A new born baby would need to be fed everyone to three hours around the clock but as the child gets towards a year the stomach widens and he or she does not need to be fed at night. However, a one Year old child needs to eat about six times in a day, with milk or breastfeeding session as the last meal. Since Most of them are termed preschool kids, research has shown that these pre-school kids require 3 main meals and two in between snacks in a day.
By the time a child goes to school, he or she can graduate to three main meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) and one snack in the afternoon. However, you need to keep a tab on the timings of all the meals. For instance, if you feed your child with breakfast at 7 am and lunch at 12.30 pm, he or she would require a snack in between. More so, it’s important to remember that it’s not how frequently your child eats but what they ingest. Their meals should meet the nutritional requirement and help them in their growth and development. The healthy Snacks I mentioned could range from a glass of milk with a sandwich; a bowl of vegetable soup; cereal with some fresh fruits and milk, fresh fruit smoothies are some of the options you can try out.
DECIDING HOW OFTEN IS SOLELY YOUR BUSINESS: You are in the right position to make your best choice, you need to feed your kid based on your child development and growth, the younger the more frequent, the older the appetite changes just pay attention to your child’s hunger every day because only he or she should choose whether to eat or not.
REMEMBER THE 3 MAIN MEALS
BREAKFAST: This is so important it is not advisable for adults to skip breakfast let alone kids This is one of the wholesome meal in the morning can help you and your child prepare for the day. Children are very active through the day, so they require the right amount of fuel to keep them going. To help your child’s growth and development, it is pertinent to give him wholesome food like whole grain cereals, toast, eggs, fruits and vegetables along with low-fat milk.
LUNCH : Your child needs a follow up meal that’s were lunch comes in.Just as your car engine won’t run if there’s no fuel, your child’s body will not be able to function if you don’t fuel it right. Avoid feeding your child with highly processed foods like salami and ham or salty and sugary food during lunch hour. You can instead feed your child with cooked vegetables, rice, pita bread with low-fat cheese, sandwiches with lean meat, vegetables, hummus and salad. Don’t forget to hydrate your child throughout the day.
IN BETWEEN MEALS: Depending on your child’s activity, his or her appetite may vary. Let them choose how much they want to eat from awide range of healthy foods that you lay out in front of them. Give them nutrition-rich foods rather than empty-calorie foods that are high in energy. Healthy snacks my include grapes and berries
DINNER: Dinner can include chicken or vegetable soup; whole wheat pasta; mashed potatoes, low-fat spinach lasagna; rice, lentil and vegetables or spaghetti with vegetables.
BY SOPHIE AIGBOMAIN
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