Society regards the best parents as those who do their best in raising their children in the correct manner. But it is not an easy job to keep your child healthy, happy, and safe at the same time. Parenting involves making mistakes and learning from those mistakes. However, it is the obligation of every parent to ensure that his or her children are well fed. Nonetheless, it is imperative to gain enough knowledge to help you answer the question.
Parents feed 5 month olds chips, soft drinks, and candy
In today’s ever-changing world, parents have little time to cook a decent home cooked meal for their child. Before the baby comes along, most parents make do with take-out food. Therefore, when the baby comes along, they transfer their eating habits to the baby. Leeds Beckett University in England conducted a study whose findings showed that some children around the age of 5 months are fed chips, soft drinks, and candy by their parents. The scope of the research was Bradford where scientists studied the eating habits of 1250 children between the ages of 12 to 18 months.
Youngsters eat junk food up 7 days a week
According to Pinki Sahota, the study’s lead author, the frequency of feeding children with the chips and sugary drinks was as much as 7 days per week according to the study. One mother in the study mentions that she cuts up chips into small pieces and feeds them to her infant child. Another mother said that she rarely cooks, “We send them down the road to get burger, chips, and a drink for 99 pence.” These finding are rather shocking for it denotes a culture where a sedentary lifestyle has led to ignorance and lack of education on the right foods for an infant child.
Source: Pixabay
Obesity on the rise
When conducting the study, the scientists found that one baby’s teeth had turned black due to taking too many soft drinks via the bottle. Sahota postulates these shocking eating habits when began at an early age could lead to a lifelong lifestyle where the child will always go for junk food. Such a lifestyle may lead to obesity problems. Sahota also blames this trend on the level of education that some parents have. There are older parents who are more knowledgeable in parenting know how important it is to provide vegetables and fruits to an infant’s diet. According to Sahota, the young parents give their babies junk food, as it is what they are also used to taking.
Regulation and intervention necessary
Sahota who is also the chairperson of the Association for the Study of Obesity is of the view that there are four sources of education about proper nutrition for infants. They include schools, health visitors, midwives, and the local Authorities. However, they require the help of the food industry in order to properly regulate high fats and high sugar products in the market. Additionally, the question is your baby eating junk food before they can even chew should always ring in a parent’s mind when considering their child’s dieting needs.
Education is the answer
A parent who does not have proper cooking skills will find it hard to prepare a proper meal for their child. As such, it is the onus of such a parent to look for a friend or relative experienced in parenting or join a cooking class in order to get these skills. Sahota concludes that education is the key and it is the only solution for this problem facing young parents and affecting their infant children. In addition, Sahota mentions that one should not judge parents who feed their babies on junk rather, directing them on what to do is the best possible resolution for the problem.
Sourced from: She Knows
Featured Image: Pixabay