Most children nowadays are only children, and naturally, they are the center of attention at home, always getting what they ask for. However, parents must pay attention and be strict about their children's diet. Some foods are children's favorites, but they should not be eaten in excess, as too much can harm their health. Examples include jelly, cola drinks, bubble gum, instant noodles, and so on.
1. Bubble Gum
The plasticizer in bubble gum contains trace toxins, and its metabolite, phenol, is also harmful to the human body.
2. Jelly
Jelly is made from thickeners, flavorings, colorings, sweeteners, and other additives. Eating too much or frequently consuming these substances can affect a child's growth, development, and intellectual health.
Expert Reminder: Young children should be cautious when eating jelly
In the first quarter, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine conducted a national supervision and spot-check on the quality of fruit jelly products, with a product sampling合格率 (qualification rate) of 91.3%. Although this qualification rate is relatively high, the phenomenon of excessive or out-of-range use of sweeteners and preservatives as food additives still exists.
This spot-check sampled 23 types of fruit jelly products from 23 production enterprises in Shanghai, Fujian, Guangdong, and other provinces and cities, with 21 being qualified. The main problems found in the spot-check were the excessive and out-of-range use of sweeteners and preservatives in food additives. Consuming excessive amounts of jelly with non-compliant additives can harm the health of children and adolescents. Experts remind that young children should be cautious when eating jelly to prevent it from getting stuck in the throat and causing suffocation.
3. Cola Drinks
The caffeine in cola drinks is particularly harmful to the developing tissues and organs of children.
Chinese experts believe that, based on clinical judgment, the caffeine in cola is affecting the height of Chinese children.
Cola was originally a medicine for treating colds. When people have a cold, they experience symptoms like headaches, fatigue, and a runny nose. To alleviate these symptoms, a relatively high proportion of caffeine was added to it, which was beneficial to recovery. However, cola gradually developed into a beverage, consumed as a liquid supplement in daily life.
People drink it when they are thirsty or feel the need to, and caffeine gradually accumulates. Although its caffeine content is low, when children consume this caffeine-containing beverage, their bones can become very brittle.
So how does caffeine "harm" children's bones? Experts say: "In the process of growth, children supplement calcium through food or calcium supplements to promote calcium deposition in bones, thereby promoting normal development. However, caffeine has an effect of hindering the deposition of calcium in the blood into bones. Moreover, calcium already deposited in bones can be decalcified when it encounters caffeine, leading to a decrease in bone density. Over time, children are prone to fractures."
"This is only one aspect," the expert continued. "On the other hand, children are in a period of growing from a small body to a larger one, and in this process, caffeine hinders height development." Professor Li told reporters that based on clinical judgment, for example, parents are tall, but their children are not, and by adolescence, their height is not even as tall as their parents'.
4. Sunflower Seeds
Sunflower seeds contain unsaturated fatty acids, and eating too many can affect the function of liver cells in children.
5. Instant Noodles
Instant noodles contain unfavorable food colorings and preservatives for the human body.
Fried food is one of the traditional foods in our country. Whether it's fried dough twists, spring rolls, or meatballs during festivals, or fried dough sticks, fried cakes, and 'mianwo' for daily breakfast; in recent years, fried foods that children like to eat, such as french fries and fried bread from Western fast food, and fried potato chips and fried cookies in snacks, are all fried foods. Fried foods are crispy, delicious, and aromatic, which can stimulate the appetite, so they are loved by many adults and children. However, frequent consumption of fried food is extremely detrimental to health.
6. Canned Food
The additives in canned food have a significant impact on developing children and can easily lead to chronic poisoning.
Most canned food is still sealed with solder, and the solder has a high lead content, which can contaminate the food during storage. The permeability of a child's digestive tract is relatively high, so these additives and heavy metals can be absorbed and affect the child's health.
After food is cooked, canned, exhausted, and sealed, it is often sterilized using ultra-high temperature, which can also lead to a loss of nutritional value in the food.
7. Popcorn
Popcorn has a very high lead content. Lead entering the human body can damage the nervous, digestive, and hematopoietic systems.
Someone might ask, the lead content in rice is not high, so why does it become high after "popping"? The reason lies in the tool used for making popcorn. Because the inside of the popcorn machine's iron can and its sealing part have a layer of lead or lead-tin alloy, when the iron can is heated, some of the lead appears in the form of lead smoke or lead vapor. When the pressure is rapidly released to pop the corn, the lead is easily absorbed by the loose popcorn, contaminating it.
Lead is extremely harmful to the human body, especially for children. Once absorbed by the body, it mainly endangers the nervous, hematopoietic, and digestive systems, causing slow growth and development in children and a decrease in disease resistance. Clinical manifestations include irritability, loss of appetite, and some cases are accompanied by diarrhea or constipation.