Getting the right amount of nutrients in the early years of life is really important for good bone health. Bones are made up of calcium and other minerals. For good bone health, kids need these nutrients to be added in their daily diet. Jump to recipe
1. Calcium:
The calcium requirement for kids increases with their age. Including calcium rich foods in their diet every day helps build strong and healthy bones.
These are some of the calcium rich foods that you can include in you child’s diet.
For kids who are allergic to dairy, you can use these plant food alternatives instead.
2. Vitamin D
Vitamin D is essential for strong bones, as it helps in calcium retention. Bone is a dynamic structure and the minerals deposited on it undergo constant turnover depending on the nutrients available in your body. Vitamin D helps in absorption of calcium and phosphorus and it plays an important role in athletic performance as well.
3. Exercise:
Weight bearing exercises help in better retention of calcium in the bones. Some of them are:
Swimming
Walking
Climbing stairs
Jogging
Make sure that your kids play at least for hour everyday.
Children love variety in their diet and at times it can be challenging for parents to keep up with their demands. That’s where meal prep comes in handy. I have been developing a few recipes for kids, which are nutritious, tasty and convenient to make and store.
This really stems out of my concern as a parent, to reduce the consumption of processed snacks and include a variety of healthy home-made foods.
I am not on the bandwagon of shunning processed foods all together, because come to think of it, everything that we eat is processed. The difference is the extent of processing that a food undergoes.
Ultra-processed foods are the ones which you should be wary of. The original ingredient is modified and there are plenty of flavors and preservatives (additives) added to them, to make the food more tasty and increase the shelf-life. Now, these additives are known to affect children’s health in many ways.
Not just that, processed foods also add a lot of sugar to your kid's diet, causing more harm than good. Read to know how added sugar can affect your child's health.
If you are a busy parent, with very little time for preparing meals and snacks in advance, these recipes will come in handy. Ragi
Ragi (Finger millet), is a grain, that is rich in calcium (344 mg/100g). It is gluten free and minimally processed (unpolished).
Health benefits:
1. Helps in developing strong bones for kids.
2. Good source of iron. Sprouted ragi contains Vitamin C, which aids in better absorption of iron.
3. Manages blood glucose levels in adults.
4. Helps in weight loss.
Recipe:
Time: 20 minutes Makes: 20 laddus
Ingredients:
1. Ragi flour (grains roasted and powdered)- 1cup
2. Nuts crushed- 1/3 cup
3. Dates paste
4. Honey- 2 tsp
5. Ghee- 4 tsp
Instructions:
Roast the Ragi flour and crushed nuts in ghee and keep it separately.
Warm the honey, add it to the flour with the dates paste.
Blend the ingredients together and make them into small balls, while the ingredients are still warm.
TIP:
Add a little more ghee if you can’t hold them into a shape.
If not, you could also eat it like a crumble.
Store it an airtight container for 7-10 days.
Nutrients (20 laddus)
Rich in calcium
Rich in selenium- antioxidant
Good source of fiber
Protein-rich: 20 g
Excellent source of dietary fibre - 17.3g. Good source of iron: 6.9 mg
Rich in amino acids- phenylalanine and tryptophan.
Phenylalanine is an essential amino acid which is being researched for its benefits in certain skin conditions, depression and ADHD. However, anyone having the genetic condition phenylketonuria (PKU), should not eat foods containing phenylalanine. Tryptophan is important for good sleep as it helps in synthesizing melatonin.
Building strong bones in the formative years of life is crucial and feeding kids foods rich in these nutrients would help them.
If you love this recipe and are looking for transitioning to a vegan/vegetarian diet, why not enroll for our online mini-course on plant-based diets.
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