With one in five children already overweight by the time they start school, the pressure is on to provide the healthiest possible nutritional start for little ones as they move from milk to solid foods.

If children start school overweight it is the parent who should be held responsible.

The first five years are vitally important, as that is when habits and tastes are formed. Many of these developed tastes will last a lifetime.

So it is so important to make sure your child has a healthy start. A child who is fat at five is likely to have a weight problem for life. If we adults make poor food choices it is likely that our children will follow our example. Children do as we do, not as we say.

There is a growing market for ready-made toddler marketed food, packaged in appropriately sized portions and very appealing to busy mothers.

I found a portion of lasagne for toddlers contained a gram of salt and that is too much for a child to have for one meal. Also, it cost more than the adult version and contained more sugar.

As parents we naturally assume that food marketed for toddlers will be healthier, especially if it is more expensive. But the food manufacturing industry want the child to eat the lasagne and make it tasty so that the mother will buy it again. The food industry is tapping into the willingness of a mother to pay more for her toddler’s food while having no time or knowledge to work out if the package is really a healthy option for her child, who could actually be developing a taste for foods that are high in salt and sugar.

Preschool children are eating too much sugar and in the United Kingdom 40 percent of children have tooth decay before the age of five. This is hardly surprising when a fruit drink targeted at preschoolers’ lunch boxes contained 23 grams of sugar, the equivalent of five teaspoons of sugar. Many drinks targeted at little ones contain too much sugar.

Parents can only influence their children by example, so if a child sees parents enjoying fruit and vegetables, they may be tempted to try them too. Parents should also work hard to make fruit and vegetables appear appetizing and tasty. Young babies should be introduced to pureed vegetables and fruit when the doctor advises they are ready to be weaned.

Children are very open to education and if you speak plainly to them and suggest good reasons for a healthy breakfast and eating fresh food, they will listen and take note. But it will take time and changes must be made gradually. It is no good at all to say to a child, “You must eat vegetables because I say so and you will sit there until you do.” It is much better to try making your children a healthy, brightly colored fruit salad, ready for them to eat when they return home from school.

For some children, obesity brings not just health worries, but a string of problems such as low self-esteem and failure to enjoy sports at school.

My message to anyone concerned about feeding their families chemicals and additives is simple.  Eat whole, fresh food prepared at home as much as possible.

It is very important that we do not lose our local cooking traditions and cuisines. Children should always be taught cooking skills and traditional recipes handed down from generation to generation.
 

A tasty way to make a low-fat homemade pizza is to use pitta or Arabic bread. Toast the pitta in a 350-degree oven until slightly crisp. Remove from the oven and add a low-fat pizza sauce and toppings of your choice. Finish with fat-free or low-fat mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Return to the oven for a few minutes until toppings are heated through and cheese is melted.
 


 
The best way to avoid loose skin is to lose weight slowly, about 1kg per week. Slow weight loss allows you to maintain muscle mass while losing fat and it also allows your skin to adjust as you lose weight.  It is also important to keep skin healthy by drinking lots of water and eating a healthy diet. — Alva
 
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