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Please note
that it is very unhealthy to begin your day without breakfast. A
child on an empty stomach will not be able to concentrate in class
and think clearly. He may get moody and bad tempered with other
children.
Even if you have to wake up your child 15 minutes earlier you must
see that he does not leave the house without eating.
Here are some quick breakfast ideas:
 A
glass of milk with 2 slices of toast. A cup of cornflakes with milk.
Oats or ragi porridge with milk. Bread (2slices) and egg, bread
(2 slices) and cheese, idli (2)or dosa (2 small) and sambar, are
all quick to eat foods. If this is not possible, at least a glass
of milk and a small banana should be given before he leaves the
house. Then his 10 am break Tiffin should carry his breakfast, which
can be egg sandwich, cheese sandwich, dosa and potato pallya, chapatti
rolled with egg or a pallya (vegetable) etc.
If the child
has eaten breakfast at home then, send fruit and biscuits or snacks
for 10 am.
Try and organize snacks like chocolate, pastry, chips, fry's for
the 10 am break and not for the late evening as they then get stored
as fat at night.
However, do
not send only snacks for lunch. Lunch must be a balanced one. They
must learn from a young age that breakfast and lunch are proper
meals and not get into the habit of light eating in the earlier
part of the day and heavy eating in the evenings, which is one of
the major factors contributing to the great rise in incidents of
obesity, diabetes, heart disease etc.
Suggestions for lunch:
Rice, sambar and palya (cooked vegetables). Chapati, thick dal and
sabji. Lime rice or pulav with chole. Chapati rolled with vegetable
and shredded nonveg. Chapati with egg and vegetable scramble, noodles,
vegetables and egg or paneer. Curd rice plus palya or sprouted moong.
Teatime:
Do not serve lunch at 4 pm, it is teatime. A glass of milk or curd
or lassi is a must and then biscuits or sandwiches may be eaten.
After play at 6pm, a fruit is a must too.
Then dinner is a balanced meal
again. Roti or rice with dal or pulses and a vegetable dish must
be the base. Curds and nonveg can be added and a salad has to be
served with dinner. If making a continental dinner, the balance
must be right. Pasta must be served with some vegetables and white
sauce, cheese or egg. The white sauce, cheese or egg are the protein
foods and must be included always.
If serving nonveg at night,
restrict the quantity and serve it only 2-3 times per week. It may
be eaten more often at lunchtime.
If you are having bread and
soup, the soup must have milk, egg or nonveg or sprouts in it. Those
sitting up late to study may have a fruit or a cup of milk later
but do not indulge in chocolates, cookies, ice cream late at night.
Remember food should be distributed
as; breakfast + snack 40%, lunch + tea 40% and dinner 20%. If it
is breakfast 0-10%, lunch 20% and dinner 70%, you are paving the
way for obesity and disease.
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