Inappropriate breakfast habits not only fail to provide children with nutrition but can also be harmful to them. Here, the editor reminds all parents to pay attention to scientific eating habits to add a guarantee to their children's health.
I. Traditional Flavor
Breakfast Content: Fried dough sticks, soy milk
Reasons for Popularity: Many children have been accustomed to eating fried dough sticks with soy milk for breakfast since childhood, guided by their grandparents. They are not only used to this taste but also have an emotional attachment to it over the years.
Expert Commentary: Fried dough sticks are a high-temperature fried food, similar to baked sesame cakes and pan-fried dumplings, and have a high oil content. Nutrients are destroyed in food after high-temperature frying, and carcinogenic substances can also be produced. Moreover, fried dough sticks are relatively high in calories, and the oil is difficult to digest. Coupled with the fact that soy milk is also a medium-fat food, the oil content of this breakfast combination is significantly excessive and is not suitable for long-term consumption.
Recommendation: Breakfast must include vegetables or fruit. It is best to eat fried dough sticks with soy milk infrequently, no more than once a week for a baby. Moreover, the lunch and dinner on that day must be as light as possible, avoiding fried, pan-fried, or stir-fried foods, and supplementing with more vegetables.
II. Snacks for Breakfast
Breakfast Content: Various snacks, such as rice crackers, biscuits, chocolate, etc.
Reasons for Popularity: Many parents keep some snacks at home for emergencies. In the morning when time is not abundant, they often grab snacks for the baby's breakfast for convenience and speed.
Expert Commentary: It is fine for a baby to eat snacks like biscuits or chocolate when hungry, but using snacks as the most important meal of the day, breakfast, is very unscientific. Most snacks are dry foods, which are not conducive to digestion and absorption for the human body in a semi-dehydrated state in the morning. Furthermore, snacks like biscuits are mainly made from grains. Although they can provide energy in a short time, they will soon make the child feel hungry again. Blood sugar levels will drop significantly by noon. Eating snacks for breakfast can easily lead to malnutrition, a decline in physical fitness, and make one susceptible to various diseases.
Recommendation: It is not advisable to replace breakfast with snacks, especially not too many dry foods. Breakfast foods should contain sufficient moisture. If the breakfast for the day is too dry, you can add a cucumber.