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Kids love to snack, and the good news is that snacking is
important to a child's well being.
Children are growing and developing rapidly. Active children have
an increased need for energy as well as other essential nutrients, but
they have small stomachs. They need to eat a lot, but have difficulty
eating a lot at one time.
If children get too hungry, they may become cranky or find it
difficult to concentrate on the task at hand. Healthy snacks help to
bridge the gap between meals. Healthy snacks also can round out the
diet, helping to ensure that children are getting all of the nutrients
they need to fuel their growth and development. Learning to eat and enjoy
healthy snacks will encourage your children to develop healthy eating
habits, both for now and for the future.
It may seem complicated and time-consuming to provide healthy
snacks for children. You also could be concerned that the children
won't like or eat the healthy snacks you provide.
You can save time and promote enthusiasm for eating healthy
snacks by including the children in planning and shopping for foods
that will become their snacks. Many snacks are simple and the children can
even help prepare them!
What makes a good snack? A good snack is nutrient dense. This
means that each bite contributes to the child's intake of healthy
foods. Six nutrients are needed to maintain a growing and healthy body:
carbohydrates, protein, fat, minerals, vitamins and water.
To plan ahead for quick and easy snacks, keep foods on hand
from each of the five food groups found on the Food Guide Pyramid.
Breads, cereals and grains provide carbohydrates, B vitamins and fiber.
Foods in this group fuel growth and provide children with energy to run
and play.
Both the fruit and vegetable groups provide vitamins such as A
and C, carbohydrates and fiber. Do your children meet the goal of five
servings of fruits and vegetables each day? Snack time is a great time
to slip in a fruit or vegetable serving.
Milk and dairy foods provide calcium, riboflavin, protein, and
vitamins A and D.
Meats, fish, poultry, nuts and dried cooked beans provide protein.
Meats, fish and poultry also provide iron.
Mix and match the nutrients at snack time by teaching your
children to choose snacks that feature foods from at least two
different levels of the food pyramid. And, strive for a variety in nutrients.
For example, a snack of carrot and celery sticks and yogurt contains more
nutritional variety than a snack of apple juice and celery sticks.
To help your children choose healthy snacks, make charts with
lists of foods within each food group category. Use pictures or words,
depending on the ages of your children. Teach the children to select
foods from two different charts when choosing their snack.
When shopping, pick up a variety of healthy and quick-to-fix
foods from each group. Then let the children help themselves from the
healthy choices that are available for them. Most important, relax and
enjoy snack time. Children eat best when surroundings are calm and
pleasant.
Here are some quick and easy snack ideas for you to try. Enjoy!
- English muffin pizzas with pineapple or tomato slice, mushrooms, etc.
- Baked potatoes with chili beans or broccoli and cheese.
- Waffles topped with fresh fruit. Choose fruits that are in season.
- Tortillas and beans.
- Yogurt and fruit topped with cereal (yogurt sundaes).
- Raw vegetables cut into slices or sticks with a yogurt dip. (Mix your favorite dry salad dressing mix into plain yogurt to make a great tasting low-fat dip!)
- Trail mix made with several types of cereal, dried fruit and nuts or sunflower seeds.
- Yogurt grahams. (Spread fruit-flavored yogurt on a graham cracker square, top with a second square. Wrap in plastic wrap and freeze.)
For more information about healthy snacking for kids, contact Pam
Deans, Colorado State University Extension Child Care Food
Program specialist in Arapahoe County, Colorado at (303) 730-1920 or
e-mail: arapahoe@coop.ext.colostate.edu
Resources:
Snazzy Snacks, A Healthy Snacking Guide for Preschool
Children, Child and Adult Care Food Program, Colorado Department of
Public Health and Environment, 8/95.
ACE Cooks for Kids!, Bulletin 558A, Colorado State University
Extension, 1993.
Meals Without Squeals, Child Care Feeding Guide and Cookbook,
Christine Berman, M.P.H., R.D. and Jacki Fromer, Bull Publishing
Company, 1991.
For more information, contact your local
Colorado State University Extension office.
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