish mealtime routines.
• Avoid screens (television, tablets, cell phones...) during meals.
• Involve children in their nutrition. They can help plan meals, help with grocery shopping, be kitchen helpers.... All of this can motivate them to then eat the healthy meals in which they have been involved in some way.
• Vary the colors of fruits and vegetables. In addition to varying their nutrients, the dishes will be more fun and appetizing for children. You can also play with the way the food is presented on the plate.
• Always have healthy options on hand, such as fruit, to avoid consuming other ultra-processed and less healthy options. Fruit is always a good choice at lunch, snack and as a dessert.

Recommendations for healthy eating for children

In addition, it is also important to encourage children to be active and to respect proper sleeping hours.

FAQs from users

What to offer children for breakfast?

At breakfast, a toast of whole wheat bread could be offered as a source of carbohydrates, for example, with natural tomato. Other options such as industrial pastries, although quicker and more accessible, are high in sugars and unhealthy fats.

To add healthy fats, you can put olive oil on toast or spread a little avocado.

You can also have a dairy product, such as milk (whole or semi-skimmed), yogurt (unsweetened or unsweetened) or, for example, add a little cheese on toast.

Juice, even if it is natural, should be avoided. It is always better to offer the piece of fresh fruit and let them take it in bites. It will even be more attractive if pieces of fruit of different colors are mixed.

What they did not have for breakfast, will be a good idea for lunch.

How to get children to eat more vegetables?

The first thing to get children to eat more vegetables is to set a good example. If parents eat vegetables, children are more likely to accept them.

A very useful tip is to mix vegetables of different colors, to make the dish more attractive. You can also present the dishes in an original and fun way, to make them more appetizing.

Another idea is to play with different ways of cooking the vegetables, to obtain different textures and thus check if they are somehow better accepted.

In any case, it is important to remember that it may be necessary, in many cases, to offer a food to the child several times before he/she decides to try it, as it should not be forced.

Suggested for you

If your baby is still young and you are going to start complementary feeding, you may find it useful to read this article on baby-led weaning: What is baby-led weaning (BLW)? When and how to start?