Almost all parents have a nightmare when it comes to feeding their children, especially healthy foods and keeping them away from unhealthy and high-calorie foods and snacks like puffs or fast foods. But the point is that almost all children love to eat sweet and delicious desserts, and you, as their parents, can easily eliminate the nightmare of eating unhealthy foods by knowing a few tips.
As you know, eating unhealthy and high-calorie desserts like sweet donuts has a very bad effect on the physical health of the body, especially the teeth of children, and excessive consumption of these desserts and snacks can lead to problems such as obesity, overweight and diabetes in children.
If we tell you that you can add healthy and very tasty alternatives to these desserts to your children’s meals, it is almost like hearing the news of victory in a war. But the important thing is, what are the best alternatives to these desserts?
In answer to this question, it should be said that the best alternative is cereals, nuts and dried fruits, which not only provide all the minerals needed by the child’s body, but also have a much lower sugar content than high-fat and high-calorie sweets. Especially if you use a variety of raw nuts in your child’s snack or dessert. Depending on the properties and benefits of each dried fruit, cereal or nut, you can make attractive and delicious desserts that will become your child’s favorite food.
Benefits of dried fruits and cereals for children
Why are dried fruits good for children?
As you know, dried fruits are made by drying the fruit and evaporating the water in it, which increases the amount of minerals in the fruit. In this way, your child will not only receive the nutrients needed for his or her growth and health by using this type of food, but also will have more energy over time and there will be no morning whining about going to kindergarten.
Unlike sweets such as cookies and donuts, which will only provide your child with energy for 30 minutes and after this effect disappears, the child will feel sleepy and tired, this type of food will help your child to be alert throughout the day, especially in class, and be able to pursue his or her activities with more intelligence and energy.
You can easily use various types of dried fruits available in the market such as dried figs, dried fruit leaves, raisins, dried berries, etc. as a snack for school or combine it with fruit yogurt and fruit juice for breakfast. Of course, the best types of dried fruits are those that do not contain additives and industrial sweeteners and have the natural sugar of the fruit itself, so be sure to pay attention to the nutritional information label on the package when buying. In addition, you can dry various fruits yourself at home and be more sure of their health.
To encourage your child to eat this type of food, you can go shopping for dried fruits together or do it at home and encourage him to eat healthy foods by decorating his food bowl with dried fruits.
What are the best nuts and dried fruits for children?
Each dried fruit or grain has different properties. If you don’t know which category of these foods to choose for your child, we will guide you.
Almonds
Almonds are rich in iron; calcium and fiber, which are essential for children’s growth. In addition, there are different types of almonds in stores, so you can find your child’s favorite flavor with your child. Salted almonds, sweet almonds, cashews, paper almonds and raw almonds are among the different types that you can easily find in any dry goods store. Of course, we recommend using raw types of dried fruits.
Almonds help your child’s immune system to increase and be resistant to diseases. You can use a combination of almonds and figs or almonds and dates as a delicious and nutritious snack with milk for your child.
dried fruits and cereals for children
Walnuts
One of the most popular types of dried fruits and nuts is walnuts. All parents know that children love walnuts and they are almost an integral part of school snacks such as bread and cheese sandwiches and walnuts. Walnuts are shaped almost like the human brain, and when your child starts learning about the human body at school, it’s the perfect opportunity to encourage them to eat this delicious and healthy snack. Children love to learn new things, so take advantage of this opportunity and show them how walnuts look like miniature brains.
This lovely nut contains all the essential fatty acids the body needs, such as omega-3, and is also high in B vitamins, zinc, and manganese. It’s interesting to know that walnuts also help increase children’s intelligence.
A simple way to encourage children to eat this type of food is to ask them to help prepare school lunches or cook meals. Children love to do things with their parents, so it’s best to play a simple game with them. If you’re working, ask your child to prepare your lunches for work according to their taste, and you prepare their school lunches. Ask him to find all the grains and dried fruits that he thinks resemble something in nature or the human body and put them in his food bowl. This activity is a useful game for children that both increases your interaction with him and strengthens his intelligence, and most importantly, he ends up with a food bowl that is full of natural nutrients and delicious ingredients that will replace all the unhealthy and high-calorie snacks.
Raisins
There are different types of raisins in stores, but the best type for children and even adults is the one we call “raisins”. Seedless raisins have a wonderful effect on boosting children’s intelligence and, along with that, they also have all the necessary ingredients to complete bone health and provide children with energy.
Daily consumption of raisins will help your child never suffer from anemia. This lovely dried fruit contains a lot of potassium and iron, and its natural sugar is very beneficial for the child’s health.