Don't assume that just because your child gains weight, they are healthy.

The general mindset of most parents today when raising children focuses solely on ensuring their child gains weight steadily, without considering the potential consequences of excessive weight for the child.

With 50-60% fat, cream can cause bloating, indigestion, and even obesity - Photo: shutterstock

Numerous studies have shown that obese children are more prone to heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and also suffer from psychological and academic problems due to frequent teasing and isolation from peers.

Children become obese due to their parents' habits.

According to a survey by the Ho Chi Minh City Nutrition Center, in just the last 5 years, the rate of overweight and obese primary school students in Ho Chi Minh City has reached an alarming level (38%). The main reason is that children are not provided with a balanced diet, mostly due to the eating habits of families today.

1. Convenient meals: To keep up with the fast-paced modern lifestyle, nutritious family meals are often replaced by time-saving, high-fat foods like fried chicken, hamburgers, or sugary drinks and soft drinks. This is considered a characteristic of childhood obesity in urban areas.

2. Abuse of fat supplements: To ensure their children develop healthily and receive adequate nutrients, parents often believe that the more their children eat, the better. However, do these products truly meet the nutritional needs of children aged 1-6 years? In particular, once a child becomes obese, the risk of developing diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and lipid metabolism disorders in adulthood is very high.

3. Insufficient opportunities for physical activity in children: Furthermore, another reality is that children in large cities are exposed to high technology from a very young age. They spend a lot of time playing video games, neglecting beneficial physical activities. Meanwhile, physical activity plays a crucial role in the development of a child's brain and physical health. Children who are inactive tend to become passive and react slowly to situations. In addition, a lack of physical activity is also a contributing factor to childhood obesity.

For a healthy future for children

Every parent wants their child to develop a balanced weight and height, but they shouldn't overdo it by including too much fat in their child's meals. This causes children to absorb only fat while neglecting other nutrients, missing out on important milestones for overall development.

Mothers should focus on building nutritious meals for children with an appropriate protein:fat:carbohydrate (P:L:G) ratio, as recommended by the Institute for Medical and Social Research (ISMS) as follows:

For children aged 1-3 years, the appropriate P:L:G ratio would be 13.6% - 17.9% - 48.9%;

The age group from 4 to 6 years old has a prevalence rate of 13.5% - 22.5% - 64%. In addition, mothers also need to supplement their children with appropriate micronutrients for each stage of their development.

Here are some things parents should keep in mind when planning meals for their children:

1. Consume fast food, dairy products, and sugary soft drinks in moderation…

2. Supplementing vitamin K2 through foods such as eggs, meat, and dairy products with balanced nutritional content like yogurt, and especially fresh cheese, helps enhance calcium absorption, giving children strong bones.

3. Supplementing with digestive enzymes such as Lactococcus lactis subsp. cremoris and Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis enhances the absorption and digestion of food in children.

4. Encourage children to be active through family exercise sessions such as cycling, jogging, or swimming…

According to Thanh Nien newspaper.