Parents do various things to serve food for their children to consume, including looking for information on the nutritional content of food. When children start eating (also called complementary foods or MPASI) at 6 months, parents try to ensure that the food eaten by their little ones is nutritious and meets their needs.
“The best food is that which can meet children’s nutritional needs, both from macronutrients such as carbohydrates, fats and proteins, as well as micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals,” explained Dr. Meta Hanindita Sp.A (K), in her book Mommyclopedia. 78 MPASI Recipes.
This is not only during MPASI but also when providing and knowing the nutritional content of children’s food, which continues until the child is one year old and beyond. Parents must pay attention to nutritional intake to meet children’s nutritional needs.
Providing healthy food to children will help support cognitive development (children’s thinking skills) and physical development. Foods that contain carbohydrates, fibre, protein, fat, vitamins and minerals. The composition must also be considered.
“Everything has its own portion. Balanced nutrition for children means 55-60% carbohydrates, 20-30% fat, and 15-25% animal and vegetable protein,” Dr. Meta explained.
Providing healthy food to children is a foundation so that children get used to eating healthy food when they grow up. Children will get used to eating vegetables and fruits and consuming protein and carbohydrates because they are used to what they have consumed since childhood. Provide little by little knowledge about the good nutritional content of the food they consume. For example, if you eat carrots, your eyesight will be good.
If children eat unhealthy foods, such as snacks containing lots of colouring or snacks with high sugar content, they will consume small amounts because they are not used to eating them.
In addition to getting children used to it, other benefits of consuming healthy foods are:
- The body’s energy supply becomes stable.
- Improves mood.
- Helps maintain ideal body weight.
- Helps prevent mental health problems, such as anxiety, depression and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
- Prevent children from developing chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
Introducing Halal Food to Children
Since learning to eat, give children halal food. As we know, in addition to religious orders, halal food is good for the body. Once the child understands, start teaching the child to recognize and distinguish between halal and haram foods. Provide an explanation of the concept of halal and haram and what happens if we consume non-halal foods.
Teach by showing the halal logo on food packaging. Do not allow children to buy food that does not have a halal logo. Explain the possibility of non-halal ingredients in the content of the food they eat.
Invite children to observe the contents listed on the food label. If there are questionable ingredients, such as gelatin, make sure the gelatin is halal. Gelatin is found in children’s favourite snacks, such as soft candy, ice cream, and pudding. Therefore, introducing food composition can teach children to be careful before consuming food.
Parents can also take their children shopping. When shopping with children and finding haram food or drinks, teach them to recognize the differences. Show the differences in packaging, colour, texture, and other characteristics of each food—likewise, show which drinks are not halal, such as beer.
Invite children to read, study, or even memorize verses and hadiths about halal. An example is QS. Al-Maidah verse three or introduce them to the hadith that reads: “The Messenger of Allah said: will not enter heaven anyone whose flesh grows from haram food. Hell is better for him.” (HR. Ahmad) Explain to children that in addition to food ingredients, the way to obtain food must also be halal. Food must be purchased in a halal way, not food purchased from theft, corruption, or fraud. (***)
