When children can drink sugar and salt

We want our children to eat healthier. The relationship that the child has with the food depends entirely on the nutritional education that we give him and the example that he sees at home. That is why we must be very aware, from the first moment, of what we feed our baby. Today, specialists warn us

We want our children to eat healthier. The relationship that the child has with the food depends entirely on the nutritional education that we give him and the example that he sees at home. That is why we must be very aware, from the first moment, of what we feed our baby.

Today, specialists warn us about the large amount of salt and sugar that we ingest in our daily lives and that far exceeds the recommended daily amounts. Since the excess of salt and sugar is the source of infinity of ailments, the proposal is to avoid these foods in the baby and moderate their consumption throughout childhood; So, when can children drink sugar and salt?

No salt or sugar for children

If we want to instill a healthy diet for our children it is best to do it from the beginning. The crucial moment in which the baby begins to take its first meals should be free of both salt and sugar. The reason is simple, they do not need it. The salt and sugar that our body already needs contain the food we eat. Therefore, it is not necessary to add an extra. The baby develops

taste buds between 6 and 24 months. Little by little you will discover if your baby food is delicious or simply 'passable', but it is about taking you to some eating habits where the protagonists are the natural foods . Maybe the taste of baby jars is not very pleasant for us, but we can not accustom him from that age to add salt or sugar to completely transform the flavor.Among the most frequent mistakes is thinking that our baby does not like his purée and then we add a pinch of salt. There are even those who sweeten the porridge with sugar or juice. With this we are teaching the baby to completely transform the flavor of food based on

unhealthy additives . And we already know that a preference for sugar from babies can lead to a situation ofchildhood obesity .Salt and sugar in children

When the baby becomes a child, salt and sugar may already appear in their diet. When the child eats everything and eats the same as adults, there is no problem in dressing some dishes with salt, nor in sweetening some desserts, but

always in moderation . We remember that thoseextras that we add of salt and sugar are not exactly necessary for our organism. The risk of eating too much salt may not be too evident in childhood. But if we want our children to become

healthy adults we should start by making family meals with the minimum amount of salt. After all, putting salt on the plates is a cultural rather than gustatory issue . As always when we talk about instilling healthy habits to our children, the best teaching is the example.On the other hand,

excessive consumption of sugar presents more problems in childhood. An excessive intake of sugar goes hand in hand with problems such as tooth decay or childhood obesity , which are the big enemies to fight. And the fact is that excess sugar appears in children's food without warning, in the form of sweets, pastries and soft drinks that they consume without being very aware of their high sugar content.Laura Vélez

. Editor of Guiainfantil.com