A well-known maxim goes – ‘Eat your breakfast like a king, eat your lunch like a prince but eat your dinner like a pauper’. But today is the world of fast food. Time is a commodity that is always in short supply. With both husband and wife having to rush to work and being dependent on a maid/ a cook, it is indeed a difficult proposition to have a healthy breakfast not only for themselves but also for the kids. To save time, the temptation to use readymade cereals or junk food, is something that is difficult to resist. In this article, we attempt to ponder about ways and means to make this a less taxing exercise for the parents. A good breakfast is essential to maintain a healthy energy level throughout the day.
Initiatives by Schools
Some schools have issued strict instructions to parents not to substitute a healthy breakfast with packets of potato chips/ wafers. This is a commendable move. For instance, all the children studying in the primary section in Godrej Udyachal School (Vikhroli, Mumbai) have the good fortune of being treated to a delicious breakfast comprising milk, cereals, porridge, vegetable sandwiches and fruits.
Planning
Even if cooks are preparing the breakfast for children, the parents should not be complacent about the same. This does not mean that you have to breathe down your cook’s neck and micro manage. Rather one can plan the breakfast to be given to your kids in advance and accordingly give instructions. I would go one step further and say that even if you are a working mother, you can stretch yourself a bit by getting up 10 minutes earlier in the morning and prepare a breakfast for your child. This is because the breakfast that you prepare yourself will have that ingredient called ‘love’.
Tantrums and how to handle them
It is common for kids to throw tantrums and demand/long for something that their friends bring. For instance, when my daughter insisted that her friends brought in samosas and pastries for the tiffin, we patiently explained to her that this was junk food and something that one can indulge in occasionally but not regularly. True to our promise, we gave our children items like pav bhaji, samosas, pizzas etc once in a month. Most of the times, we prepared this ourselves on a Friday evening or a Saturday evening. We explained to our children about the drawbacks of consuming soft drinks and they understood. The trick here is to engage the child by a healthy dialogue instead of raving and ranting. Anyway, the process of making a child understand is a gradual process. As parents, we have every reason to give our children what they want, provided it is healthy and nutritious. The more we encourage junk food, the more we will fail to instil a liking in the child for a nutritious breakfast.
Variety is the Spice of Life!
Years ago, a well known cookbook author had commented very rightly that presentation of a dish is very important. An upma or poha made with some coriander leaves sprinkled on them looks picturesque and appealing. Cutting cucumber slices and using them over a vegetable pulao adds to the appeal. Not only children, but even adults can get bored of the same routine stuff day in and day out. So, as parents, we have to ensure that breakfasts are never repeated. Our Indian diet is full of menus that can be used to add variety to our breakfasts and also provide wholesome nutrition. So, do not repeat the breakfast. If it is vegetable sandwich on Monday, give a cheese sandwich on Wednesday. If you are giving them roti-subzi on Tuesdays, let it be a veg pulao on a Thursday.
If it is a noodle that your child likes, make a noodle that is rich with tomatoes, carrots, capsicums, potatoes, onions. Use a tomato ketchup to go with the noodle.
Instead of plain curd rice, what about sauntering it with mustard seeds and asafoetida and mildly sprinkling it with salt? Carrots can be diced in small sizes / grated and can be added to the curd rice. Unleash your creativity in making even ordinary foods more delectable. If chapattis are in excess, make chapatti upma! So, providing a nutritious food to your child is not something that is impossible. All that you need is a will and a genuine interest in providing a nourishing and nutritious food to your child.
Fruits and Dry fruits
To encourage your children to eat fruits, parents should themselves have fruits every day. You do not expect your kids to eat fruits, when you pamper yourself with samosas and vada pavs. Many kids do have oats porridge in the morning or a bowl of milk and corn flakes. You can add to the taste of these items by using natural ingredients like honey, raisins and cashews. Dry fruits like almonds, black raisins, anjeer (fig), and pistas are good for health as they have essential vitamins and minerals and these can be given in small quantities every day. Bananas and milk are a good combination for those children who are lean and undernourished. The most important thing to be borne in mind is to have a specific time for eating fruits and dry fruits. Dates is another source of vitamins and minerals that can be given to children.
Don’t Worry, be Happy!
Some mothers keep on cribbing that their children do not eat. There are some mothers who feed their children even at the age of 14. Such kind of pampering will become counterproductive. One of my nephews was so fond of noodles that he insisted on having it for breakfast, lunch and dinner! Isn’t this harmful parent? Worrying about your kids eating habits will only worsen the situation. So, let it be. Things will take their own turn. No point in force feeding your children!
Be a discerning Parent
While shopping, take particular care to buy items that are good for health. Do not succumb to cheap offers (buy 1, get 1 free offers) but focus on quality. Stop for a while. Did we have noodles and corn flakes 50 or 60 years ago? No, but our ancestors were healthy. So, the trick is to go natural but adapt it to suit modern day’s sensibilities.
Bangalore, the bread capital!
Thanks to the influx of migrant population (including NRIs and expats), Bangalore boasts of being one of the bread capitals in India. Herbal bread, Garlic bread, wheat atta bread, ragi walnut bread, chocolate bread, French bread, fruit bread…Phew! The list is endless! So, parents in Bangalore are indeed spoilt for choice. We now have vegetable atta noodles on one hand and brown breads and wheat pizza breads on the other hand. So, what limits a mother (and of course a father) is the extent to which they can be creative in preparing a delicious breakfast for their kids!
I am not a Nutritionist!
I have based this write-up on my experiences. I am not a nutritionist. However, I have shared something that is common knowledge to all but that which is generally not treated with the seriousness that it deserves.
