Mrs Nelly-Margaret Akuchie, a Nutritionist at the State House Medical Centre in FCT, has stressed the need for daily consumption of vegetables, fruits and cereals as part of children’s meal.
Akukchie disclosed this in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Wednesday in commemoration of the World Food Day celebration, annually marked on Oct. 16.
The day was dedicated to tackling global hunger around the globe.
She stressed the importance of adequate nutritional food for children to facilitate growth, development and to reduce the risk of diseases.
She said “child’s nutrition is very important, what the child takes from the first 1,000 days has a lot to do with the life of that child, even to adulthood and old age.
“So it is very important that children should be well fed and given an adequate diet that contains all the nutrients in appropriate proportion.
“Children should be given appropriate food that contains vegetables, fruits, minerals, vitamins and cereals as part of their daily diets to enhance their growth.’’
Akukchie also stressed the need for children’s food to vary from carbohydrates, protein, minerals, rather than giving them a particular meal with the same nutritional value.
“Children’s foods should be varied. They must not take one particular food from morning till night, their food should contain protein, carbohydrates, minerals, fruits and vegetables.’’
She also advised parents to avoid giving children junk and carbonated drinks for school, emphasising on a well-balanced diet and natural drinks.