Proper nutrition: your guide to the different stages of life
Each age stage needs to focus on specific types of nutrients, foods and beverages, and in this article we will review the most important things you need to know in this regard.
Proper nutrition: your guide to the different stages of life
Proper nutrition is a concept that changes across the lifespan. Each generation has different and variable nutritional needs, taking into account the physical and physical condition of individuals and monitoring the various diseases they suffer from.
Nutritious food from a young age closely resembles a retirement savings plan, and the sooner we start proper nutrition, the more we guarantee our health rights upon reaching old age.
** How is proper nutrition at different age stages?
First: – Proper nutrition in childhood
Proper feeding habits are the basic building block of a child’s growth and instilling healthy habits at an early age, and on the contrary, the wrong food habits accompany the child for several more years at least.
So it is important at a young age to follow the following:
Food diversification.
Incorporate baby food with fruits and vegetables.
Accustom the child to eating bread and foods that contain whole wheat grains and accustom him to eating dark “brown” bread.
Choose foods that contain iron and calcium that are good for strengthening and protecting bones.
And at school, children are more independent in choosing their food. So, be sure to provide advice and guidance to them on how to choose their healthy food, and urge them to:
Eat breakfast before leaving the house.
Eat a varied meal of fruit in the afternoon.
Eat dairy products and in large quantities.
Second: proper nutrition in adolescence
The diet must be controlled at this difficult stage, that is, when the child reaches adolescence, and children are advised not to eat “crackers” and chocolate snacks, and to avoid soft drinks such as cola.
It is a mistake to consider snacks as a substitute for meals, so you must present meals to your children and encourage them to eat them even if the teenager does not want to eat them, as at that time he does not know yet the benefits of eating meals and on their specified dates.
Third: – Proper nutrition for university students
Although some students are confident that coffee, soft drinks and pizza are not healthy meals capable of providing the main nutrients to the body, they love them, but during university school hours, care must be taken to eat useful foods to stimulate thinking and provide the body with the energy necessary to complete the school day, as well as to strengthen and develop Bones, for example: If drinking coffee is important in your life, try to increase the amount of low-fat milk to at least one cup a day, eat whole morning cereals and give up the colored sugar-saturated grains known since our childhood, add omega-3 acids to your food with a high concentration In order to get a high thinking ability.
Fourth: proper nutrition during pregnancy: –
The period in which we start planning for having the first or second child is an excellent and useful period for preparing the body, as excess weight may make it difficult for pregnancy to occur, and carrying this extra weight may constitute additional risk factors for pregnancy and childbirth.
On the other hand, it is important to know that following a diet causes the depletion of the stores of vitamins and minerals in the body, so be sure to separate the period between the diet and the period of preparation of the body for pregnancy.
During pregnancy, the supply of vitamins and minerals must be completely complete, in order for the fetus to grow in its best condition, and for the mother at that time to not suffer from any deficiency.
So, be sure to have proper, balanced nutrition that is rich in all nutrients, and do not venture into a strict diet for a week or two to get rid of some extra kilograms, as this is not the right period.
Fifthly: – Proper nutrition after childbirth
After childbirth, and especially during the breastfeeding period, it is important to refill the tanks depleted during pregnancy. And after the difficult labor stage, the following is recommended specifically:
Increase your intake of certain groups rich in special ingredients, such as fruits that are rich in vitamin C and poor in iron.
Eat dairy products that are rich in calcium and a group of B vitamins, but low in vitamin C, iron, and the like.
Given the body’s need for various ingredients, try to combine foods rich in different ingredients to create the maximum benefit, such as:
Incorporate low-fat yogurt with whole-wheat grains and nuts, or whole-wheat bread with chickpeas and vegetables.
Sixth: proper nutrition in old age
The aging stage occurs many changes in the human body, and during this period it is preferred to take care of healthy nutrition in order to maintain the health, performance and strength of the body, as well as add foods that are also good for the brain.
The focus at this stage should be on:
1- Reducing salt in food.
2- Eating more foodstuffs rich in antioxidants to maintain healthy eyes, heart and memory.
3- Adding foods containing omega-3.
4- Add an adequate amount of dietary fiber with the addition of probiotics to enjoy a proper digestion.
All this helps maintain normal fat and calcium levels, reduce the risk of bone mineral loss, and cause osteoporosis.