With Nutrition Week taking place recently, we look at what it means to practice good nutrition, within and outside childcare settings.
The Importance of Good Nutrition
Nutritious food is essential throughout life for health and wellbeing.
In young children, not only does it help their bodies grow and develop at a healthy rate, but it enables them to fully reach their mental and physical potential.
Below, we address some common questions our parents have with regards to nutrition within our childcare centres.
How can my child gain an understanding of healthy food?
Here at Casa Bambini centres, our educators play an important role in influencing a child’s outlook on healthy food choices. To do so, we include children in several activities like:
- Talking about “always” and “sometimes” foods
- Involving children in creating a healthy menu with our centre chefs
- Talking about nutritious food during mealtimes
- Discussing substitutes for unhealthy foods
- Having related incursions (such as dentist visits) and excursions (such as the Woolworths’ Fresh Food Kids Discovery Tours)
This way, we can further reinforce healthy eating amongst young children with a fun and practical approach.
Does my centre have a healthy eating policy?
It certainly does! The next time you’re in centre, be sure to ask one of our wonderful staff members about it! We always encourage both children and families to be involved and suggest improvements to the current policy. Do you have some healthy recipe ideas that you use at home? Let us know about it so we can share with other families within our centre.
What if my child has dietary concerns?
At Casa Bambini centres, we understand that no two children are the same. Some children may have certain food requirements resulting from their cultural backgrounds, while others may have allergies and intolerances. The good news? We work with them all!
The more detail you can provide our educators with, the better. This way, we can cater to every child’s unique dietary needs.
How do I encourage healthy eating at home?
While there are numerous resources out there, for a good starting point we suggest the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating.
Our friends at Starting Blocks also provide a fantastic factsheet that may help you with meeting your child’s food and nutritional needs.
If you have any more questions or concerns regarding nutrition in care, be sure to have a chat about it with our friendly Centre Managers and educators!