Healthy Food and Nutrition

Good nutrition and eating habits are so important to children in each age group because I believe that eating nutritious food and practicing good eating habits, will help to lay the foundation of lifelong health for children as they grow. Good nutrition and eating habits must begin at infancy. In order for us to provide, good source of nutriment for our bodies. We must eat from all classes of food and we must eat the correct quantity and the correct ratio. "Good nutrition involves the seven classes of food: 1. Carbohydrates, 2. Proteins, 3. Fats, 4. Vitamins, 5. Mineral salts, 6. Water, 7. Roughage, (Ghaz, 2009). According to Ghaz, the importance of taking good nutrition and practicing good eating habits are as follows: 1. For the growth, repair and replacement of damaged cells (when a person grows, food is needed for the formation of new cells. The new cells replace cells that are damaged or dead). 2. Energy supply (daily physical activities can only be, carried out if we obtain enough energy from food. Energy are needed by our organs and muscles to function. 3. For the maintenance of good health, (mineral salts and vitamins are important to maintain the health of our body and to prevent infections) (2009). If we teach our children good eating habits, and regularly eat a wide variety of basic foods, he or she will be well nourished.


. Adults/parents, play a major role in shaping the eating habits of a child. Parents who eat right, exercise and have healthy habits are more likely to raise healthy and active children. Two ways in which adults can actively help children develop healthy eating habits are "(1) Offer your child a wide variety of foods, such as grains, vegetables and fruits, low-fat dairy products, and lean meats or beans. Choose and prepare foods with less salt. Keep the salt-shaker off the table. Have fruits and vegetables on hand for snacks instead of salty snack foods and (2) involve your child in planning and preparing meals. Children may be more willing to eat the dishes they help fix. (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, 2007).

Three nutritious recipes that family members can prepare with preschoolers are:

                                              #1Chicken Ratatouille

Preparation Time: 30 minutes

• 1 Tbsp Vegetable oil

• 4 medium Chicken breast halves, skinned, fat removed, boned and cut into 1-inch pieces

• 2 7-inch Zucchini, unpeeled and thinly sliced

• 1 small Eggplant, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes

• 1 medium Onion, thinly sliced

• 1 medium Green pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces

• ½ lb Mushrooms, fresh, sliced

• 1 (16 oz) can Tomatoes, whole, cut up

• 1 clove Garlic, minced

• 1 ½ tsp Dried basil, crushed

• 1 Tbsp Fresh parsley, minced

• Black pepper to taste

Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet, add chicken and sauté about 3 minutes (or until lightly browned). Add zucchini, eggplant, onion, green pepper and mushrooms. Cook for about 15 minutes. Add tomatoes, garlic, basil, parsley and pepper. Continue to cook for about 5 minutes or until chicken is tender. Serve.

2 Cup of Fruits and Vegetables per Serving

Nutrition Information per Serving:

Calories: 270

Total Fat: 7g

Saturated Fat: 1.5g

% of Calories from Fat: 23%

% Calories from Sat Fat: 5% Protein: 32g

Carbohydrates: 21g

Cholesterol: 75mg

Dietary Fiber: 8g

Sodium: 240mg

Each serving provide: An excellent source of fiber, vitamins B2, B3, B6, C and K, phosphorous, potassium and selenium, and a good source of vitamin B1, foliate, pantothenic acid, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum and zinc.







                                   #2Fruit Compote


Preparation Time: 15 minutes

• 1 can (8 oz) Pineapple chunks

• 1 ½ cups Orange juice

• 1 Tbsp Cornstarch

• 1 medium Banana, peeled and sliced

• 1 Pear, sliced and cubed

• 2 Peaches, sliced and cubed

Drain the juice from the canned pineapple into a small saucepan. Stir in orange juice and cornstarch. Blend until smooth. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Let the juice mix cool to room temperature. While the juice mix is cooling, peel and slice the banana. Wash the pear and peaches and cut into cubes. Pour the cooled juice mix into a large bowl. Add the pieces of pineapple, banana, pear, and peaches. Stir together.


1 Cup of Fruits and Vegetables per Serving

Fruit and /or Veggie color(s):

Nutrition Information per Serving:

Calories: 140

Total Fat: 0g

Saturated Fat: 0g

% of Calories from Fat: 0%

% Calories from Sat Fat: 0% Protein: 1g

Carbohydrates: 35g

Cholesterol: 0mg

Dietary Fiber: 3g

Sodium: 0mg

Each serving provides excellent source of vitamin C, and a good source of fiber, potassium and vitamin B6.


                                           #3Easy Eggplant Stir-Fry

Preparation Time: 20 minutes

• 2 Eggplants, peeled and cubed

• 1 Zucchini, thinly sliced

• 1 cup Green bell pepper, cut into strips

• 2 Onions, sliced

• 3 Tbsp Italian dressing, low fat

• 2 cups Cherry tomatoes

• 2 cups Brown rice, cooked

Cook brown rice according to directions on box. Place eggplant, zucchini, green bell pepper, onions and salad dressing into a skillet. Cook until tender. Stir in cherry tomatoes and cook for 3-5 minutes. Serve over brown rice.

2 Cups of Fruits and Vegetables per Serving

Nutrition Information per Serving:

Calories: 200

Total Fat: 3g

Saturated Fat: 0g

% of Calories from Fat: 13.5%

% Calories from Sat Fat: 0% Protein: 5g

Carbohydrates: 39g

Cholesterol: 0mg

Dietary Fiber: 7g

Sodium: 100mg

Each serving provides: An excellent source of fiber, vitamins A, B6 and C, and manganese, and a good source of vitamins B1, B3 and K, foliate, chromium, copper, magnesium, phosphorous, potassium and selenium.

Suggested strategies to make cooking together an enjoyable learning experience for children can happen by first creating an area in the kitchen for your kids. Make available a shelf with safe cooking utensils, and pots and pans. Other things to make available for the kids could include some empty containers; plastic bowls, cookie cutters, and anything else that is safe for your kid to use. Also by letting children do most of the work of preparing the food it makes them feel important and they will be eager to eat what they make.


                                                              
                                                            Reference:


Ghaz, (2009). The Importance of Taking Good Nutrition and Practicing Good Eating Habits. Retrieved on June 30th 2010 from http://healthmad.com/nutrition/the-importance-of-taking-good-nutrition-and-practicing-good-eating-habits/#ixzz0sV24pvLy

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health. (2007). Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Across your Lifespan: Helping your child Tips for Parents

Kids Food Healthy Recipes for Kids. Retrieved on June 30th 2010 from www. Kidshealthyrecipes.com/-cached-similar

Issues Related to Nutrition and Fitness

Went considering the problems of obesity, or thinking about fitness in our children we often focus on diet alone we do not present our children with balances. Accounting to Goodway, the early years are critical not only to the development of motor skills but also for the development of a disposition for regular physical activity throughout life (Goodway & Branta 2003; Payne & Isaacs 2005). There are many important things to consider in giving preschoolers an active start. As educator’s we must realize that physical activity patterns developed in childhood tend to last throughout adulthood (Janz, Dawson, & Mahoney 2000). These are some guideline to get children started on their way to a healthy start.

• Individuals responsible for the well-being of preschoolers should

be aware of the importance of physical activity and facilitate.

• Preschoolers should develop competence in movement skills

that are building blocks for more complex movement tasks.

• Preschoolers should accumulate at least 60 minutes of daily

Structured, and physical activity.

• Preschoolers should have indoor and outdoor areas that meet

or exceed recommended safety standards for performing large

muscle activities.

• Preschoolers should engage in at least 60 minutes and up to

Several, hours per day of daily, unstructured physical activity and

should not be sedentary for more than 60 minutes at a time except

when sleeping.

Went children do not engage in healthy daily fitness activities children tents to be at risk for premature mortality, obese/overweight, hypertension, diabetes, coronary artery disease, colon cancer. Children first, problem to accrue in obese are emotional or psychological, obese children suffer from teasing, harassed or discrimination, which can lead to children having low self-esteem also being depression.

In order for our children to have a healthy life we as parents and educator should choose individual and family activities that fit easily into your lifestyle. Always encourage one another, pointing out what is right, but not insisting a child do something that they are not comfortable with and it is also good to expose children to a variety of physical experiences. Two activities that preschoolers can enjoy and at the same time benefit from it are 1. Children taking turn throwing, and catching the ball with one another. 2 exercises with music and dumbbell made out of 16-ounce water bottle full with beans doing shoulder press, jumping up and down in place, squat, abdominal twist, there activities can help children to develop their fine-motor skills and gross-motor skills.

The one thing that was inspirational to hear is that children did not have to gave up their favorite comfort food because healthy eating is all about balance, you can still enjoy your favorite food even if they are high in calories, fat or added sugar. The key is just eating them once, in a while and balancing them out with healthier foods and more physical activity it is hard enough dealing with life it is nice to know that they do not have to gave up everything.

Physical activities have, been define as bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that will results in energy expenditure (Pate, Pratt et al, 1995). According to the report of Physical Activity, it has a significant health benefits that can improve the life of children, and can have health-enhancing effect including reduction in chronic diseases risk hypertension, type2 diabetes, high blood lipids, cardiovascular diseases and obesity. Physical activity can prevent or delay the development of hypertension and can lower blood pressure. Physical activity has been associated with increased academic performance, self-concept, mood, and mental health, the promotion of physical activity and exercise may also improve quality of life. (Physical Activity, 1996).

Safety Practices and Policies

Unintentional injure is now the leading cause of death in childhood (America children: key national indicators of well-being, 2007). The five potentially hazardous situations/safety threats common to toddlers are poison, medicine, electrical outlets, toys with small part, and toilets. For each of the hazardous situations or safety threats, policies that are put in place to protect and prevent children’s safety. Toddlers have the most potential for unsafe practices and the ability to accomplish what they set out to do. Toddlers like to explore places that may not be in sight so medicine and poison’s materiel need to be place up high and in a lock box or cabinet that has a lock where children cannot get to it. All electrical outlets should be cover with outlet covers, toys need to be age appropriate and large and unbreakable and smooth, playing with these toys should be always supervise by an adult. Toddlers should always be supervise by an adult went using the toilets, and the area should always be clean and free of cluster. In case of any injury parent will be call and there will be an report of what happen and parents, teacher and director will sign that report. To insure the safety of toddlers at home families, should invest in safety devices for drawers, window, and cabinets so that all harmful chemical can be lock away, gates should be place by stairs and any opening that you do not want you toddlers going through and children should at all time be supervise and not left unattended. Many injuries could be prevented if responsibility is taken for protection.

CPR and Choking Emergencies

Scenarios1: In the infant room at a day care center a six months little girls was asleep in her crib and her teacher notice that she was not breathing so she tap the bottom of the infant feet to see if she would respond but she did not respond. So she shout out for help and the teacher took the infant out of the crib and place the baby on the floor to perform CPR on her. After placing the infant on a flat surface she carefully hold the forehead of the infant with a gentle pressure to keep her airway open. Then she use her two fingers, compress her chest 30 times with a 1/3 to ½ depth of the chest at the rate of 100 compressions per minute, then blow two breaths she still was not breathing. The director of the center call 911 and the infant parent to meet them at the hospital and the teacher continue to do 30 compressions breathe into infant’s mouth and nose for 1 second two times, enough for the chest to rise. Finely the infant starting breathing and the ambulance came and took her to the hospital to be check out.


Scenarios 2: It was lunch time in the toddlers classroom went a toddler was eating his lunch and all of a sudden he start making funny noises and holding his throat. So the teacher rush to him and she realize that he was choking, she told him to but he could not do it so she told her aim to get the director to come. The director support one arm diagonally across his chest and lean him forward. Then she firmly strike him between the shoulder blade with the heel of her other hand by give 5 back blow. The object was still was blocking his airway so she wrap her arm around his waist making a fist with her hand and place her tomb side against the middle of his abdomen , just about the navel and well below the lower tip of the breastbone. Then she grab her fist with her other hand and give five quick separate thrusts into abdomen. Still his air way was still block so she continue to place him on his back placing the heel of her hand on his sternum at the center of his chest and placing her other hand directly on top of her first hand and interlacing them. Doing 30 compressions pushing his, sternum down a third to half the depth of his chest and she wait for his sternum to return to its normal position and she did the compressions again. Then open his mouth and looked and the food was in his mouth and she just remove it with her fingers and he was able to breathe again, parent was notify and child was accompanied to the hospital to make sure he was ok.

Advance Planning in a childcare center for emergencies is very important it may not prevent emergencies but it can help the people involve, to be more prepare for went it happens. Teacher should be training in CPA, First Aid and made aware of the policies and emergencies response to medical emergencies, Natural disasters, Fire/smoke emergencies, Bomb threat, Missing child, and Potential violent situation that could accrue. These training should be done often so that staff can be more formal with the procedures so that at that time they can handle the emergencies.


The director of the childcare center should make sure to check all emergency supplies on a monthly basis, have regular fire drills and evacuation practices. Make sure that all emergency exit are mark, notify families of the evacuation procedures you have planned and prepare a list of family phone numbers including cell phone numbers, so the families can be notified when a large-scale emergency exists. Keep these numbers current by checking them three or four times a year, you can also designate one person to be a team leader who can be helpers to the teachers in the classroom because in an emergency they will need all the help they can get.


























































References


American Red Cross: Prepare for Emergencies with American Red Cross First Aid, CPR and Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Courses


http://www.redcross.org/portal/site/en/menuitem.53fabf6cc033f17a2b1ecfbf43181aa0/?vgnextoid=42eebd7df52bb110VgnVCM10000089f0870aRCRD&currPage=ae14bd7df52bb110VgnVCM10000089f0870aRCRD


American Heart Association: CPR and Emergency Cardiovascular Care


http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3011764

Emergency Preparedness

Disasters, human-generated or natural are something that all childcare programs and providers, regardless of where they are located, are faced with. “One out of every four children experiences a significant traumatic event before reaching adulthood. While chance, geography and other variables determine risk, all of us are confronted with threats to wellbeing or even to life itself as we move across the life cycle” (Deep Center Publications, Miami University 2010). Understanding how important it is to establish and maintain a safe and healthy environment for young children as they grow is vital for professionals in the early childhood area. It is also important to understand that part of preparing for disasters is to gain information on which events are most likely to occur in our community and know what the specifics for each are. Two specific dangers or disaster scenarios that could threaten an early childhood environment in the area where I live are flash floods and winter storms, which both fall under natural/severe disaster.


In describing these two disaster scenarios; "floods are among the most frequent and costly natural disasters in terms of human hardship and economic loss" (Pitter, 2010). Pitter also states that "as much as 90 percent of the damage related to all natural disasters (excluding droughts) is caused by floods and associated debris flows". (2010). In terms of winter storms, I can say that we have had storms which have started off somewhat moderately and all of a sudden, will change, over a few hours turning into a blizzard. "Many winter storms are accompanied by low temperatures and heavy and/or blowing snow, which can severely reduce visibility". (Pitter, 2010).

It is important for my colleagues and I to be prepared for disasters because preparation can help reduce the loss of lives when a disaster does occur. Being prepared can also reduce damage to our facility such as damage to equipment and supplies. "If the childcare community is prepared for different types of disaster, childcare businesses has a better chance of being preserved and/or restored to full service after a disaster occurs". (Office of Emergency Services: Livermore- Pleasanton Fire Department, 2009). Also "if the childcare business in our community is prepared for disasters, employees can return to work more quickly and help their employers return to productivity". (Office of Emergency Services: Livermore- Pleasanton Fire Department, 2009).

The first priority during an emergency is protecting the health and safety of everyone in the facility. Steps that you would take to develop plan in advance for these disasters would be, first to include all employees in the plan so that if, and when a disaster occur there would be a smooth transition into what everyone must be do, this means that we would have to discuss what each staff person will do and in what order immediately after a disaster. A my childcare facility, there is in place a facility floor plan with the location of the evacuation routes, shelter, areas, fire alarms, and fire equipment and extinguishers. Included in this floor plan is an emergency assembly area and these are post throughout the day care. Parents are included and are asked if they will be able to pick their children up soon after the disaster. So in other words the plan should be developed in a way that meets each potential disaster thereby reflecting the parents’ role in recovering their children. If a flood occurs we should be prepared to close center early, if possible; when the disaster has occurred we should be checking for injuries; protecting the children and self from further danger; keep listening to local radio for information; avoid loose or dangling power lines. Other steps our facility can take are to learn about our area’s flood risk. We can also contact our local Red Cross chapter, emergency management office, local National Weather Service office, or planning and zoning department. If a winter storm occurs we should be prepared to close center early, if possible; make sure all children and staff has several layers of warm and dry clothing; keep warm by having blankets on hand; having flashlights on hand; tune radio to appropriate radio station for weather updates; stay indoors and avoid electrical appliances and plumbing. Other steps our childcare facility can take is to learn about our area’s winter storm risk and contact places like the local Red Cross chapter, and the emergency management office for our area’s winter storm risk.

In all childcare setting, it is very important that facility post a disaster plan that determines steps to prevent and cope with any dangerous situation. With a plan in place child care providers should regularly and practice it with the children in their care. I believe it is also important for this plan to include the know how on when to evacuate and when to stay put. The facility should always maintain emergency contact information, which will be necessary in case of disaster.

























Reference:

Deep Center Publications, Miami University (2010). Children: Stress, Trauma and

Disasters. Retrieved on June 18, 2010 from http://www.deep.med.miami.edu/x466.xml

Office of Emergency Services, Livermore- Pleasanton Fire Department (2009). Family



Disaster Preparedness Guide. Retrieved on June17th from



www.ci.livermore.ca.us/Livermore_Recovery.../ANNEX-J-FamDisaster.pdf



Pitter, T. (2010). Family Readiness Kit. Retrieved on June 19, 2010 from



www.aap.org/family/frk/aapfrkfull.pdf -