In February and March, we Swedes consider it normal to stay home with sick children (or for that matter, be suffering from colds or stomach bugs ourselves). But does it have to be this way? How can we best support children's health and immune systems so they can have more energetic days even during the winter months? Here are 5 important habits from the book "Healthier Children" by nutritionist Peter Wilhelmsson. Unfortunately, the book is no longer available for purchase, but you can find many different health lectures by Peter himself online. Peter is one of the most knowledgeable nutritionists in Europe today.
1. A Positive Family Atmosphere
A positive atmosphere at home is perhaps the most important factor for children's long-term health. Is there something everyone enjoys doing together, or something you think you need to talk about? A simple and fun exercise can be expressing appreciation to each other at the dinner table, or taking turns choosing a destination for an outing one Sunday a month. What can you do today to give your children a little extra attention?
2. Play and Exercise
It sounds completely obvious but can be easy to forget in our connected society: Children need to play and move every day to stay truly healthy. Often they do this spontaneously, especially when they're young. But as they get older, there's a risk of spending too much time in front of some type of screen. That's when they might need some structure from adults to remember how good it feels when doing something creative or physically challenging.
3. Nutritious Food as Foundation
There are many different diets and food theories out there, but they all have one thing in common: Nutritious food based on real ingredients is best for both adults and children. Teach children to make treats from dried fruit instead of white sugar. Show them that salad and berries taste good by having them available on the table often and asking if they want some. Eat vegetables yourself and the children will want them too.
4. Minimize or Avoid This
For an optimal immune system, it's equally important to minimize things that disturb the body. The most common disruptive elements in our children's diets today are: sugar, wheat flour, most dairy products, cheap oils like soybean oil and peanut oil (often added to processed foods), as well as chemical sweeteners, additives, and flavor enhancers. There are numerous studies showing quite remarkable results among children when one or more of these sources of imbalance in children's diets are minimized or completely avoided.
5. Supplements as Needed
Virtually all people, including children, need supplements in their diet today to reach optimal levels of nutrients and help the body handle the extra challenges we humans have created for ourselves in the form of environmental toxins, exhaust fumes, electromagnetic stress, artificial food, etc. So even though we should always strive for both ourselves and our children to get our nutritional foundation from real food, we need to add high-quality nutrition in the form of high-quality supplements to create the best conditions. Peter Wilhelmsson therefore recommends that everyone give their children an adapted multivitamin, as well as some kind of green drink as often as possible. Beyond this, essential fatty acids (Omega 3), friendly gut bacteria (Probiotics), and vitamin D during the winter months can be of great help.
Additionally: Vitamin D for the Whole Family
Late winter and early spring is the time of year when we Swedes have the lowest levels of vitamin D. Not so strange considering vitamin D is only produced when we expose a larger portion of our skin to the sun's rays between May and September here in Sweden. A little spring sunshine on the face isn't enough, even though exposing eyes and brain to sunlight has many other health benefits. So a good time to replenish vitamin D through supplements is right now. Some nutrition experts suggest that optimal levels of vitamin D can help prevent cold seasons by optimizing our immune system and general health.Vitamin D is something everyone needs and is one of the supplements that's safe to give to children (but of course in a dose adjusted to the child's weight). That's why we're running a campaign on our child-friendly supplements this week, with extra discounts specifically on vitamin D, so you can stock your pantry for the whole family until May when the sun shines properly again. For children under 10 years, we recommend VitaShines D3 Spray.
