Parents, Stop Giving Your Children These Kinds Of Food, They Do More Harm Than Good To Them

This piece offers some nutritional information aimed at correcting bad nutritional habits towards children.

Nutrition is a very important part of human life. It is particularly more so in growing children. Good nutrition contributes immensely to the proper development of the body and mind of the growing child. Unfortunately, most parents today have adopted nutritional trends that are harmful to the overall health of their children. These include foods like sweetened beverages, candies, biscuits, et cetera. We shall examine some major disadvantages of these kinds of foods in children and proffer a better nutritional alternative that is able to aid the development of the growing child.

Sweetened beverages: According to the American Heart Association(AHA), children aged between 2 to 18 years should not consume more than six teaspoons (25 grams) of added sugar daily. The research further established that a twenty(20) ounce bottle (the size of the average beverage bottle in the market) of the sweetened beverage contains more than 16 teaspoons of added sugar (that is over 66 grams, more than twice the normal daily recommendation). Yet it is commonplace to see some children consuming up to two such bottles of sweetened beverages on a daily basis. The trend these days is to see parents stuffing their children's lunch boxes with all kinds of junk foods as snacks in addition to regular meals. As with most things these days in Nigerian society, these trends are embraced by most parents more out of the need to project a certain social image. The parents of any child without this bunch of good-for-nothing goodies will be seen as financially poor and of inferior social standing. But if they were informed about the many health hazards that these junk foods pose to their children and wards, they would avoid them totally.

Biscuits: It is estimated that the regular sugar content in biscuits is 30g/100g. That is to say, every 100 grams quantity of biscuits contains about 30 grams of added sugar. Again we can see that this figure also exceeds the recommended daily average for children. Then take into consideration the fact that most children these days consume several hundred(100) grams of biscuits daily. The quantity of added sugar going into their system daily is alarming.

Candies: candies, popularly called 'chewing gum' in local parlance, is another example of foods with a high level of added sugar. Unfortunately, it also forms a regular part of the diet of most children today. A lot of parents see candies as the best way to comfort their whining children, unaware of the danger involved. 

Now, having established some common foods in children's diets with an abnormally high level of sugar, it may serve to further educate us to highlight some of the harmful effects of consuming too much sugar as found in these kinds of foods. 

Excess sugar in the body has been linked to a variety of health issues in children. These include obesity, fatty liver diseases, diabetes, heart diseases, asthma, acne, gout, et cetera. In addition, it has also been shown to inhibit learning abilities in children and causes hyperactivity and poor memory. Against this backdrop, it is quite counterproductive to give children sugar-containing foods when going to school. Rather, giving them fruits such as bananas, oranges, dates, et cetera, with high potassium content, will serve more useful purposes as snacks. Potassium has been proven to assist immensely in enhancing nervous activity, lower blood pressure, and promoting a feeling of well-being. Foods rich in potassium are, therefore, the go-to thing for kids in learning.

Now that you are informed, please put a little bunch of bananas or oranges in your children's lunch boxes rather than 'bobo'( a popular sweetened beverage for kids) and biscuits or candies.