Diet for overweight children and adolescents

1. Milk and dairy products

They are essential in a healthy diet for children and provide important nutrients such as high quality protein and calcium for growth and Bone building.

Children and adolescents, as well as adults, currently eat too much fat, especially in the form of saturated fatty acids. Therefore, low-fat milk and milk products should be preferred. You can use semi-skimmed milk instead of the usual whole milk 1.5% fat be used. Yogurt and curd milk are low-fat variants (1.5% fat), Quark and cream cheese at the lean level or maximum 20% fat content. Skimmed milk is not suitable for feeding children (0.3% fat) and such dairy products (yogurt or cottage cheese with 0.3% fat Or less). They contain too few fat-soluble vitamins A and D.

The fat content of cheese is usually indicated on the packaging as fat in the dry matter (fat in dry matter). Sliced ​​cheese has a fat content of 30% to a maximum of 45% to prefer, choose the low-fat varieties for cream cheese.

When heating and skimming dairy products, a certain proportion of fat-soluble vitamins is lost, but the calcium content is not changed.

Of the Calcium content is significantly higher for cheese than for milk, yoghurt and curd milk. Even 30 g of semi-hard cheese provide as much calcium as 200 ml of milk.

There are children who don't like milk. An alternative would be yogurt, sour milk, buttermilk or a mixed drink made from milk and fresh fruit or cocoa.

You can also “hide” milk in sauces, soups, mashed potatoes or pancakes.

Ready-made fruit yoghurts and the like from the refrigerated shelf and special children's dairy products usually contain too much sugar and fat but hardly any fresh fruit. If you prepare yourself, low-fat yoghurt plus fresh fruit become a much more valuable food. If you don't have the time, you can also mix pre-purchased dairy products with low-fat natural yoghurt. This also helps you get used to a less sweet taste.

2. Meat and meat products

2. Meat and meat products

Meat provides high quality protein, zinc, niacin and iron. The iron from meat can be used by the body, but that does not mean that children have to eat meat every day. Two to three servings a week are enough. Whole grain products contain iron and in combination with vitamin C this is also better absorbed. Whole grain bread and paprika strips or a glass of orange juice also ensure a sufficient supply of iron.

When choosing meat you should pay attention to a low fat content and variety.For example, beef is high in zinc, while pork is high in vitamin B1.

The origin of the meat should also be of great importance in the selection. It is best to prefer meat from species-appropriate husbandry. Meat from tortured animals from “meat factories” has no place in a healthy diet.

It is difficult to assess the fat content of sausage products.

Less than 10% fat contain, for example: Aspic cold cuts, turkey and chicken breasts, corned beef, roast beef, cooked ham (without fat crust), salmon ham.

10 to 20% Fat is contained in poultry sausage, beer ham, smoked pork, hunting sausage.

20 to 30% fat in bratwurst, scalded sausage and liver sausage.

30 to 40% fat in permanent sausage such as salami and cervelatwurst and in spreadable sausages.

The low-fat varieties are to be preferred and if the sausage is fatty, reduce the amount and omit the fat spread below.

Vegetarian diet for children is possible. However, milk and milk products should definitely not be missing. Likewise, iron-rich whole grain products (for example oatmeal) and iron-rich vegetables (fennel, peas, beans) and fruit (especially soft fruit) must be planned. It is best to combine it with vitamin C (raw vegetables, fresh fruit, orange juice) to improve iron evaluation.

Vegan diet

Vegan diets that prohibit milk and eggs in addition to meat are completely unsuitable for children and can lead to serious health problems.

Read more on the subject below: Vegan Diet for Children - Harmful or Safe?

3. Eggs

They are rich in vitamins, minerals, and protein. But also contain a lot of cholesterol. Two to three eggs a week are recommended, including those hidden (in pancakes, cakes, etc.). Caged eggs should be left out.

4. Fish

Fish delivers high quality protein and the trace element iodine. High fat cold water fish like Herring, mackerel and salmon contain Omega 3 fatty acids which have a health-promoting effect. One fish meal per week is therefore recommended.

Children often do not like to eat fish, and when they do, they do so in the form of fish fingers. Better fish fingers than no fish at all! But it is important to pay attention to the quality and not to bake the chopsticks in the pan
(the breading absorbs a lot of fat). It is better to prepare it in the oven.

5. Fats and oils

Spreadable fat and cooking fat are visible fats that should always be used sparingly. We find hidden fats in sausage products, milk and milk products, nut nougat cream and in snacks, cakes, sweets, nibbles and ready meals. Always pay attention to the fat content of these products or limit your consumption accordingly.

Vegetable Fats and oils are generally preferable. They are rich in unsaturated fatty acids. Some can, similar to the Vitamins, are not produced by the body itself and we are dependent on daily intake. Monounsaturated fatty acids are found in olive oil, rapeseed oil, nut oils and the nuts themselves. Polyunsaturated fatty acids are mainly found in sunflower oil, corn oil and safflower oil. Rapeseed oil is particularly beneficial because it has a balanced ratio of different fatty acids.

It is recommended that the daily intake should consist of one third saturated, one third monounsaturated and one third polyunsaturated fats.

It is best to use different oils. Never heat cold-pressed, gently extracted oils! This can produce harmful substances. These oils are well suited for raw vegetables and salads. High-quality oil should be bottled in dark bottles and stored in the refrigerator.

The intake of chemically hardened fats should be avoided. Recognizable on the list of ingredients under the name of vegetable oils partially hardened. These are often found in ready meals, soups, salad dressings, cocktail sauces, baked goods and contain so-called trans fatty acids. These fatty acids are not suitable for a healthy diet. These trans fats have recently been reduced in margarines. Natural vegetable oils do not contain these fatty acids.

Basically, fats should be used sparingly. Margarine (without hydrogenated fats) or butter can be used as a spread. Always do both sparingly and check whether you can omit it completely from time to time.

Use vegetable oils preferably. Rapeseed oil is recommended because it can be used in many ways, including for cooking and baking.

6. Spices

In general, the dishes for children should only be salted a little. The salt consumption in the Federal Republic is 12g per day and person and is much too high. Half of this amount should be aimed for. Fresh herbs and other spices are better than lots of salt. Mixtures of spices usually also contain salt and additives such as colorings, flavor enhancers or hydrogenated fats.

Always use iodized salt for optimal iodine supply.

7. Candy

From a nutritional point of view, they are superfluous, but in practice it is impossible to imagine child nutrition without them. They contain a lot of energy (high energy density) and hardly any important nutrients (low nutrient density) and provide so-called empty calories.

Sweets are one of the tolerated foods and should only be eaten now and then in small quantities. A total ban would be wrong, however.

Sugar should be used sparingly in the household (like a spice). The taste changes and is soon satisfied with less sweet. With common cake recipes, you can usually omit part of the specified amount of sugar without affecting the taste.

Theoretically only should 10% the daily calorie intake in the form of sugar. Children aged 4-6 have an average energy requirement of 1450 kcal per day and can eat a maximum of 150 kcal per day in the form of sweets and sugar. This corresponds to, for example, per day:

1 scoop of ice cream (50g) + 2 teaspoons of jam or

20 pretzel sticks (30g) + 1 level teaspoon nut nougat cream (10g) or

30 g chocolate or 1 small piece of marble cake.

It is best for children to have sweets only once a day, always at the same time and never just before a meal. Avoid temptation and maybe set a weekly ration that the child can divide himself.

Other sweeteners like cane sugar or brown sugar have no benefits. Honey is a natural food. Fruit juices still contain a small amount of vitamins. But these sweeteners should also be used sparingly.

Sweeteners are chemical substances and completely free of energy. They therefore have no negative effects on the children's teeth and, if consumed in small amounts, no health disadvantages are to be expected. However, sweeteners should only be used in child nutrition in exceptional cases, if at all. They encourage them to get used to the sweet taste and children do not learn to perceive even slightly sweetened foods as pleasant.