Our children are the future. Let’s help provide them with a healthy lifestyle.
The most important thing to think about is good, basic food of the best quality and nutrition available. My aim is to avoid as many additives, flavourings and colorants as possible. Children should eat natural, healthy foods that fill them up and help them stay full while at the same time providing the right amount of energy.
As a health coach, teacher, mom of three and with over 20 years of experience working with children, I would like to share my experiences and knowledge with you on the effects food has on children’s health.
Over the years I have seen how food not only affects the individual child but also groups of children. I have observed how children react to fast-working carbohydrates, how they ‘turbo energise’ and how sugar affects them in a negative way. Concentration ability decreases due to bad food choices.
My hope is to provide you with easy-to-follow, practical tips on good food for growing children. Food that helps children to concentrate and to sit still in class. Food that provides the right amount of positive energy and food that makes them full and satisfied for hours.
Natural food with high nutritional value is the basis of our children’s health.
I use the definition LCHF (low carb high fat). This way of eating, or lifestyle, is about decreasing carbohydrates and increasing consumption of natural fats. This is beneficial for all of us, not only for children. In doing this you will feel fuller and satisfied for a longer period of time, avoid blood sugar peaks and diminish cravings and the need to eat sweet things or constantly snack.
If you eat meat, fish, eggs, fat, nuts, berries and vegetables you will provide the body with all the nutrients it needs: vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.
Carbohydrates (carbs) consist of sugar, fibre and starch. Sugar is easily distinguishable due to its sweet taste. Starch, however, can be more difficult to discern. Starch is found in foods such as flour, bread, oats, cereals, porridge, pasta, potatoes, rice, corn, brown rice and bulgur. Carbs are also found in milk, yoghurt, vegetables, cereals, nuts, cakes, biscuits, popcorn, chips, beans, sweets and candy, soda and rice cakes.
Carbs are quickly broken down into glucose (blood sugar) and therefore raise your blood sugar. High blood sugar stimulates insulin production in the pancreas and the insulin in turn opens up the cells in the body to take in the blood sugar and turn it into energy. A high amount of insulin turns blood sugar into fat and increases body fat storage. Too much insulin stops the burning of fat and can lead to an unhealthy body.
When you decrease the amount of carbohydrates you consume, you don’t need to be afraid of eating fats or calories, as they will not store as fat in your body. Avoid choosing foods that are high in fat and high in sugar (carbs).
Parts of the brain need glucose to function properly. Carbohydrates turn to glucose in the liver, but this is not the only way of producing glucose for the brain. The liver can also produce glucose from proteins. This process is called gluconeogenesis.
We are all individuals and are therefore more or less tolerant of different foods and amounts of carbohydrates. The effect of eating something sweet or something that raises blood sugar can vary from one person to another. This is why I mention how sensitive the body can be to food. For those who are sensitive to carbohydrates, a portion of fruit or a helping of potatoes can be sufficient to trigger cravings for the wrong foods and/or something sweet to eat. Children, too, tolerate different amounts of carbohydrates for the same reason.
Carbohydrates are what I call turbo energy. If a child has the choice, he or she will most likely choose carbohydrates before other foods, and especially carbs that are extremely high in sugar, such as white bread and white pasta instead of wholewheat foods. They tend to choose food that provides them with the most energy, which may also give them a ‘kick’.
Consuming more carbohydrates than the body can tolerate will result in too much sugar in the bloodstream. Initially it feels like a boost of energy, but shortly afterwards the blood sugar levels decrease, along with the ability to concentrate. This leads to the need to eat again in order to gain more energy, which will quickly diminish again and will leave you feeling tired and listless. It’s a relentless cycle.
Bearing this in mind, imagine how this can affect a child, or children in general, on a daily basis. A breakfast in the form of cereal, fruit yoghurt, bread, juice or maybe flavoured milk is a breakfast with total turbo energy. The children then go off to school where they perhaps have a snack in the form of a biscuit, fruit or sandwich. More turbo energy. And then along comes lunch time and the turbo energy intake continues with whatever high-carb food they eat, such as sandwiches, hotdogs, pasta or rice with a meal. During this time the child is expected to listen, concentrate, sit still and absorb what the teacher is saying. Some children can cope, but many cannot. They have too much turbo energy in their bodies. Sitting still can be difficult enough, never mind concentrating at the same time.
It is important that children consume good fat in their diet, and here I emphasise the importance of using real butter and not margarine. The fat in their diet is what makes them feel satisfied and keeps them full for longer. A lack of fat will cause children to become hungry again shortly after eating a meal or snack, and at the same time make them inattentive.
Imagine children eating a nourishing and filling breakfast that is low in carbs and high in fat. This will keep them full for a long period of time and help them be more focused. A low-carb and high-fat breakfast consists of, for example, eggs, tea, low-carb bread or low-carb crisp bread with a generous amount of butter and a filling topping such as salami, ham, cheese, avocado or egg with mayonnaise.
After such a breakfast children are able to concentrate better, sit still and listen for a longer period of time. They are also calmer, have a calm tummy and feel full and satisfied all morning until lunch time. If they eat a nourishing and filling lunch that contains proteins, fats and minimal carbs, this will provide them with the right amount of energy to play after lunch and then go in and work again, without having any difficulty focusing or having cravings or hunger pangs for something more to eat. With less excess turbo energy I will go so far as to say, from my experience working with children, that even conflicts will diminish.
I encourage every parent to try this LCHF lifestyle for themselves and their children. Observe how your children react and how sensitive they are to carbs. I think most parents will be pleasantly surprised at the improvement in their children’s health and wellbeing.
Fat is good for you, fat is nourishing and we all need to consume it. Fat is what makes us feel full and satisfied. Fat is also necessary in order for our bodies to absorb important fat-soluble vitamins, such as vitamin A, D, E and K, and is important for our immune system. Eating fat also increases the rate at which your body burns fat.
Your choice of fat, however, is important. You should choose good fats, natural fats and fats that humans have been eating since the very beginning and that are found naturally in our diet.
The fats you need to avoid in your diet are all trans fats, interesterified fat, hydrogenated fats and partially hydrogenated fats. Margarine in all forms should be avoided, as it is artificial fat that has been bleached, coloured and flavoured with artificial flavouring to make it as similar as possible to real butter. Margarine has a long shelf life, does not become rancid and is cheap, but it is not good for the body.
Children and adults should eat full-fat and natural foods. All diet and light products should be avoided because the manufacturer has reduced or removed the healthy fats and most likely replaced them with carbohydrates, for example flavoured yoghurts.
Always use full-fat (full-cream) products: milk, crème fraîche, cream, yoghurt, cheese, mayonnaise, etc. These high in fat products make you feel full and satisfied and are more natural. The wonderful thing about fat is that it has no impact on blood sugar levels or insulin.
Proteins are the building blocks of the body. They consist of vital amino acids, which are largely responsible for the production of our muscles, nails and hair. In other words, everyone needs to eat proteins.
In adults, there are eight different amino acids that the body cannot create by itself. Children need 10 different amino acids. Eggs, meat, fish and fowl are foods that are high in protein. An egg has a protein composition that is good for your body and contains everything that the body needs, except vitamin C. If there is one product that is worth spending that little bit extra on in order to get a higher quality product, it is organic eggs.
Choosing low-carb food with good fat content is, in general, normal and natural food. By eating low-carb food your blood sugar levels will remain constant and will not put strain on your insulin system. Staying satisfied for a longer period of time will prevent cravings for something sweet.
A low-carb diet can also help to drastically reduce health problems such as gastric problems, heartburn, skin problems, acne, depression, sleep disorders, mood swings, joint pains, lifeless hair, migraines, irregular blood sugar curves, diabetes, eating disorders, fibromyalgia, PMS, obesity, asthma and sugar addiction. A LCHF diet will provide the body with all the nourishment it needs, and you can eat your way to good health.
This book is not about cutting out all carbs or about feeding children a strict low-carb diet. It is about finding your way through the jungle of products and information in our society, leading to a life of natural foods and products that satisfy hunger, banish cravings and provide a healthy lifestyle.
My goal is to give tips and inspiration for a healthy way of living with good alternatives for the whole family. This includes a small amount of carbohydrates in fruits, berries and vegetables for children and teenagers. Adults can choose a stricter version of the low-carb way of eating to meet personal needs and goals. Observe how much your body tolerates and how sensitive you and your children are to various carbohydrates.
Eat, live and enjoy!
| Metric | US cups |
|---|---|
| 5 ml | 1 tsp |
| 15 ml | 1 Tbsp |
| 60 ml | 4 Tbsp or 1⁄4 cup |
| 80 ml | 1⁄3 cup |
| 125 ml | 1⁄2 cup |
| 160 ml | 2⁄3 cup |
| 200 ml | 3⁄4 cup |
| 250 ml | 1 cup |
| Celsius (°C) | Fahrenheit (°F) | Gas mark |
|---|---|---|
| 100 °C | 200 °F | 1⁄4 |
| 110 °C | 225 °F | 1⁄4 |
| 120 °C | 250 °F | 1⁄2 |
| 140 °C | 275 °F | 1 |
| 150 °C | 300 °F | 2 |
| 160 °C | 325 °F | 3 |
| 180 °C | 350 °F | 4 |
| 190 °C | 375 °F | 5 |
| 200 °C | 400 °F | 6 |
| 220 °C | 425 °F | 7 |
| 230 °C | 450 °F | 8 |
| 240 °C | 475 °F | 9 |