Clinical Reference Systems: Pediatric Advisor 10.0

Snacking worries parents and they often try to prevent eating between meals. That isn't necessary or even helpful. Children's energy needs are high, and they usually can't eat a lot at any one time, so they need to eat about every 3 hours. What's important is that you have control over the time of the snacks and the type of food.

TIMING OF SNACKS

Offer snacks midway between meals. Give snacks long enough after the meal that your children know they'll have to wait a while to eat again if they refuse the meal. That keeps children from refusing meals and then asking for food a short time later. It will be easier for you to refuse their begging if you know a snack is coming up.

If children have an early lunch and late dinner, they may need two snacks. Try having a snack with protein, fat, and carbohydrate in it 2 or 3 hours after lunch. Then offer a lighter carbohydrate snack, such as fruit juice or crackers, later in the afternoon.

REGULATING SNACKS

Plan a reasonable snack time and get the food on the table. Then you will be in charge of the timing, location, and selection of food. If you wait for your children to request the snack, they may have made up their minds about what they want and you may have a struggle over food.

SELECTING SNACKS

In general, snacks should be nutritious. Any food appropriate for a meal is OK for a snack. Snacks that you want to last a while should have some protein, fat, and carbohydrate, the same as a nutritious meal. Snacks should be big and substantial enough to be filling for a hungry child.

NUTRITIOUS SNACK IDEAS

1. Grain products
   • Bread products

     Use whole-wheat products about half the time. Read the label to make sure the flour is enriched or is whole grain (the first listed ingredient should be whole wheat). Try a variety of yeast breads and quick breads, such as whole wheat, rye, oatmeal, mixed grains, and bran -- plain or with dried fruit. Try rye crisps, whole-grain flat bread, and whole-grain crackers. Serve bread and crackers with cheese, peanut butter, or a glass of milk to give protein and fat.

   • Dry cereals

     Choose varieties of cereals with less than 5 grams of sucrose or other sugar per serving. Serve with milk to give protein and fat. Add dried fruits, nuts, and seeds for variety and increased nutrients.

   • Popcorn

     Try using grated cheese on the popcorn instead of salt and butter. Serve with milk or cocoa to give protein and fat. Be cautious offering popcorn to young children as they may choke on it.

   • Cookies

     Bake your own cookies, substituting whole wheat flour for half of the white flour. Try oatmeal, peanut butter, or molasses cookies. Experiment with cutting down on sugar in recipes. Often you can decrease the amount of sugar by one third to one half. Serve cookies with milk to give protein.

2. Beverages

   Use fruit juices and vegetable juices rather than powdered or canned fruit-flavored drinks. Fruit drinks lack folate, fiber and other nutrients provided by real juice.

   Serve milk with bread, crackers, cereal, etc. Mix milk in a blender with a banana or other fruit or mix it with orange juice for a healthy milkshake. Try adding vanilla extract, honey, molasses, or even a little sugar. Use chocolate or strawberry flavorings for a treat sometimes.

3. Vegetable snacks

   Cut up fresh raw vegetables. Be careful about serving broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower because young children could choke on them. Serve the vegetables with peanut butter, cheese, cottage cheese, or milk to provide protein and fat. (Use 2% or whole milk to give fat.) Add crackers or fruit juice for carbohydrates. Good vegetables include:

    
         broccoli             green beans 
         carrots              green peas 
         cauliflower          turnip sticks 
         celery               zucchini 
         cucumber 
   

4. Fresh fruit snacks

   Slice the fruit or serve it whole. Serve it with peanut butter, cottage cheese, yogurt, ricotta cheese, or milk to give protein and fat. Good fruits include:

    
         apples      grapefruit     oranges 
         apricots    grapes         peaches 
         bananas     melons         pears 
         berries     nectarines     pineapple 
   

5. Dried fruit snacks, nuts, and seeds

   Serve dried fruit with nuts (almonds, cashews, peanuts) or seeds (pumpkin, squash, sunflower) to give protein and fat. Be very cautious about giving seeds and nuts to young children because they could choke on them. Nutritious dried fruits include:

    
         apples       dates     pears 
         apricots     figs      prunes 
         bananas      peaches   raisins