Snacking Nutrition Tips for Kids

Teaching proper nutrition to your children is not always an easy task especially if you are giving your child snacks. Having soda, sugary sweets, and potato chips are some of the worst snacks for kids. Looking for ways to find nutritious snacks for your child is not as difficult as it seems.

Snacks can be a good part of your child’s diet if they are the right kinds of snacks. Fresh fruit can be used instead of cookies and potato chips. Snacks that are high in fiber and Vitamin C, low in fat, and have no added sugar are one of the best ways to improve your child’s diet. You can improve your child’s diet by incorporating the following snacks:

•apples, bananas, grapes, oranges, strawberries, watermelon, etc.
•dried fruits, including raisins and prunes
•fruit cups or canned fruit in water, 100% fruit juice or light syrup
•raw vegetables, including carrots, celery, or broccoli, that can be served with a low-fat dip or dressing
•dairy products, such as low-fat cheese, yogurt, and pudding, or a homemade fruit smoothie
•whole grain snacks, which can include some breakfast cereals, crackers, cereal bars, baked chips, and popcorn (without added butter), or pretzels
•popsicles made with 100% fruit juice
•nuts and trail mix
•water and milk

One of the best way’s to improve your child’s diet is to cut out unhealthy snack habits like cookies, chips, candy, doughnuts, fruit drinks, and soda. Children should not need a bedtime snack, but usually need a late morning and early afternoon snack. Here are some tips having healthier food that will improve your child’s diet:

•Have a regular snack time, usually late morning and early afternoon for toddlers and preschoolers and just after-school for older kids.
•having nutritious snacks handy and ready for your kids to eat
•limiting snacks to just 100 to 150 calorie servings so that they don’t turn into an extra meal
•not allowing snacks to be too close to lunch or dinner

Monitor the serving size of your child’s snacks. For example, if your child’s after-school snack consists of Oreo cookies, keep in mind that it takes just three Oreos to 160 calories and a lot of extra fat and sugar in his diet. And if he eats six or nine Oreo cookies, that quickly adds up to an extra meal and not a very healthy meal, either.

Encourage healthier snack food for your child by purchasing healthier foods such as milk, fruits, whole-grain bread, vegetables, and avoid fast food, caffeine, juice and soda. Always have a variety of food available and balance the foods your child eats with proper physical activity. Your child’s bones are developing and continually growing at this young age and need enough calcium to stay strong into adulthood.

Teaching your child about nutrition and exercise is one of the best ways to help them avoid childhood obesity. What your child learns in their youth will impact their nutritional decisions throughout adulthood. Be safe about the foods you are buying and feeding your children, don’t always believe what the “selling word” is saying, read all the facts on the label before consuming it. If you are not sure how the daily caloric intake for your child works, be sure to look at the government’s website for nutrition. The daily food guide pyramid is a wonderful resource to know how many types of snacks your child should be consuming and what types of snacks your child should be eating. In the end, encourage proper snacking behavior for your child by eating proper snacks yourself.