Here we go over some questions on appropriate eating behaviors for young children, such as when and what kind of snacks make good choices.

Unlike adults, children require several meals and snacks throughout the day to meet the needs of their young metabolisms, and moreover, snack time requires some special planning!

1. Case Study 1: Qiqi
Qiqi is 14 months old. Her mom gives her a biscuit to eat at which point Qiqi’s father comes home and sees Qiqi eating the cookie. It’s 2 hours until dinner time and Qiqi’s mom and dad have an argument over whether the cookie was appropriate or not. Mom says “yes, it’s still 2 hours before dinner.” Dad says, “you’ll spoil her appetite and she won’t eat a proper dinner.”

The Childhood Nutritionist Says:
If Qiqi’s father expects Qiqi to wait another 2 hours to eat anything, he is wrong here. A child over age 1, now making the transition from milk to a larger variety of foods, has a very fast and hungry metabolism. A few biscuits between lunch and dinner will not effect Qiqi’s dinner.

These are my top 3 reasons why snacks are a great idea:
1. They act as training for the child’s developing digestive system
2. They supplemental the energy intake the child’s body craves. Meals and snacks throughout the day should be roughly allocated as –
Breakfast: 30%; Lunch 35% to 40%; Dinner 25%; Snacks 10%
3. Beyond satisfying the child’s energy needs, snack time presents another wonderful bonding opportunity with mom or dad.

2. Case Study 2: Lele
Lele is 2 years 10 months old and spending the day with grandma and grandpa. Lele is overweight and grandma figures that since Lele’s metabolism is so fast, she can help his weight problem by feeding him a little bit each hour throughout the day.

The Childhood Nutritionist Says:
Children Lele’s age become overweight usually due to an excess intake of food, eating the wrong kinds of food at the wrong times or a combination of these factors.
A child such as Lele should have breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus 2 snacks during the day if needed, preferably 1 between meals and/or 1 after dinner and before bed. Milk and fruits are always a good choice, and stay away from sweets especially before bedtime. It’s important that Lele has proper rest for keeping healthy metabolism and we don’t want sugar setting on his teeth during the night.

3. Case Study 3: Yiyi
Yiyi is two years old and has developed a serious sweet tooth. Yiyi’s mom thinks Yiyi can have some sweets, but Yiyi won’t stop demanding more.

The Childhood Nutritionist Says:
As the “ terrible 2’s ” set in your child starts becoming a little athlete -- moving all the time. Using up all that energy naturally leaves the child wanting the quick energy fix they’ve learned they can get from sugary sweets. The child only knows that she wants glucose and a little sugar won’t hurt. But in the case of Yiyi, slowly wean her off the sugars and onto filling protein rich snacks. Eventually she’ll get more used to the balance and her craving will lessen.

4. Case Study 4: Liangliang
Everyday Liangliang’s grandma picks him up from kindergarten and makes him a mid-afternoon meal.

The Childhood Nutritionist Says:
It’s important to plan the day’s total intake and divide the calories as we mentioned before. But don’t confuse snacks with proper meals. A snack should be just that, and not a full meal. In Liangliang’s case, grandma is disturbing Liangliang’s daily food intake cycle. One possible outcome is that Liangliang like grandma’s food better than the food at school and so he skimps on lunch at school. This will lead to Liangliang over-consuming in the evening, and missing out on the energy he needs during school hours. A better afternoon snack would be a biscuit or breads that aid in digestion and help get Liangliang ready for dinnertime.

5. Case Study 5: Wenwen
Wenwen’s mom is very conscientious of Wenwen’s eating habits at mealtimes. The family sits together and Wenwen has always been a good eater. But when it comes to snacks, Wenwen’s mom gives Wenwen free reign. Snack time is done casually, sometimes with the TV on, and sometimes with Wenwen not washing her hands before her snack.

The Childhood Nutritionist Says:
For adults, snacks are very casual. Without thinking much about it, we’ll snack on some pretzels while typing away at the computer. But for the child, snack time should be treated the same as meal time. That includes sitting down without outside distractions, and very importantly, washing hands before eating!