Babies, Parenting, Child Health, Infant Nutrition

Child Health – Keeping Kids Healthy This Winter

18.01.2010 | 12:12:59 pm | Posted by colleenh

By Colleen Hurley, RD, Certified Kid’s Nutrition Specialist

Chilly weather is here for a while, and so are coughs and colds. Children’s immune systems need extra special care for many reasons. For one, children’s exposure to bacteria is often significantly higher than that of adults, especially children in daycare or preschool. Also, at a young age, children have not been exposed to as many pathogens as adults have. Exposure to flu bugs and bacteria help your body create a specific way to get rid of those bugs, which children are often lacking.

To create a healthy immune system, it is important to provide the body with a whole foods diet full of variety. Get back to basics by eating foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and lean animal protein. Fruits and vegetables not only contain vitamins, but also are rich sources of antioxidants that help protect tissues from damage. To keep an immune system healthy, it is best to aim for nutrient dense foods, especially since infants and children eat smaller portions. Processed foods such as white sugar and flour, canned or fast foods have been shown in studies to actually weaken the immune system.

Healthy Foods

There are also many foods that naturally contain immune boosting nutrients such as vitamin C and zinc:

Vitamin C rich foods: bell peppers, dark leafy greens, kiwi, grapefruit, strawberries, tomatoes, cantaloupe, apricots, and broccoli

Zinc rich foods: oatmeal, yogurt, legumes, peas, lentils, potatoes, and brown rice

kidswinterhealth Some foods actually good “bugs” or beneficial bacteria called probiotics. These good bugs can also help the immune system as immunity predominately resides in our digestive systems. Yogurt and kefir are excellent sources of beneficial bacteria that can help improve digestion as well fight the growth of illness-causing bacteria. Be sure to avoid yogurt brands that contain added sugar or food colorings.

Keep Moving

Our bodies tend to slow down in the winter, but a little movement goes a long way for child’s immune response. Be sure to make time to get your toddler’s body moving by spending less time in front of the TV. Physical activity increases white blood cells which help a body fight off infection.

Supplements

If your child is a picky eater, a good quality age appropriate multivitamin might be a good option. There are also many immune boosting supplements for infants and children on the market. Please be sure to consult your pediatrician before taking any supplements.

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The Baby Mum-Mum blog discusses everything to do with babies and parenting with a focus on child health and child development. Baby Mum-Mum is a healthy, easy to digest baby rice snack that is enjoyed by babies and mothers around the world for its portability, gluten free ingredients and great taste.

Announcement:

On February 22, the FDA issued letters relating to labelling to 22 food companies, including several baby food manufacturers. We were advised by the FDA that we are not permitted to print the statements "Low in Fat" or "No added fat or oils" on our Baby Mum-Mum packaging.

Although these statements are true and each serving of Baby Mum-Mum does not contain any fat, the FDA has brought to our attention that these claims are technically not allowed on our packaging solely because the product is intended for consumption by infants and children under 4 years of age.

In the future, these claims will be removed from our packaging.

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