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Gift Your Child a Lifetime of Good Health

The foundation of good health and nutrition for a body is laid in the formative years of childhood. A child’s daily diet requires special attention due to the growing needs of his or her body which are different from that of an adult. Not only does the food eaten by children reflect on their physical health but also effects their concentration and mental health. To provide your child with a nutritionally balanced diet you need to ensure that all the four food groups i.e. vegetables, beans, fruits and grains are included. It is important to understand the chemical composition of foods and their uses in the body.

Protein is the basic building block of the body and parts such as muscles, the brain, the heart are composed of it. Carbohydrates from foods such as grains, legumes, sugar, etc supply the body with most of its energy. Fats are a rich source of energy to the body with almost twice the calories for the same weight of carbohydrates. Fiber from vegetables, fruits, grains and legumes are important to the digestive system and for the proper working of bowel movements.

Vitamins and minerals are substances that are required in small amounts on a regular basis to ensure the proper and optimal working and maintenance of the body.
Unfortunately the required amounts of vitamins and minerals for a child’s body are usually not met in the diet that is eaten. Thus it is vital to provide the child with a nutritional supplement that will ensure that the vitamins and minerals are not deficient in the body.

Some of the nutrients that are essential to the growing child include the following:

Vitamins

• Vitamin A is important for the care and protection of the eyes, growth of the bones and for building immunity in the body.

• Vitamin C is essential for overall body functioning. It helps form collagen in connective tissues, hemoglobin and red blood corpuscles in bone marrow and assists healing of wounds and broken bones.

• Vitamin D is vital for proper bone growth and development.

• Vitamin E is known to heal burns and wounds and improve muscle strength. It is also found to be useful with menstrual problems, sickle cell anemia and cancer.

Also important are Vitamin B group including Vitamin B1 which maintains normal functioning of the nervous and muscular systems. Vitamin B2 or Riboflavin is an anti-oxidant and helps promote normal growth and development. It helps treat infections, burns and stomach ailments. Niacin or vitamin B3, Vitamin B6, Pantothenic Acid or vitamin B5 and vitamin B12 should also be included in the supplement.

Minerals

• Minerals that are crucial to the healthy development of the body include calcium which maintains normal heart beat, nerve and muscle functioning and blood clotting. Combined with phosphorous it helps form bones and teeth.

• Iron is a mineral needed by the body in the production of hemoglobin, the oxygen-carrying part of blood. Deficiency of this mineral lead to exhaustion, anemia, and moods of depression.

• Copper is vital for red blood cell formation, promotes strong veins and is essential for connective tissue formation.

• Zinc promotes DNA and RNA synthesize, promotes cell function, and is an anti-oxidant. It also boosts immunity in the body.

• Magnesium should also feature in the supplement.
  

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