Nowadays, with the development of economic production, the material supply of society is greatly enriched, people’s living standards are greatly improved, the awareness of healthy nutrition has become the mainstream of public health, and children, who are entrusted with the hope of the future, are raised by parents in the “honey pot”. “What nutrition to eat” has become the central idea of most parents to arrange the nutritious meals for their children. However, can children really eat nutritious things that are nutritious and healthy? Slowly, nutritionists are discovering that Chinese parents are stepping into one child nutrition misconception after another.
Myth 1: Children take ginseng supplements
When children are growing and developing, it is necessary to provide them with reasonable nutrition for their body and intellectual development. However, improper supplementation is counterproductive.
In the past, ginseng was a rare and precious tonic, but nowadays it is flooding the market, even being added into some children’s health products, with more and more ginseng punch, ginseng oral liquid, ginseng brain tonic ……, which is said to be able to invigorate qi and replenish blood, helping adolescents to strengthen their physical and intellectual development.
However, the saying “young people should not eat ginseng” has been around since ancient times, and ginseng and food containing ginseng should not be used by healthy children. Ginseng can weaken immunity and disease resistance in healthy children, making them susceptible to diseases and causing hyperactive nervous system symptoms such as excitement, agitation, irritability, irritability and insomnia. Ginseng can promote the secretion of gonadal hormones, and long-term ginseng supplementation in healthy children can lead to precocious sexual maturation. Too much ginseng is also harmful to the heart, lowering blood pressure and blood sugar, which can be life-threatening in serious cases. If children need to take ginseng due to physical weakness, they must use it under the guidance of a doctor to determine a reasonable dose.
Misconception 2: Indiscriminate supplementation of nutritional elements
”Children drink ×× calcium plus zinc children’s oral liquid, and they grow taller and smarter.” Under the powerful advertising campaign, the concept of giving children calcium and zinc is popular among parents all over the country, so calcium and zinc added children’s health food products are rapidly gaining ground in the market, and the momentum is raging.
It is true that calcium is an important nutrient for children’s growth and development, especially bone growth, while zinc has long been clinically proven to be beneficial to the brain and recognized by the global medical nutrition community. However, most parents overlook the issue of moderation.
Too much calcium can lead to low blood pressure. Scientific studies have shown that too much calcium in children can cause low blood pressure and put them at risk for heart disease later in life. Children who are suspected of having rickets or calcium deficiency should take calcium supplements under the guidance of a doctor and should not take too much or not enough.
Excessive zinc supplementation may lead to zinc toxicity. Zinc deficiency in children is often characterized by loss of appetite and malnutrition. Zinc poisoning caused by zinc oversupplementation is characterized by loss of appetite, epigastric pain, depression, and even acute renal failure. Zinc supplementation for children must be taken under the guidance of a physician to determine the scientific dosage to ensure safety and reliability.
Too much fish oil can lead to hypercalcemia. Excessive intake of vitamin D, which increases calcium absorption in children, can lead to hypercalcemia, which is characterized by a lack of desire to eat, indifference, dry skin, vomiting, excessive drinking and urination, and weight loss.
Experts say that children need a certain amount of calories, proteins, vitamins and minerals for growth and development, and generally children who are not picky eaters or partial eaters can get enough nutrition through three meals a day. Some parents randomly give their children supplements based on their feelings, not knowing that excessive nutrition has side effects on the body, especially too many calories, which can cause obesity in children and lay many hidden dangers for their growth, balanced nutrition is the most crucial. Generally speaking, if you are not diagnosed with a certain nutrient deficiency, you should not supplement it at will. If you do need to supplement, you should do so under the guidance of your doctor and nutritionist.
Misconception 3: Western breakfast set
Breakfast is an important part of children’s energy and nutrition needs, it plays an irreplaceable role in the three meals a day. According to China’s nutrition and medical departments of nearly 10,000 urban children’s diet survey found that the proportion of children who regularly eat breakfast every day is higher among boys than girls, and the younger the age, the higher the proportion. And 52% to 56% of children who consume breakfast have unscientific breakfast arrangements, a single type of food, unbalanced nutrient composition, only 34% of parents in the preparation of breakfast, pay attention to the issue of nutrition with.
It is understood that the phenomenon of “Western-style breakfast three pieces” is now very common. As the nutritional value of milk, eggs, oats has been socially recognized, and easy to do, so many parents spend most of the time to prepare such a Western-style breakfast combination for children. However, it is impossible to have all the nutrients that children need in a nutritious food, and eating only one nutritional mix for a long time will also lead to an imbalance in the intake of nutrients.
A breakfast of good nutritional quality should include four major components: cereals, animal foods, dairy and vegetables and fruits, and should be constantly changing food varieties to match. Expert studies have found that students who consume a breakfast with sufficient energy and balanced ratios are stronger in the use of numbers, creative imagination and physical endurance than those who consume a breakfast with an unreasonable nutritional mix. Therefore, the quality of children’s breakfast should never be ignored.
Myth 4: No distinction between ingredients and functions
Some parents do not distinguish between the composition and function of the food, as long as the child likes to eat it freely take the child to eat, but if eaten inappropriate may cause the child’s physical discomfort. For example, there is a difference between milk dairy products and lactobacillus drinks, lactobacillus drinks are suitable for children with poor gastrointestinal, both improperly selected, will cause gastrointestinal discomfort and other symptoms.
Many parents prepare food for their children to strive to fine, but eventually created a large number of “small glasses”. Long-term eating fine rice, fine noodles such fine food, will cause vitamin and mineral deficiencies, especially vitamin B and chromium deficiency. Insufficient intake of vitamin B will affect the development of the nervous system; the lack of chromium makes insulin activity is reduced, the ability to regulate blood sugar decreased, resulting in the sugar in food can not be metabolized properly and retained in the blood, resulting in changes in eye refraction, eventually causing myopia.
Misconception five: foreign fast food to raise appetite
This phenomenon is common in life, every double holiday, some parents will give their children wish: “quickly finish your homework, today take you out to eat foreign fast food.” This “mouth blessing” reward, so that the child’s appetite for higher and higher, the mouth also more and more tricky to eat, tired of eating the main food to eat side dishes, tired of eating Chinese food to eat foreign food. According to statistics, 91% of the surveyed children have eaten fast food. However, fast food is a high-energy, high-fat food, once can provide 4900 to 7500 joules of energy, equivalent to 42.5% to 112.5% of the standard supply of the whole day.
Imported children’s food is by no means 100% perfect, the nutritional structure of foreign children may not be suitable for Chinese children, do not be too superstitious. Pay special attention to the “high-fat, high-calorie, high-cholesterol” “foreign fast food” on the health of children, do not “foreign fast food” as a reward for children, otherwise children will be on the “foreign fast food” to the The “foreign fast food” to produce “dependence”.
Therefore, experts caution that children with poor gastrointestinal function or obesity, do not often eat fast food, in the face of the child’s request, parents have to harden their hearts and say “no”. Once in a while, it is not impossible to eat, but after eating must eat more vegetables and fruits to regulate.