Cooking and eating should be a positive family affair
As a generation embracing a ‘cleaner’ lifestyle, should we really be imposing it on our children, asks Georgina Blaskey
While we all recognise the importance of a balanced diet, for many people, food has become a lifestyle choice, a symbol of personal values and parenting prowess. Instagrammed from homes across the world, meticulously prepared plates of wonder ingredients are being served at family mealtimes. Deliciously Ella, Hemsley + Hemsley, Natasha Corrett, Amelia Freer ? household names who are evangelical about clean living have turned our mealtimes into a national obsession. Kale, chia seeds, spirulina, Himalayan pink salt, seaweed, freekah and our beloved avocados ? so-called superfoods that appear to hold the very elixir of long life in their cells. But while we may choose to abstain from the ?dirty? and wholeheartedly embrace ?clean? food, are these potent ingredients right for our children" ?You need to be careful with some of these fashionable foods,? explains Claire Baseley, infant nutritionist at Ella?s Kitchen. ?Kale is high in nitrates so while it?s fine for children from one year and up, it can lead to anaemia in toddlers; likewise, beetroot should only be given in small amounts.?
Dr Lucy Hooper of private GP practice Coyne Medical (coynemedical.com) warns, ?Chia seeds are very high in fibre and can cause digestive problems such as constipation and gas, resulting in a child suffering fr...