1.Milk
Baby and preterm infants often seem to want to get plenty of milk, but as they get older, many babies start drinking less and less milk. This is probably not because they would develop enough for milk, but because so many other beverages, including soda, fruit drinks, and too much fruit juice, are available at home.
Milk is a good source of children's calcium, vitamin D and protein and should be part of every child's diet — unless they have a milk allergy. In fact, depending on their age, most children should drink between 2 and 4 glasses of milk (low fat milk if at least 2 years old) every day, especially unless they are eating or drinking any other high calcium foods.
2. Apples
Like most fruits, apples are a great snack food. They are juicy, sweet (although there are some varieties), vitamin C, low in calories (about 90 calories for a medium apple) and about 5g of fiber for a whole unheated apple.
Unfortunately, apples are one of those healthy foods that can be turned into "family friendly" food and lose their nutritional benefits.
Instead of picking their kids a whole apple or picking a whole apple, parents often offer apples, apple cider or apple juice with other options. The apple tends to lose about half its fiber, and the applesauce is much lower in fiber than a whole apple and has more sugar and calories.
3. Peanut butter
While PB & J (peanut butter and jelly) seems to be a staple in most homes, many parents are avoiding peanut butter because of the concern about food allergies and because it is high in fat. Peanut butter is relatively high in fat, but it is mostly fat and unsaturated, so it is better than the saturated fats found in many other high fat foods.
Reduced fat peanut butter is also available, or if you choose a vitamin fortified brand such as Peter Pan Plus, it also provides your vitamin A, iron, vitamin E, vitamin B6, folic acid, magnesium, zinc and copper, as well to be a good source of protein.
4. Yogurt
Yogurt is a healthy food for kids, especially for kids who do not drink a lot of milk, as yogurt is a good source of calcium.
You think your kids are doing well with this one because they already eat yogurt, but if they all eat the brand of kids yogurt with added sugar and no added infections, they may want to Discover some of the nutritional benefits of yogurt.
When choosing yogurt for kids, look for one with "active living cultures" that are low fat and low in added sugar. You may look for one with additional probiotics , although not all studies agree that they are helpful.
5. Tuna fish
Fish can be a health food if children only eat fish sticks or fried fish sandwiches. Sometimes ignored, tuna is a fishing fish that many kids like.
Parents seem to be serving tuna fish so often these days because of the worries a is related to mercury contamination , but it is important to keep in mind that like many things, tuna is okay. Even with the caveats, kids can eat up to two servings per week of canned light tuna or any of the white solid albacore tuna.
Tuna fish is a great source of protein and provides omega-3 essential fatty acids and many vitamins and minerals. To make your baby’s tuna fish sandwich healthier, use low-fat mayonnaise and whole wheat bread.
6. Cereal Breakfast
No, a whole bowl of sugary corn is not a healthy breakfast , but many other breakfast cereals can be a healthy part of your child's diet.
When choosing breakfast cereals for your kids, try to look for one that you can't eat out of the box like candy. Good choices include whole grain cereals that have added calcium and fiber fortifications. Depending on the rest of your child's diet, you can look for breakfast grains that provide extra iron and other minerals and vitamins.
In general, there are some healthy breakfast cereals such as Cheerios, Il Grain Cheerios, Wheated Wheat, Wheaties, and Total Raisin Bran. Add chopped banana or strawberry to the bowl, and the kids will like it more.
7. Eggs
So, are eggs healthy again? For a while, bad eggs have been known to cause high cholesterol, but most nutrition experts now agree that eggs can be a healthy part of your diet.
Eggs are a good source of protein and contain some iron and many other vitamins and minerals.
What about cholesterol? Eggs contain cholesterol, but not enough saturated fat, which is the most important factor in raising a person's cholesterol level. Still, an egg every other day is fine for most kids.
8. Vegetables
Of course, vegetables will go on the list of the best foods for kids, but that does not mean forcing your kids to eat them or trying to get the kids to eat sprouts, broccoli and spinach.
There are plenty of vegetables that kids will love, such as boiled carrots, corn, peas and baked potatoes. Cooking carrots can be a health option especially as they are high in fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, and potassium .
Remember to introduce children to a variety of vegetables at an older age, offer many options, set a good example by eating vegetables as a family and continue to offer small vegetable services, even when the children are not eating them. If you keep offering them, they will eventually eat them.
9. Oatmeal
As much as corn babies eat oatmeal, it's no surprise that they grow up on white bread and other refined grains and do not eat wholemeal oats and grains.
You can counter that trend by serving your oatmeal services, which kids love, and more oat foods and snacks (oatmeal cookies, oatmeal bars, etc.).
Oatmeal is a high fiber food that is good for kids, like most other whole grain foods .
10. Sunflower seeds
While it may seem like a bad habit for kids to eat sunflower seeds on a small league baseball team, they are a safe food that all kids can enjoy - as long as they don't throw the shells on the floor and are old enough so that the seeds are not toasted hazards.
Sunflower seeds are high in fiber and are a good source of iron. They are also high in vitamin E, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc and folate.
While there are many unsaturated and unsaturated fats, these are the "good" fats. Sunflower seeds are low in saturated or "bad" fats.
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