Why is a balanced diet important for a child?

• A balanced diet is important for the health and development

  of a child if the child is to flourish and enjoy good

  health. A balanced diet means a diet that has food items

  from all the major food groups. There are five major food groups

  which are grains, vegetables, fruits, dairy and meat and meat

  alternatives. A balanced diet strikes a balance amongst these five

  food groups and gives the body the right amount of nutrients that

  it needs for overall good health.

• Eating a balanced diet is not about having one good meal. It is

  about creating healthy eating habits for a child and and

  maintaining those habits over a period of time and on into

  adulthood.

• It is not at all an easy thing to do. Irregular eating habits

  can have small, mediocre to devastating side effects on the human

  body. The most common problem with western eating habits is that

  people eat three large meals in a day and a lot of snacks in

  between to end those hunger cravings. Now most of these snacks are

  refined processed carbohydrate foods.

• Refined processed carbohydrates contain a high amount of

  sugars, fats and chemical preservatives used to preserve the food.

  It simple terms, it is unhealthy. This can lead to weight gain,

  obesity, diabetes type 2, and other diet related diseases appearing

  in childhood (or later as an adult). Many people fail to recognize

  the effects of these type of foods.

• A balanced diet is essential if a child (or a person of any

  age) is to flourish physically and mentally. A lack of essential

  nutrients can lead to:

1. failure to flourish
2. poor growth
3. poor development
4. poor physical and mental health
5. infections
6. disease
7. or even death.

For more information about the negative effects of an

unbalanced diet, see the page links, further down this page,

listed under Related Questions.