Benefits of fiber in children and how to get them to eat more

The consumption of foods rich in fiber is always recommended as a way to prevent constipation and to improve, ultimately, our intestinal transit. We tend to eat whole grains, we opt for the consumption of more fresh fruits and vegetables, and we also consume pasta and seeds in its integral version. But do not you think that in a certain sense whenever we talk about fiber, we forget about children? Do not they also need to consume it?

And is that the fiber It is a nutrient that not only plays a fundamental role in our own health, but also in the health of the little ones. Therefore it is important that our children also eat foods rich in fiber from childhood. In fact, did you know that we found fiber in breast milk?

Moreover, we have an indispensable nutrient for children, especially if we take a look at the latest statistics related to the alarming increase of overweight and obesity among the smallest. Since, as we will see below, fiber helps prevent and treat other diseases related to excess weight, such as high cholesterol, hypertension and diabetes.

Properties of fiber consumption in children

The fiber helps the child enjoy proper intestinal function, and that it is normal, so that prevents constipation in the same way that prevents in adults.

Contributes to prevent and treat obesity and overweight, while it is useful and recommended in different disorders and problems directly related to excess weight: helps reduce high cholesterol in the blood (hypercholesterolemia in children), high blood pressure (hypertension) and diabetes, which has increased very alarmingly in recent years among the smallest in our country.

It provides satiety more quickly, which makes it an essential nutrient in cases of childhood obesity, since the child will ingest less quantities of food by needing more chewing time.

An interesting option when it comes to making sure your children eat the amount of fiber they need each day, and that they therefore increase fiber consumption, is that they eat enough quantities of fruits, vegetables, cereals and legumes. Among the vegetables, for example, especially beans, lentils and beans.

How to get children to consume more fiber

First of all we recommend that your children eat less breakfast cereals for children, those that you find on supermarket shelves and that are supposedly sold as very healthy, when in fact they are excessively rich in sugars and fats. And if you do not believe it, we advise you to take a look at both its content in ingredients and its nutritional composition: what do they have sugar? How many carbohydrates, of which sugars ... contribute? And its content in saturated fats ?.

In fact, a research carried out some years ago in which 161 brands of cereals available at that time in the market were evaluated, allowed to confirm that cereals for children's breakfasts actually had a worse nutritional quality than cereals destined adults, were richer in fat, sugar, salt and carbohydrates, and had a lower proportion of fibers and proteins.

Once this brief summary is done, here is an example of a daily menu that will help your children consume more fiber:

At breakfast

You can choose some of the following options, always in moderation (that is, do not do all the options, but choose between some of them):

  • In a bowl mix a little of your usual children's cereals with cereals with high fiber content (5 grams of fiber), with 1/2 cup of milk or 1 fruit.
  • 1 glass of apple smoothie with pear, which will provide 2 gr. of fiber.
  • 1 glass of pear juice, orange and 1 tablespoon of bran.
  • 1 cup of chopped fruit (apples and pears) with 1 teaspoon of whole grains.

Half morning

  • 1 cup of chopped fruit
  • 1/2 cup of vegetables, such as carrots.

In the food

The following options may accompany the main course:

  • 1 cup of green vegetable soup (spinach, watercress and Swiss chard).
  • 1/2 cup cooked spinach and chard.
  • 1/2 cup of brown rice
  • Whole-grain spaghetti with cooked spinach.
  • 1/2 cup cooked beans.

In the dinner

  • In a bowl mix a little of your usual children's cereals with cereals with high fiber content (5 grams of fiber), with 1/2 cup of milk or 1 fruit.
  • 1 little whole wheat bread with extra virgin olive oil and 2 tablespoons of legumes.
This article is published for informational purposes only. You can not and should not replace the consultation with a Nutritionist. We advise you to consult your trusted Nutritionist. ThemesFeeding children Fiber

Healthy Eating Tips : Eating a High Fiber Diet (March 2024)