The habit of starting the day with a healthy breakfast is very important to support children's activities throughout the day. Eating a healthy breakfast in the morning will also help children's brain development during their growth period.
Children need food intake in the morning to restore the energy lost during sleep at night. Because when you sleep at night, digestion will be empty without food for 8-12 hours. If allowed to go through the day without breakfast, children tend to feel tired and lose concentration while studying, mood and their spirits will also be disturbed.
Source of Energy for the Brain
Applying breakfast habits to children greatly affects their brain development. When breakfast, the food eaten in the morning will be absorbed and converted into glucose in the body. Glucose will be a source of energy to support brain performance.
If children often skip breakfast every start of the day, it can increase the likelihood of stunted brain development and performance. Children will tend to have difficulty maintaining concentration, more difficult to solve problems, and have lower memory. As a result, they cannot catch the lesson well.
Applying breakfast habits will also make your weight more stable. When you do activities without breakfast, your stomach will feel hungry. In this condition, children tend to overeat in the afternoon or evening. Children will also tend to look for snacks that are not necessarily healthy to overcome hunger. That's what often triggers children to have excess weight.
However, to get the optimal benefits of breakfast, children are advised to eat healthy and nutritious foods. Because, the more nutrients they get, the better their brain development will be. To support children's brain development, parents need to pay attention to the breakfast menu that is served.
Types of Healthy Food for Breakfast
A healthy breakfast menu should ideally contain carbohydrates, protein, and fiber. The content was proven effective to help brain development. If the brain is well developed, your child will have good concentration, strong memory, and grow up to be a smart child. That way, they will be faster and easier to catch new things, including understanding lessons at school.
Here are some healthy breakfast menus for your kids:
- OatmealBesides being easy to serve, oatmeal contains many important nutrients such as protein and fiber. Protein and fiber will help clean the arteries leading to the brain.
- CerealsCereal can be a kind of healthy breakfast for. Choose cereals made from whole grains that are high in fiber for your child, because whole grains are rich in the benefits of vitamins and minerals that are good for maintaining a healthy digestive tract and brain development in children. In addition, you should choose cereals with low sugar content or avoid adding sugar to the cereals served.
- EggEggs are very good to serve at breakfast because they contain a lot of protein. You can serve it boiled or fried and mixed with a little rice or bread.
- Fruits
You can serve fresh fruits such as apples, mangoes, strawberries, and others. Fruits are rich in vitamins and nutrients that are good for digestion, immunity and growth
- Milk
Milk and its dairy products contain lots of protein and B vitamins which are essential for brain development. Eating yogurt in the morning can help generate energy to support brain work.
- Vegetables
Vegetables such as tomatoes, spinach, carrots, and pumpkin are also very good to eat in the morning because they contain antioxidants that can strengthen and nourish the brain.
- SalmonSalmon contains omega 3, DHA, and EPA which are very good for helping brain development. Salmon can be served with vegetable soup or made into a sandwich with whole grain bread.
Breakfast is one of the most important meal times to fulfill every day. Don't miss the benefits of breakfast to optimize your little one's growth and development, including brain development.
