Drawing
on your Learning Resources this week, briefly explain at least three ways in
which poor nutrition puts children's health at risk. Then select three of the
following nutritional factors: proteins, carbohydrates, fats, water, or any of
the specific vitamins or minerals described in your text in Section 6.4.
Explain how each of the factors you chose affects children's health and
development.
There are various ways that poor nutrition puts children
at health risk. A child with poor nutrition can develop obesity that can lead
to breathing problems, high blood pressure, and diabetes that can last into a
child’s adulthood. Poor nutrition in children can cause dental health problems.
Dental problems are caused by the amount of sugar contained in junk foods that
children eat that, which feeds the bacteria that cause cavities. Children with
poor nutrition especially deficiency of proteins or calcium are highly likely
to have weak or stunted growth and rickets respectively (Robertson, 2012).
Calcium is an important that helps children’s bones and
teeth. When children lack calcium in their diet, they can have problems with
their bones, teeth. Calcium deficiency can cause problems in nerve transmission
or function associated with muscle contraction and relaxation. Phosphorus is
another mineral that is important in children’s diets. Lack of phosphorus
affects children’s teeth, bones and affects the transportation of fat in the body.
Iron is an important mineral that children require to boost their immune system
to help in the fight of diseases. Deficiency of iron in a child’s diet can lead
to various health problems such as anemia and fatigue (Robertson, 2012).
Review
pages 304–310 in your text on food as an issue of control, especially Table
8-7. Identify at least three ways in which food can be used by toddlers and/or
adults as a means of exerting autonomy or control. How could you avoid the
negative aspects of each of these kinds of control if you were working with
young children and their families?
Toddlers and adults can use food as a way of exerting
control or autonomy. Toddlers exercise autonomy by helping their parents to
select food to be prepared for breakfast, lunch or supper. Adults use food to
exercise control and autonomy by selecting food to be prepared for the family’s
meals, or deciding the option of buying fast foods or packaged foods as a meal
for the family (Robertson, 2012). I could help children
and their families to avoid the negative aspects of using food to exert
autonomy and control by encouraging the development and following of a healthy
diet schedule focused on the amount of calories in a diet that families can use
to guide them when purchasing foods to prepare as meals at home.
Consider this scenario: You are currently working with
5-year-olds in a program that serves breakfast and snacks but not lunches. You
have noticed that several children in your group have been bringing foods in
their lunches that are mostly empty calories. You send reminder notes home to
families, but they occasionally forget. Review the strategies discussed in
Sections 8.3 through 8.5 and describe what you might do to ensure that the
children with whom you work get a more balanced diet at lunch. Include some
suggestions or activities you could offer to the families you work with to
encourage them to choose foods more wisely.
Suppose I was working with 5-year-old
children who bring food that is mostly comprised of calories, I could address
this poor nutrition problem by ensuring that the breakfast and snacks that are
served in the program provide the nutrients, vitamins and minerals that are
lacking in the food containing mostly empty calories the children bring. I can
organize for a parent’s day at the program to learn about food and nutrition in
children. Another strategy that I can use to ensure that parents pack for their
children a balanced diet is to develop and give a take-home pamphlet with
direction for the parents to stick it at the kitchen. I will also develop
stickers to stick on the children’s food pack, which shows the various food
nutrients that are important in a child’s diet.
Reference
Robertson, Cathie. (2012). Safety, Nutrition and Health in
Early Education. Wadsworth Pub Co.
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