Healthy Eating Plans

Fara 19 October 2009 Food Pyramid, General Health, Healthy Eating 1,599 views No Comment/Trackback Print This Post  Email This Post

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Food Pyramid Diagrams for Kids – Learn the right foods to eat

Defining the optimal nutrition for your kids may be a little more complex than the general description of typical food pyramid because depending on the age, condition and activity level of your child, the amounts of different nutrients and each type of food that should be eaten daily vary from one kid to another. Learning and knowing the elements of food pyramid diagrams for kids is essential because it can help you and your children to practice a healthy living, get proper nutrition and also fight obesity, which is a rising problem even among children.

Today, not only adults are faced with dangerous health problems. When we talk about health diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure, it was always meant for elder people but currently, that is not the pattern. The pattern was broken some time ago when many children were diagnosed with these diseases – mostly due to unhealthy eating habits since they are small that lead to obesity, the core of all health problems. Now you realize that children’s health have to be protected since the early age, foretelling a greater responsibility for parents to bear in ensuring their children are eating a balanced diet according to the optimal food pyramid diagram for kids.

The optimal food pyramid diagram for kids

The food pyramid for children does not differ greatly with the food pyramid promoted by the U.S government, which has been around for decades. But there are also obvious alterations to it since there is a need for a much more balanced approach to eating especially for kids.

The biggest portion of the food pyramid diagram

The biggest portion of the food pyramid diagram for kids is the grain group which represents carbohydrate and much of fiber. Children who around the age of 3 to 8 are advised to consume at least 4 ounces of grains a day, and older children above the age of 8 should consume more, about 6 ounces a day. If they are active in sports, they should consume more than 6 ounces, but remember to limit it to healthy grains that are almost free from fat and sugar such as plain cereals, wholemeal bagel, pasta, and brown rice. It is better to keep two third of it to wholemeal products.

The second level of the food pyramid diagram

The second level of the food pyramid diagram for kids is vegetable and fruits. The normal food pyramid don’t usually separate this two elements plainly but it is divided clearly for the kids food pyramid diagram because children should have sources from both vegetables and fruits, not either one. 1 ½ cups for children between 3 to 8 and 2 ½ for children above 8. These amounts are enough to supply your child with the necessary minerals and vitamins. Some children may have some problem to be fed with vegetables, therefore it is the responsibility for parents to be creative in influencing your child to eat vegetables especially. While for fruits, try to keep it to fresh products rather than frozen or canned. Anyway, fruits should be eaten with moderation, especially if you’re not going for fresh products due to its high sugar content. The main point should be avoiding your child from consuming too much sugar.

The third level of the food pyramid diagram

The third level of the food pyramid diagram for kids, and also the second smallest portion are divided into two: fat/dairy products and meat/poultry. These sources provide your kid with protein and fat and like the previous group should be eaten in balance. Both protein and fat are important for growing children and should be consume plentiful yet as necessary. A child below 13 needs about 2 to 3 cups of any of these choices: milk, cheese, yogurt and other dairy products (when it comes to getting enough fat for bodily functions. As for protein, only 3 to 4 ounces a day for children aged 3 to 8 years old and 5 ounces for children aged 9 to 13 years old. What you should watch out for as a parent is the choice of fat and protein foods. Opt for foods and products that are high in unsaturated fat with moderate amount of saturated fat, and when it comes to protein base food, go for those low in fat like lean meat and chicken, eggs, cooked beans and peanut butter.

The top part of the food pyramid diagram

The top part of the food pyramid diagram for kids, and also the smallest part of all is actually conclusive of the whole food pyramid that state simply to reduce the amount of oil, sugar and fats in the food consumed by children. I is best to avoid all kinds of junk foods and fast foods which is practically have become a habit for children to consume these unhealthy foods without any guilt since they are not being trained at a younger age – thus, making it a solely the responsibility of parents to control their children’s eating habits and plans.

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Some interesting food pyramid diagrams for kids

Food pyramid for Asian Kid

Food pyramid for Latin Kid

Food pyramid for Mediterranean Kid

Food pyramid for Vegetarian Kid

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