Essential nutrition for children for all ages and stages

 

How and what your children eat can vary depending on which life stage they are in. Eating well is critical for their health and wellbeing and during the childhood years eating preferences and habits are formed that often last a lifetime.

Encouraging good nutrition during weaning, fussy phases and food rejection can be challenging for parents, so it’s important to be aware of the key nutrients to support childhood health and development. Key to this is incorporating a balanced diet and considering children’s supplements made with clean formulations, to fill nutritional gaps. Getting adequate sleep is also essential part of children’s health and wellbeing because of increased energy levels.

Whether you’re new to parenting or need extra tips, read our handy guide.

Babies

New parents can face challenges with baby feeding, choosing whether to breastfeed or formula feed is just one.  During early infancy, vitamin D and beneficial bacteria have been highlighted as important nutrients for babies in their first year of development.

Government health experts recommend 400iu or 10 micrograms of vitamin D for everyone irrelevant of age except for formula fed babies that consume more than 500ml of formula.

When it comes to a baby’s microbiome, research has shown that beneficial bacterial, can play a positive role in their early life. It is considered that a natural birth helps to establish the baby's initial gut microbiome as it exposed to natural bacteria from the mothers vagina. Further exposure occurs from the birthing staff’s skin, breast milk and the home environment.  Infant eczema or food allergies are suggested to be related to a lack of microbial diversity. A study which introduced Lactobacillus Rhamnosus GG strain to infants with food allergies showed an increase in beneficial short chain fatty acid butyrate in their microbiome and an improvement in food tolerance.  It is amazing what bacteria can do.

Fortunately, nutrients that are limited such as vitamin D and beneficial bacteria can be easily solved with food supplements. 

 

Toddlers

Although it may be concerning for parents when a child refuses to eat, it is a normal developmental phase, and part and parcel of food exploration where children explore new tastes and textures.

It can take up to 20 times of presenting food before accepted by a child or truly rejected as being disliked so persevere when introducing new foods. 

The challenge lies in getting a child to eat a variety of nutrient rich foods.  Parents in this situation may find food supplements for toddlers useful.  A quality multivitamin formulated for children will provide toddler-specific amounts of all the nutrients necessary for health and if necessary additional vitamin C, vitamin D and omega-3 essential fatty acid rich nutritional oils can be added during the especially fussy phases. Omega 3 fatty acids are critical for brain health, particularly during the first 12 years of life, but also beyond into adulthood. Omega 3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) are a vital part of neurotransmission, or how brain cells transmit and receive signals, processes being thought. Encouraging oily fish or supplementing with EPA and DHA may help improve brain function, mood and behaviour. 

 

Pre-school

Pre-school increases the exposure to other children and tests natural the body’s immunity.  Although, the immune system benefits from exposure to a variety of illnesses, bacteria and virus, a sign of immune strength is a short lived and mild illness. 

Beneficial bacteria that is in the gastrointestinal tract ferments fibre from fruit, vegetables and pulses to produce immune supporting substances, that along with vitamin C, zinc, selenium and vitamin D help to prepare the immune system for childhood infections and illnesses.

 

Primary school/5 to 11

Child development in the primary school years involves growth, learning and knowledge acquisition, besides hobbies and interests.  Schooling starts as educational play and becomes more academic as the child progresses through the years.  Subsequently, a range of nutrients are to be considered to support brain health and learning.

• Choline, B1, B2, B6, B12 and folate, besides vitamin C, vitamin D, and carotenoids support brain health.
• Calcium, vitamin D, vitamin K and magnesium are essential for bone growth.
• Iodine, vitamin C, vitamin D, zinc, selenium and beneficial bacteria support immunity.

 

Teenage years

During the teenage years, nutrition requirements increase because of extra demands placed on the body. Growth and muscle development occurs, often in growth spurts with growing pains.  While academic studies conclude with exams, brain support becomes vital.  This can also be a stressful time, friendship groups may evolve, and pressure felt from upcoming examinations and career choices, while sporting interests and hobbies may become serious.  All while experiencing puberty, which is characterised by the increased production of sex hormones and changes in the brain to account for the influx of hormones. Here are the key nutrients to consider

• Bone health is supported by calcium, magnesium, vitamin D and vitamin K.
• Muscles require protein to grow.
• B vitamins, especially Choline, B1, B2, B6, B12 and folate, besides vitamin C, vitamin D, and Carotenoids support brain health.
• Energy is supported by B vitamins and magnesium, plus carbohydrate rich foods.
• Stress can be supported with B vitamins, vitamin C, magnesium and theanine.
• Hormones can be supported with B vitamins, magnesium and healthy fats.

Where to find nutrients for your children

Nutrient	Food	Key supplements
Vitamin B1	Fish, beans, peas, lentils, yogurt	Multivitamin
Vitamin B2	Dairy, yogurt, eggs, salmon, chicken	Multivitamin
Vitamin B6	Poultry, fish, chickpeas	Multivitamin
Vitamin B12	Eggs, fish, poultry, meat, fortified nutritional yeast	Multivitamin
Folate	Green leafy vegetables, dairy	Multivitamin
Choline	Eggs, beans	Multivitamin
Vitamin K	Green leafy vegetables, dairy	Multivitamin
Calcium	Yogurt, Milk, Sesame seeds, green leafy vegetables	Calcium supplement
Zinc	Fish, shellfish, green leafy vegetables, pumpkin seeds	Multivitamin
Selenium	Brazil nuts, wholegrains	Multivitamin
Magnesium	Green leafy vegetables, sprouts	Magnesium supplement
Iodine	Fish, Shellfish, seaweed	Multivitamin
Iron	Offal, dark green leafy vegetables	Multivitamin
Carotenoids	Peaches, squash, nectarines, apricots, sweet potato, carrots	Multivitamin
Beneficial bacteria	Yogurt, Kimchi, Kefir, Kombucha, Sauerkraut	Beneficial bacteria/probiotic supplement
Theanine	Green tea	Theanine supplement
Protein	Meat, dairy, poultry, fish, beans, peas, quinoa, nuts
Carbohydrates	Potatoes, Sweet potatoes, rice, wholegrains, root vegetables
Healthy fats	Oily fish, algae (Spirulina, Chlorella), nuts and seeds	Omega oils

 

Conclusion

Babies, children and teenagers have different nutritional needs. An awareness of the range of vitamins, minerals and trace elements will help your offspring grow healthy and build the foundations to long-term wellness.  Incorporate a balanced, nutrient rich foods into your children’s diet, food supplements can be a helpful way to bridge any nutritional gaps.

For more information about supporting your child’s nutritional needs, visit your local independent health store: findahealthstore.com

 

Author: Corin Sadler, Medical Herbalist and Nutrition Manager at Viridian.

 

References

Berni Canani R, Sangwan N, Stefka AT, Nocerino R, Paparo L, Aitoro R, Calignano A, Khan AA, Gilbert JA, Nagler CR. Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG-supplemented formula expands butyrate-producing bacterial strains in food allergic infants. ISME J. 2016 Mar;10(3):742-50.

Hueston CM, Cryan JF, Nolan YM. Stress and adolescent hippocampal neurogenesis: diet and exercise as cognitive modulators. Transl Psychiatry. 2017 Apr 4;7(4):e1081.

Kumbhare SV, Patangia DVV, Patil RH, Shouche YS, Patil NP. Factors influencing the gut microbiome in children: from infancy to childhood. J Biosci. 2019 Jun;44(2):49.

 

The information contained in this article is not intended to treat, diagnose or replace the advice of a health practitioner. Please consult a qualified health practitioner if you have a pre-existing health condition or are currently taking medication. Food supplements should not be used as a substitute for a varied and balanced diet.