Food according to wordweb is: Any solid substance (as opposed to liquid) that is used as a source of nourishment. That said, food is and can be more than the definition given above, if it is strategically used and gives medicinal benefits.

FOOD IS MEDICINE.

Food prepared with the right requirements of nutrients, minerals and water, leads to healthy life.

Healthy eating by extension, keeps the doctor away. It is therefore essential to know what constitutes a balanced diet for various meal times, for all ages, especially children. The WordWeb dictionary says a balanced diet is a diet that contains adequate amounts of all the necessary nutrients required for healthy growth and activity.

In this part of the world, the food we have provide us carbohydrate, protein, fruits and vegetables, oil major and fats, vitamins, minerals and water, just by eating natural food present in our environment. We are so blessed. It is up to us to study the benefits of most of what we have locally and use it to our advantage.

Major reasons why in mist of abundance of all food needed to grow well and healthy our young ones especially children are poorly fed are Consumerism, Convenience for parents, Adolescent escapades.

Due to consumerism the young ones are mostly targeted in major advertisements to get their attention. Most of these ads are centred on how delicious the product is, how attractive it looks and the aroma.

Meanwhile, experts in nutrition tell us, A NUTRITIONAL MEAL IS NOT NECESSARILY DELICIOUS. The synthetic food supplements in most packaged food come nowhere near being adequate substitutes for the natural foods. There preservatives also which have long-term side effects on consumers.

Excessive sugar, salt and oil poses, a danger to the health and wellbeing of consumers particularly children. Don’t expose you precious gift to excessive junk food, because YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT.

Junk food would certainly cause them to have junk health status - physically, mentally and emotionally. Lately the young ones in our country are contracting diseases and illness that were known to be associated with adulthood, like blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, obesity, cardiovascular, chief among the cause changes in lifestyle.

You refer to the link below for what experts have to say:
What the experts have to say:

Dear parent and/or guardians, take time of your schedule and plan a healthy natural diet for yourself and the family. If you are too busy now or feel lazy now, wait until the effects of unhealthy eating kick then you would release you have done yourself more harm than good.

It is more convenient to cook the rice, macaroni and the usual suspects served with frizzy drinks. In defence they say ‘that is what they like’, ’if you cook any other meal they would eat next to nothing’. ‘When you give them fruits for snacks they bring it back home, throw it away or give out to friends.’

All the aforementioned statements are mere excuses and unacceptable ones as that. The fruits we have been endowed with one after the other have useful particularly health benefits for us and our children.

Please make time to study them and use them to your advantage, they are seasonal too, so after one cycle you would gathered so much information that you can run with. As much as possible let’s cut down on the synthetic substitutes, what we see on most of the labels of processed drinks don’t measure up.

You refer to the link below for what experts have to say:

Sad to say even in schools - especially private schools - which is the nerve centre of education, this flimsy excuse that,’ on days when the menu is not rice, macaroni, fired yam and fried frozen chicken the patronage is low, the children like it so we are obliged to provide what they want for them’.

I think it is self-centred – the mind-set is not feed the children well so they become healthy rather it the profitability of sales. Might I remain you that the children need to be healthy to be punctual in school to buy the food and also perform well in academic work.

The schools should be at the forefront of positively indoctrinating the pupils and students to eat the variety of healthy foods we are endowed with the soups, the greens, the legumes you name it.

Parents don’t leave it to the school authorities, call for the menu if it does look right, enquiry and make positive suggestions. If it does improve boycott school food and prepare your own meals and snacks for your wards.

You can blend these fruits into smoothies and package it nicely for them, ironically it less expensive than the processed once if you do the cost benefit analysis.

Some among the adolescent age bracket being to save money that has been given to them to buy food and drink. They use the money saved to buy stuff like data, phones and other phone accessories for themselves or their crash, this happens in both directions. I mean in some instances it’s the boys who buy for girls and the reverse is also true.

Another reason why they starve themselves particularly the girls, they want to be like a celebrity they adore. They do not want to be fat and chubby because they have ambitions becoming models, so they resort to taken snacks even at times when they are to eat heavy like lunchtime or not eating at all.

This practice affects their health, some develop ulcers and other hunger related complications, quite apart from that inadequate eating makes them weak and nervy.

They are unable to concentrate and the become lethargic, hence affecting absorption rate during lessons, if this goes on for a term or a year you can imagine the loss of precious time and knowledge and its overall effect.

On this issue too parents and school authorities must admonish and insist that their adolescent children especially, eat well, because learning is energy sapping so if they need replenish the lost energy adequately.

So as to make them healthy and aid their academic work, must mechanisms should put in place deal with the challenge comprehensively.

Those who want save can save what is left after buying their meals and those who are nursing ambitions of becoming models be made aware that they need to be alive first.

You may want to read this excerpt from UNICEF

'Teaching your child about healthy eating from a young age will help them to have a positive relationship with food well into adulthood.'

Get our expert tips on raising a healthy eater.

Food is a big issue and it should treated as such. Good food good mood. We and our young ones need to be in a good mood every day.
So help us God.

Rayhann Shaban
Parent–Child Relationship Coach
Lead Education
Advocate Development Networks [ADN]
rayhannshaban@hotmail.com
0243414669/0200225235