Cooking Healthy and Nutritious Meals Your Children Will Eat

by Dr. Scott Saunders, M.D.

In the past, mothers would feed their children as much as possible so they could live through a famine. When there was food, they ate a lot in order to store up for the winter. Times have certainly changed!

We no longer have famine, yet moms still push their kids to eat. I often see overweight children in my office, with parents complaining they won’t eat anything. In one case, I decided to pursue the issue; a mom insisted that her active, healthy child had eaten “absolutely nothing” for more than two weeks.

I brought another doctor in, and the first question he asked was whether the child liked McDonald’s. The mother replied that her child would only eat at McDonald’s three times per day, and if he wasn’t taken there, he wouldn’t eat at all! She was distraught that her two-year-old child wouldn’t eat what she cooked.

Fast Food and Junk Food is a No-No for Nutrition

Unfortunately, the fast food industry is too convenient; we end up sacrificing nutrition for efficiency and taste. If families are looking for ideal and nutritious meals, they should look for as many high-nutrient and low-calorie foods as possible. At Barton Publishing, we’ve realized that restaurants have just the opposite – high-calorie and low-nutrient meals – so cooking at home is important.

One of the reasons home cooking is so much better is that restaurants and packaged foods have moved away from using spices and instead use “flavorings” made of chemicals like ketones.

Spices, on the other hand, carry an abundance of nutritional value that can be added to your meals. For example:

Turmeric is a great antioxidant.
Oregano keeps candida- and yeast-levels down.
Ginger helps the adrenal glands.
Black pepper promotes better absorption of nutrients from your food.
Cinnamon aids in using energy more efficiently.
Also, the right amount of salt is essential – don’t skimp! We have been told for years that we shouldn’t eat salt, but we need the right kind of salt for our glands and cells to function properly (such as Himalayan or Sea Salt).

No Time? Not a Problem

If time is a factor, there are still many tasty, nutritious meals that can be prepared quickly and easily at home. The best way to plan meals is to think ahead. If you cook brown rice, which takes longer, make enough for a week’s worth of dishes, such as stir-fry, chicken fried rice, rice salads, and side dishes. If you are already in a hurry, quinoa is a healthy food that cooks up quickly.

A complete and nutritious meal needs to contain vegetables; they’re the most nutritious food with the fewest number of calories. You can be creative with this.

Kale is the best food in the world because it has the highest nutrient-to-calorie ratio. It can be mixed in salads, soups (it’s great finely chopped in chicken soup), and any vegetable dish.

Even snack-foods can easily be made healthier. My mom used to put wheat germ in cookies. Also, making the switch to whole foods will boost your nutritional intake: whole grain pasta, brown rice, and whole wheat bread add small amounts of nutrients that build up over time.

Soups are also great ways to take in a great amount of nutrients. A crockpot can keep a stew or soup prepared while you’re away. This has been a Sunday tradition in our home. The chicken and vegetables are in the crockpot while we’re at church, and when we come home, lunch is already prepared. One Sunday, upon arriving home, our four-year-old son, who didn’t see my wife put all the ingredients together earlier, said, “Look, Mom, Jesus made dinner for us again!”

Snacking

Snacks can be a good option for children – if you’re careful and aren’t fooled by advertising. A mother could answer every “I’m hungry!” with, “You may have a fruit or vegetable anytime you want without asking.” Baby carrots, celery, and fruit make fast, tasty snacks.

Be aware that anything that comes in a box or bag is going to be high in calories and low in nutrients, even if it says “low-fat.” Last week, while walking through the grocery store, I saw a peppermint candy that said in bold letters across the front, “A low-fat food.” It might be low in fat, but it’s sure to be high in sugar or calories.

Oils and Protein

I’m often asked about cooking with oils. Olive oil is great for cooking, but not in the frying pan – it oxidizes in high heat. It’s better to use coconut oil for cooking up nutritious meals. Coconut oil has medium-chain triglycerides, essential for creating cell membranes and repairing the nervous system.

Many moms worry about their children getting enough protein, but if you’re eating natural foods, it’s difficult not to get enough.

you are what you eat

Broccoli has more protein in it than a mother’s milk when compared ounce-for-ounce.
Beans are an excellent source; when added to rice, they make a complete protein.

All meats are made of protein and are easily digested, yet choosing meat is very important. You are what you eat, and so are the cows, chickens, or fish you consume. If the animals are eating junk food, then the meat will be junk-filled as well.

Farmed fish that are fed cornmeal, for example, don’t have the benefits of regular fish because their oils are loaded with omega-6 from the corn, not omega-3 from plankton.
Cows that are fed corn also have lower-quality fats that can cause inflammation.

It would be healthier, therefore, to eat smaller amounts of grass-fed beef and wild fish, although they may be more expensive.

Speaking of expense, healthier eating may be more expensive. It’s unfortunate that even when children and adults are suffering from obesity in such high numbers that healthier options have to be more expensive than junk food. In the end, you will be doing your body – and your family’s bodies – a favor by taking in good foods, like vegetables, rather than junk that isn’t beneficial. Also, they may eat less and be able to maintain a more healthy weight.

Think of it this way: By keeping your children healthy with good and nutritious food choices, you’ll cut down on the expense of taking them to the doctor for not eating!

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