Healthy Breakfast for Kids

Sometimes it can be difficult to find a healthy breakfast for kids. Cereals aims at children will claim to be healthy as they have vitamins and minerals added to them, but if you look at the sugar content and what is actually in the cereal they aren’t going to give your child much energy for the day.

A good start to the day is something that gives your child energy for the day forward. So how about a bowl of porridge and if you want to add some of those vitamins that the cereal companies think your children need then put some sultanas of chopped banana in it, or serve it with a fruit salad. Other healthy breakfast ideas for kids include home made muesli, when you can create your own blend of toasted oats, dried fruits, nuts and seeds to suit what they like best. You can use apricots, dates, dried mango, dried pineapple, or coconut with walnuts, macadamia nuts, cashew nuts, peanuts or brazil nuts.  You can add seeds such as hemp seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds.  You can serve it with hot of cold milk.

If you like a cooked breakfast your child can eat healthy foods such as scrambled eggs with mushrooms, tomatoes and toast.  Or you can serve a small piece of lean bacon in a sandwich with tomatoes and lettuce.  Make sure any bread that you use is wholemeal so that they get more energy from this.  You can also serve them peanut butter on toast or baked beans on toast for slow release energy that will help them keep going till lunch time.

If you don’t have time in the morning for more than a bowl of cereal then try to pick brands that are healthier.  Pick ones that have no sugar or only a small amount of sugar, and try to get ones that are made of whole wheat or oats as these will give the most energy.  Encourage your child to mix some dried fruit with it, or give them a piece of fruit such as a apple or banana to eat on the way to school.

Drinks in the morning are important too.  Don’t let your child have caffeine in the morning as it will only give them a short term high and leave them feeling sleepy later in the day.  It may also cause them to have headaches as their body may start to crave the caffeine fix.  Fruit juice is a much better alternative as it contains vitamin C which is great for their growing body and will help them fend off the germs which they are exposed to all the time at school.

It is important for children to get into good eating habits while they are young, as it will set them up to be healthy eaters for life.  Therefore it is really important to provide a healthy breakfast for kids.  It will also help them to have a lot more energy through the morning and they will be able to concentrate more easily on their studies at school and have more energy for the physical parts of the day.