Weekly Menu Idea for Underweight Kids - Eating Guidelines

Weekly Menu Idea for Underweight Kids - Eating Guidelines
Feeding, Children's diets and menus, You drink, Allergies and intolerances, Eating disorders, weight and height,

How to enrich the meals of underweight children in a healthy way

Do you have an underweight child? Surely you are worried, not to say extremely worried, but the first and most important thing you have to know is that children grow at different rates. There are some children who may have a growth or development curve different from the average and therefore have low weight but be healthy and happy. How should infant feeding be in these cases? What do we parents have to take into account when preparing their diet? Here is a weekly menu for underweight children.

 

  • Dietary guidelines for underweight children
  • Healthy ways to enrich the recipes of a child who does not gain weight
  • Check out this menu for underweight children and these tips for parents concerned about feeding their child
  • Dietary guidelines for underweight children

To consider that the child is underweight, their age and height must always be taken into account, among many other factors such as low accessibility to food, medical, social, economic, educational, psychological, environmental, genetic reasons... And, above all, assess regardless of weight if the child is healthy and nourished.

 

The therapeutic approach must always be oriented to the cause; therefore, it must be assessed exhaustively and individually, knowing your history from birth by your paediatrician. On the other hand, the feeding pattern must be focused on enriching the dishes without forcing or saturating the child with food. These 'rules' are focused on children from the age of one year.

 

  • Avoid offering foods high in calories but low or null in nutrients. They will fill you up a lot but nourish you very little. We are talking about soft drinks, fruit juices, sweets, pastries, fried foods, sweets... Foods with high loads of sugar and unhealthy foods.
  • Prioritize foods with a high nutritional density. What does this mean? Rich in calories and nutrients.
  • Offer variety so that the diet is complete and attractive. It is important to be creative to also stimulate your appetite. Always include sources of carbohydrates such as whole grains and tubers, fruits, vegetables and varied protein sources (meat, eggs, fish, legumes, soy and dairy products)

 

  • Make three main meals, breakfast, lunch and dinner. The amounts to offer will be adapted to each child and their age, but their little hand can be taken as a reference (2 hands of vegetables, 1 handful of cereals, 1 palm of protein, 1 handful of fruit and a thumb of good fats).

 

Healthy ways to enrich the recipes of a child who does not gain weight

If they are children with little appetite, it is better to include several small meals a day, with two snacks mid-morning and mid-afternoon. As easy, quick and rich in nutrients and calories options we can prepare:

 

  • Enriched shake
  • Bread with almond cream and banana
  • Yogurt with peanut butter and dates very chopped or shaken
  • Bread with avocado and turkey
  • Homemade cake or oatmeal and banana cookies

 

Also, in the rest of the dishes, we can take into account these premises:

Add dairy

Milk or cheese in creams or crushed, vegetables with gratin cheese. Use milk in soups instead of water, scrambled eggs with cheese or milk, and salads with yogurt sauces.

Add cereals such as oats in smoothies or creams

  • Offer legumes, which are very rich in nutrients and can be added to creams or made with them as pâtés, hamburgers or hummus.
  • Include healthy fats of vegetable origin: extra virgin olive oil, olives (cut into strips and pitted) or coconut oil. The latter can add a sweet flavour to vegetables and even home-made candy.
  • Keep in mind the avocado and creams of nuts or crushed seeds, chopped almonds or pistachios. Always remember not to give whole nuts to children under 3 years of age to avoid choking.

Based on the instructions we have given you; we have prepared the following healthy menu for children with low weight and we include the latest recommendations for when you create your own menus for your child.

  • Avoid offering unhealthy superfluous foods with the false concept of 'at least eat something'. It is preferable that he does not eat, he will not starve. When he is hungry, he will eat.
  • Yes, it is important, as we have mentioned before, to try to motivate the little one, both in the preparation and when sitting at the table and eating.
  • It is necessary to create a calm and relaxed atmosphere in the meal. Never force the child to eat.
  • It is also advisable to maintain more or less regular schedules.
  • And, as we always say, be patient and lead by example.

 

If you are working and the child does not usually eat with you as a family, transfer this information to the person who takes care of him.

Physical activity is also important in this regard and we cannot ignore it. We always relate it to weight loss; however, it is a practice that also helps to increase weight, stimulating the child's appetite.