Boosting Your Child"s Brain Power
The next time your child's teacher tells you he is having trouble concentrating in class, or your child comes home with poor grades, save the lecture and take a look at your refrigerator instead.
Most parents are aware that there is a link between nutrition and school grades, but many don't realize the damage malnutrition and wrong diets can cause.
And if you have a child with special needs, you need to make an extra effort to give your child the right diet.
The wrong foods and what they can do to your child's mental capabilities Undernourished children usually lag far behind their peers, especially in mental abilities.
Early in childhood and infancy, malnutrition and a lack of essential foods in diet can lead to brain development defects.
If your child is displaying a marked indifference to his/her surroundings, is listless, irritable, has a low attention span, reduced curiosity and language difficulties, his/her diet may be at fault.
Several research studies haven proven that diet is a contributing factor to mood swings and other behavioral problems.
In fact, diet plays such an important role in mind development that necessary learning skills like the ability to comprehend visual or audio stimuli, and reading, writing and language comprehension are also severely affected.
Needless to say, this translates to poor school performance.
The right nutrition and supplements Are you a parent struggling to make sense of the conflicting dietary advice available these days? You are not alone.
Most parents know that their kids need healthy food, but don't know how to ensure a balanced diet.
Experts advocate a combination of nutrition and supplements to tackle dietary deficiencies.
Iron, zinc, essential fats, vitamins A, C, and many B's have been known to boost the mental development of school children.
Supplements of these and other essential vitamins and minerals in their prescribed doses by a nutritionist/ natural physician can be vital in improving the memory and learning skills of the child.
How can you be sure your child is getting these vital brain foods? These vitamins are abundantly found in citrus and other fruits, green leafy vegetables, whole grains, wheat germ, brown rice, nuts and beans.
Here are some more details:
Foods to be consumed in moderation Too often parents indulge kids, because they think they are too young to 'diet'.
However, it's best that kids learn to appreciate wholesome food early in life.
Excessive consumption of hydrogenated fats prevents the absorption of essential fatty acids.
Too much refined sugar and refined carbohydrates (white flour foods like cookies, cakes, white bread, polished rice, sodas, candy) in the diet also cause lethargy and lack of attention in children and this may lead to poorer grades.
They are especially bad for children with ADHD.
If you want to give your child fruit juice, try to make them fresh or use them up within one or two days.
Most ready to drink juices are flavoured and sugary.
They provide only sugars and none of the vitamins that your child may obtain from fresh fruits.
Carbohydrates in general can be classified according to their Glycemic index (GI).
Foods with high GI include refined sugars, white flour, polished rice etc.
These can cause steep rise in blood sugar levels.
Such fluctuations in blood sugars can be detrimental to your child especially if he/she has an attention deficit problem.
On the other hand, foods with low GI help maintain a steady of sugar level in your child's blood.
This can provide energy for longer periods and does not cause lethargy and fatigue that high GI foods trigger.
You can give brown bread, lots of whole grains, soya, muesli, oats etc as a source of low GI foods to your children at breakfast for optimum benefits.
Food allergies and Heavy Metals Food allergies, food intolerances and heavy metals are very common and prevent children from achieving optimal growth.
Parents need to know how to identify and handle these problems because they have also been linked to aggravation of ADHD and other behavioural and learning difficulties like restlessness, lack of concentration, aggressive behaviour or withdrawal.
Common food allergens/sensitivities include milk (especially cow's milk), eggs, soy protein, wheat or gluten, peanuts, walnuts or cashew nuts.
Food additives, colors and chemicals like tartrazine, carmine, annatto, MSG (Mono Sodium Glutamate), benzoate, nitrates, sulfites etc.
can also result in food allergies and intolerance.
Heavy metal toxicity is becoming more common amongst children living in polluted cities.
Metals can accumulate in the brain, resulting in reduced intelligence, memory and impulse control.
York tests and Great Plains Laboratory tests are available to diagnose food allergies and intolerances as well as heavy metal toxicity.
If your child has a food allergy, make sure you substitute the allergy-causing food with a healthy option.
Stay away from foods that have additives, colors and chemicals in them.
Detoxification programs can be implemented for those children who are high in metals.
Water Water consumption by our children should be encouraged regularly.
Have them bring a bottle to school and make sure they have access to it at all times.
As our bodies and brains require water to optimize their function, sodas and other sugary drinks should be avoided and only pure filtered water given.
Pure fruit juice or freshly squeezed could be given once a day and diluted partially with water.
Dehydration signs can be tiredness, flushing of the face or overheating, lack of concentration, dry lips,skin and mouth, thirst and constipation.
If your child's urine is very dark, then he/she is dehydrated.
The role of wholesome, fresh food in boosting your child's mental growth can thus never be undermined.
Moreover, by teaching your kids to eat healthy, you are also teaching them a life skill, while simultaneously helping them get those better grades!
Most parents are aware that there is a link between nutrition and school grades, but many don't realize the damage malnutrition and wrong diets can cause.
And if you have a child with special needs, you need to make an extra effort to give your child the right diet.
The wrong foods and what they can do to your child's mental capabilities Undernourished children usually lag far behind their peers, especially in mental abilities.
Early in childhood and infancy, malnutrition and a lack of essential foods in diet can lead to brain development defects.
If your child is displaying a marked indifference to his/her surroundings, is listless, irritable, has a low attention span, reduced curiosity and language difficulties, his/her diet may be at fault.
Several research studies haven proven that diet is a contributing factor to mood swings and other behavioral problems.
In fact, diet plays such an important role in mind development that necessary learning skills like the ability to comprehend visual or audio stimuli, and reading, writing and language comprehension are also severely affected.
Needless to say, this translates to poor school performance.
The right nutrition and supplements Are you a parent struggling to make sense of the conflicting dietary advice available these days? You are not alone.
Most parents know that their kids need healthy food, but don't know how to ensure a balanced diet.
Experts advocate a combination of nutrition and supplements to tackle dietary deficiencies.
Iron, zinc, essential fats, vitamins A, C, and many B's have been known to boost the mental development of school children.
Supplements of these and other essential vitamins and minerals in their prescribed doses by a nutritionist/ natural physician can be vital in improving the memory and learning skills of the child.
How can you be sure your child is getting these vital brain foods? These vitamins are abundantly found in citrus and other fruits, green leafy vegetables, whole grains, wheat germ, brown rice, nuts and beans.
Here are some more details:
- Iron rich foods include beans, whole grains, vegetables like spinach, broccoli, meat, liver and dry fruits like raisins and dates.
- Zinc is essential for development of immunity and the brain, and can be found in beans, peas, lentils, peanuts, seeds, whole grains etc.
Zinc supplements are known to improve memory and attention spans especially in children with learning and behavioral disorders like Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or ADHD.
A deficiency can be seen from white marks on fingernails, poor growth, acne and mental disturbances. - Calcium is vital for bone and overall growth of children as well as other functions in the body.
Calcium rich foods include leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds and dairy products.
A high percentage of the population are intolerant to dairy so must get their calcium from other sources.
Deficiencies symptoms can be muscle cramps, insomnia, and nervousness.
Calcium should be taken with magnesium for maximum absorption. - Magnesium is another mineral found abundantly in nuts, beans, tomatoes, spinach, etc.
the deficiency of which can adversely affect the growth of a child.
Apart from health problems like allergies and asthma, magnesium deficiency is also linked to ADHD and other behavioral problems in children. - Choline taken with B5 can also boost memory and mental performance.
An easy way to do get your child to take this is to sprinkle Lecithin granules (found at your health food store) on your food.
Please make sure it contains more than 30% phosphatidyl choline.
This should be taken everyday to see results. - Essential fatty acids like omega-3 fatty acids composed of essential components like Eicosapentanoic acid (EPA) and Docosahexanoic acid (DHA) are extremely beneficial to children's brain development.
These are commonly found in oily cold water fish like salmon and mackerel, oils like flaxseed oil, soybean oil, and rape seed or canola oil, and other foods like soybeans, kidney beans, fenugreek seeds, spinach, cauliflower, broccoli, pumpkin seeds and walnuts.
When you supplement your child's diet with these essential fats it brings about a definite improvement in school performance, memory and learning abilities.
Did you know that making these a regular part of your child's diet can also decrease behavioural abnormalities? Kids with ADHD especially benefit from consuming these good fats with reduced attention deficit problems, physical aggression and disruptive behaviour.
Foods to be consumed in moderation Too often parents indulge kids, because they think they are too young to 'diet'.
However, it's best that kids learn to appreciate wholesome food early in life.
Excessive consumption of hydrogenated fats prevents the absorption of essential fatty acids.
Too much refined sugar and refined carbohydrates (white flour foods like cookies, cakes, white bread, polished rice, sodas, candy) in the diet also cause lethargy and lack of attention in children and this may lead to poorer grades.
They are especially bad for children with ADHD.
If you want to give your child fruit juice, try to make them fresh or use them up within one or two days.
Most ready to drink juices are flavoured and sugary.
They provide only sugars and none of the vitamins that your child may obtain from fresh fruits.
Carbohydrates in general can be classified according to their Glycemic index (GI).
Foods with high GI include refined sugars, white flour, polished rice etc.
These can cause steep rise in blood sugar levels.
Such fluctuations in blood sugars can be detrimental to your child especially if he/she has an attention deficit problem.
On the other hand, foods with low GI help maintain a steady of sugar level in your child's blood.
This can provide energy for longer periods and does not cause lethargy and fatigue that high GI foods trigger.
You can give brown bread, lots of whole grains, soya, muesli, oats etc as a source of low GI foods to your children at breakfast for optimum benefits.
Food allergies and Heavy Metals Food allergies, food intolerances and heavy metals are very common and prevent children from achieving optimal growth.
Parents need to know how to identify and handle these problems because they have also been linked to aggravation of ADHD and other behavioural and learning difficulties like restlessness, lack of concentration, aggressive behaviour or withdrawal.
Common food allergens/sensitivities include milk (especially cow's milk), eggs, soy protein, wheat or gluten, peanuts, walnuts or cashew nuts.
Food additives, colors and chemicals like tartrazine, carmine, annatto, MSG (Mono Sodium Glutamate), benzoate, nitrates, sulfites etc.
can also result in food allergies and intolerance.
Heavy metal toxicity is becoming more common amongst children living in polluted cities.
Metals can accumulate in the brain, resulting in reduced intelligence, memory and impulse control.
York tests and Great Plains Laboratory tests are available to diagnose food allergies and intolerances as well as heavy metal toxicity.
If your child has a food allergy, make sure you substitute the allergy-causing food with a healthy option.
Stay away from foods that have additives, colors and chemicals in them.
Detoxification programs can be implemented for those children who are high in metals.
Water Water consumption by our children should be encouraged regularly.
Have them bring a bottle to school and make sure they have access to it at all times.
As our bodies and brains require water to optimize their function, sodas and other sugary drinks should be avoided and only pure filtered water given.
Pure fruit juice or freshly squeezed could be given once a day and diluted partially with water.
Dehydration signs can be tiredness, flushing of the face or overheating, lack of concentration, dry lips,skin and mouth, thirst and constipation.
If your child's urine is very dark, then he/she is dehydrated.
The role of wholesome, fresh food in boosting your child's mental growth can thus never be undermined.
Moreover, by teaching your kids to eat healthy, you are also teaching them a life skill, while simultaneously helping them get those better grades!
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