Kid-friendly whole grain recipe

Kids Need to Eat Whole Grain Food

The push towards healthy diets seems to be thankfully gaining some ground. Whole grains are slowly getting the positive attention these deserve. As more information about whole grains have become available, many people have begun to realize the huge health benefits they and their families can derive from oats, barley, rye, and quinoa. Because of increasing awareness, whole grain foods are increasingly replacing children’s breakfast staples of refined, sugary cereals and white bread.

Although parents know that their kids will benefit from changing up from refined foods to whole grain ones, theirs is not an easy task of convincing their little ones to like the switch. In general, children prefer the soft, fluffy texture of white bread sandwiches to the chewier whole wheat ones. To untrained palates, some whole grain foods may taste a bit “woodsy” or even “cardboard-like”; hence, the resistance. Still, it is important that kids (and adults) get the right amount of whole grain servings a day.

Australian Recommended Servings for Children

The Australian Dietary Guidelines recommend the consumption of a wide variety of whole grain and high fibre foods and the exclusion of refined food products which is often manufactured with large amounts of added sugar.

	2-8 years	9-11 years	12-13 years	14-18 years
Boys	4 servings	5 servings	6 servings	7 servings
Girls	4 servings	4 servings	5 servings	7 servings

 

A serve of grains (breads and cereals) is equivalent to:

• 1 slice of bread or 1/2 a medium roll or flat bread (40g) – at least half the bread kids eat should be whole grain or high fibre bread.
• 1/2 cup cooked rice, pasta, noodles, barley, buckwheat, semolina, polenta, couscous, bulgur, or quinoa (75–120g)
• 1/2 cup cooked porridge (120g)
• 2/3 cup cereal flakes (30g) or 1/4 cup muesli (30g)
• 3 crispbreads (35g)
• 1 crumpet (60g) or 1 small English muffin or scone (35g)
• 1/4 cup flour (30g)

*Chart and serving recommendations reference: http://healthy-kids.com.au/food-nutrition/5-food-groups/breads-cereals/

Why Kids Need Their Whole Grains

A whole grain means just that...a grain with all of its parts --- bran, germ, and endosperm --- intact. When a whole grain gets refined, its bran and germ (the most nutritious parts) are removed leaving only the endosperm or middle layer behind. This is why whole grains pack a punch more B & E vitamins, zinc, fibre, iron, and antioxidants than refined grains which have been substantially stripped of these. Because whole grains are more nutrient dense, kids can derive much more energy from whole grain foods than from refined ones.

Fibre is another important component of whole grains and a very good reason why children need to eat them. Fibre is indispensable to good digestion and bowel movement. It prevents constipation, diarrhoea, and inflammation in the colon wall. Fibre keeps the digestive system healthy and regulates appetite. It can dissuade overeating and consequent unhealthy weight gain in kids.

Whole grains also contain lactic acid which promotes the proliferation of good gut flora. Good bacteria make for a healthy gut which rewards with good digestion, optimal nutritional absorption, and a stronger immune system.

Kids introduced to whole grains such as oats early on seem to be less prone to asthma or allergic rhinitis. A Dutch study reported that kids aged 8 to 13 years whose diets leaned more towards whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and less meat and processed foods were less likely to exhibit asthmatic wheezing.

With all these whole grain goodness, parents know kids need to get their proper daily servings. There are a quite a variety of whole grain foods you can incorporate (or even hide) in your children’s diets. The challenge here is how to train your kids to like whole grain foods enough to ingrain in them the inclusion of this food group into their diets for life.

Getting Your Kids’ Thumbs Up for Whole Grains

The best way to develop a whole grain eater is to start ‘em young. You can start serving your little one oats as early as two years old. “I Like It, But I Don’t Eat It, ”an abstract written by Lindsey M. Newman of Purdue University in Indiana, reveals that very young kids generally do not have unyielding preferences for refined food over whole grain ones. The study exposed kids between 2-5 years to three types of grain-based foods: pasta, bread, and crackers. These three types were offered in both whole grain and refined varieties. The kids were asked to taste all on offer and to rate their liking for the foods they sampled. When both refined and whole wheat foods were available, the kids often chose the refined food item; however, when given only whole grain choices, the kids would eat them as well. This goes to show that if young kids were presented with whole grain food only, they would likely develop less palate resistance to the texture and taste of whole grain foods.

Therefore, make sure whole grain foods are the only choices available at home. In this case, you have got to eat the same way as well. Don’t delineate foods by stocking white bread only for yourself and whole wheat for the kids. In time, they will see your refined carbohydrate foods as “choice food” and whole grains as the “bleh” one they have to eat because you say so. And let’s face it, in terms of taste, refined food does trounce whole grains by a mile.

But what if your kids are at that age where they more or less have developed their taste buds for refined grains? Well, you face more of a challenge and you need to get a little more creative here.

Kids and adolescents usually don’t care a fig about nutrition but they do care about taste, texture, and appearance. One thing you can do is discover what healthy swaps and taste enhancements you can make that won’t really compromise your kids’ already developed preferences. For instance, you can:

• Substitute white pasta with couscous, miniature Moroccan pasta that has a light and fluffy texture most kids like
• Offer their favourite peanut butter and jelly on whole wheat crackers or toast.
• Liven up oats with apricots or raisins.
• Beef up your stir-fries with brown rice instead of white.
• Instead of a bag of chips, have them eat a bowl of home-popped corn. Popcorn is simply a whole grain (corn) that has burst over heat.
• Quinoa, a South American seed, has a light, creamy taste and texture that appeal to most kids. Its cute, curly shape makes it a fun eat as well.
• Make raisin-honey-nut granola and muesli bars, a power snack with loads of fibre and nutrients.

There are a multitude of ideas on the net. Play around with whole grains and get your kids to have fun with you in your culinary endeavours using whole grains. You get to open their taste buds to these healthy grain foods as well as use kitchen time to bond with them.

If your kids prove to be a bit more intractable than most, you can be a sneak in (after all, it’s for a good cause) and hide those whole grain foods in baked goodies or soup. Pie shells can be made with whole spelt flour. Whole wheat breadcrumbs can substitute as soup thickeners. You can smuggle these, too, into meatloaves. Cooked quinoa can be incorporated into waffle or pancake mixes. All you need is a little culinary imagination to get your family their recommended whole grain servings.

Grocery shelves stock more whole grain options today than ever before. Although whole grain foods may cost a tad more than its refined counterparts, don’t hesitate to exchange your old choices for these. A slight rise in your grocery budget may well be worth eventually seeing your kids in the pink of health.