for-parents

Information for Parents

Healthy eating and physical activity go hand in hand. Children are continually growing and developing which is why their nutritional needs are different to adults.
The Dietary Guidelines for Children and Adolescents (National Health and Medical Research Council Food for health) apply to the general population of healthy children to eighteen years.

For a healthy lifestyle children and adolescents should be encouraged to enjoy a wide variety of healthy (nutritious) foods:

Eat plenty of vegetables, legumes and fruits
Eat plenty of cereals (including breads, rice, pasta and noodles), preferably wholegrain
Include lean meat, fish, poultry and/or alternatives
Include milks, yoghurts, cheese and/or alternatives
Note: Reduced-fat milks are not suitable for young children under 2 years, because of their high energy needs, but reduced-fat varieties should be encouraged for older children and adolescents
Choose water as a drink – it’s cheaper and your body needs it to survive
Note: Soft drinks usually have a lot of sugar in them and are bad for teeth. Note: Alcohol is not recommended for children

Care should be taken to:

Limit saturated fat and moderate total fat intake
Note: Low-fat diets are not suitable for infants
Choose foods low in salt
Consume only moderate amounts of sugars and foods containing added sugars
Make sweets, cakes, biscuits or softdrinks a sometimes treat rather than every day

It is important to:

eat a good balance of nutritious food types
eat according to energy needs
handle food safely to prevent food poisoning

Fats and oils
Children need a small amount of fats and oils to grow and be healthy. Most fats and oils will be provided by other foods such as meat, eggs, cheese, peanut butter and margarine.
It's a good idea to start the habit of eating mono-unsaturated fats (check out the label on cooking oils, margarines and spreads) light cheeses and low fat ice-cream.

For more information visit the Nutrition Australia website where you can find suggestions for good cookbooks for children.