Kids Healthy Food Menu

When we're creating our children's meals it can be easy to give them packaged foods instead of homemade treats. Unfortunately, these foods are high in calories and preservatives. Instead, make sure that your child has starches, fruits and vegetables, and protein in each one of their meals. This will keep them healthy and avoid overweight results.

A starch is a food that contains grains or similarly constructed vegetables. For instance, rice, bread, potatoes, and noodles are all starches. While this ingredient contains more calories than vegetables or fruits, it can have a lot of fiber and protein. For breakfast, meals tend to contain mostly starch. Oatmeal is a healthy alternative to pancakes or waffles, and it will keep your child feeling full through his morning classes. For lunches, a good starch would be whole wheat bread in a sandwich or the noodles in a noodle salad. Either is easy to make and can fit well in your child's lunch box. For dinner, potatoes, rice and noodles are all welcome on the plate. A baked potato with ranch dressing on top is a healthy option for your child.

Each meal should contain at least a few servings of both fruit and vegetables. While some children are very finicky where this is concerned, these are still important for their diet. For breakfast, sliced apples or oranges can add a few servings of fruit. Also, try adding a sliced banana or mixed berries to their oatmeal or cereal. For lunch, throw some pickles in with the rest of their meal. Many children don't often think of pickles as a vegetable, and won't have any problem with eating them. For dinner, make sure that a fruit or vegetable makes up at least one third of the total meal. Steamed broccoli goes well with chicken and a baked potato. Raw veggies like carrot and celery sticks are usually kid favorites, and you don't have to cook a thing!

It's important to keep protein in your child's diet, as this gives strength and energy. Although red meat like steak and ribs may taste good, there are healthier options. For breakfast, bypass sausages in favor of lean cooked ham. For vegetarian children, toss some walnuts or almonds into their oatmeal. For lunch, lean thin-sliced turkey is a great sandwich filling. You can also try turkey dogs or a cold chicken breast cut into strips. For dinner, chicken breasts are very versatile. Season them with lemon pepper, barbecue sauce, or garlic to add a bit of variation. Fish like salmon or tilapia can be good as well.