Healthy Diet for Child Development

A healthy diet for child development starts with following the food pyramid. By understanding the food pyramid and what it represents, you can provide a healthy foods for your child. The United States Department of Agriculture altered the food pyramid in 2005 to help American's eat healthier. The USDA also released a special version of the food pyramid for children. Along with eating healthy, a child's development is greatly affected by the amount of exercise he gets.

Checking the diet

• Start by making sure the child is eating three meals a day. Take a look at the foods regularly eaten and note if they are fresh items or processed. Eliminating processed or fast foods from a child's diet will ensure she is getting the healthy nutrients she needs for proper development without the added salt and fat that are often found in processed and fast foods.

  Kidshealth.org finds a balanced diet is one that includes all food groups every day. The five food groups are grains, vegetables, fruits, milk and dairy products and meat, beans, fish and nuts.

Whole grains and dairy

• Creating healthy and fun meals is one way to encourage children to eat healthy. The Child Development Institute finds it is up to parents to be creative and clever about including healthy and nutritious foods into their children's diets. Some items are healthier than you might think, such as frozen yogurt, smoothies made with fresh fruit and juices and dairy products.

  According to theparentzone.com, grains are the best nutritious food for children as they assist your child's development. Whole wheat breads and pastas should be included in children's diets.

  Dairy products are essential in providing calcium for the proper growth of teeth and bones. Along with grains, they are the other most essential nutrients to assist with child development and growth.

Eating a balanced diet

• A balanced diet encourages children to be more physically active, promotes proper growth, improves learning skills, maintains proper weight and builds strong bones and muscles. Making sure children get servings of all parts of the food pyramid daily provides them with a balanced diet to accomplish this. A child from 4 to 8 years of age should eat 4 to 5 grams of grains daily. He should also eat 1 1/2 cup of vegetables daily. The suggested daily intake for fruits for a child from 4 to 8 years of age is 1 1/2 cup daily along with 2 cups of milk or other calcium-rich foods. Kids should also eat 3 to 4 ounces of proteins daily to achieve a balanced diet.

  By educating your child about a healthy diet and nutrition at an early age, she will learn about and understand the importance of healthy eating from the start. This sets her up to make good food decisions later in life.