Skills for the Job: Healthy eating in pre-school
Melanie Pilcher
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Helping children establish healthy eating habits from an early age can have long-lasting benefits on their learning and development.
What is healthy eating for under-fives?
The early years are a vital time for children's learning and development.
A nutritionally balanced diet containing a combination of foods is one of the foundations of child health and is important for building both emotional and physical fortitude.
Good nutritional intake and support in developing healthy eating behaviours in the early years were highlighted in the annual report of the chief medical officer last year, which found that one in ten children entering reception classes at four years old are overweight. It is important to also acknowledge that some children are underweight because they do not get enough to eat - either way, the effect on health and development is significant.
What type of diet should under-fives have?
A balanced diet for young children involves combining foods from the five different food groups in the correct proportions. The combination should also involve a mixture of high-calorie and low-calorie foods so that not too many calories are eaten. The five food groups are:
- Bread, cereals and potatoes at meals and occasionally as snacks
- Fruit and vegetables - at least five portions a day
- Milk, cheese and yogurt - at least three times a day
- Meat, fish and vegetarian alternatives - once or twice a day for non-vegetarians and two to three times a day for vegetarians
- Foods high in fats and sugars in moderation, but never instead of the other food groups.
- What can those working with children do to promote healthy food to them?
It is a requirement of the Early Years Foundation Stage that children know the importance for good health of physical exercise and a healthy diet and to talk about ways to keep healthy. Practitioners are judged for their effectiveness in these areas and will have to demonstrate evidence to Ofsted of planned purposeful activities that meet these goals. It is no longer enough to say that healthy meals are provided within the early years setting. The aim now is to embed healthy attitudes towards diet and exercise at this crucial time in a child's development. Practitioners also have an important role in promoting the benefits of vitamin D supplements being given to all children.
How can those working with children successfully influence parents?
Children's food preferences and behaviours are influenced predominantly by their parents and other primary care givers, therefore practitioners must seek to work in partnership with them to offer sensible advice and support, acknowledging that parents want the best for their children, but are sometimes unclear as to what constitutes a healthy balanced diet in the first place.
Staff can support parents by ensuring that they are knowledgeable about what constitutes a healthy balanced diet. Relevant information can be made available on notice-boards, via newsletters, parenting classes and through learning activities with children that can then be shared at home.
Where can I find out more?
The Pre-school Learning Alliance has resources for practitioners and parents, such as cook books and other publications, website links to advice and guidance, webinars, e-learning and training for practitioners.
The Children's Food Trust provides specialist advice, training and support for anyone providing food for children. The Infant and Toddler Forum comprises leading experts from paediatrics, dietetics and child psychology, amongst others, and provides reliable evidence-based resources to support parents and carers in making the right choices when feeding toddlers.
Melanie Pilcher, policy and standards manager, Pre-school Learning Alliance.
TOP TIPS
- Eat with children and aim to make mealtimes happy and relaxed occasions
- Offer foods from all five food groups each day
- Encourage parents to give vitamins A and D each day
- Adults should decide which nutritional foods to offer, taking account of children's dietary needs, but let children decide how much they want to eat
- Respects children's tastes and preferences – never force feed