Raising Children Network: the Australian parenting website
  • Suitable for 1-8Years

Good and bad fat: 12 tips for getting the balance right

By Raising Children Network
 
 

Try these ideas to get a healthy balance of good and bad fats in your family’s daily diet.

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To help your children develop a healthy lifestyle, eat nutritious food, don’t overdo it on junk food and stay active.

 
  1. Breastfeeding gives newborns all the essential fatty acids in the correct proportions. If your baby is on formula, check with your doctor that it has an appropriate amount of essential fatty acids (the nutrients in most formulas are very similar to breastmilk). Rice and soy milks are not advisable for newborns.
  2. When your child starts on solids, give him full-fat foods. Low-fat or skimmed dairy products are not recommended for children under two, because littlies need to get energy for their big growth spurts from high-fat foods.
  3. When your child turns two, you can give him some low-fat dairy products, as long as he is getting enough total energy from a wide variety of foods. Low-fat milk does not have enough vitamins and energy for children under two, and skimmed milk should be used for children once they are five.
  4. Introduce low-fat meals using a wide variety of foods for toddlers and preschoolers. Try to include a range of fats in your child’s food choices. This is the age to start developing habits and food choices for life.
  5. Omega-3 fat occurs naturally in breastmilk, and is added to formula. Once your child is no longer breastfeeding or formula-feeding, give him foods such as tinned fish and vegetable oils to ensure he gets enough omega-3.
  6. Review your family’s daily diet. How many foods do you eat that contain good fats? How many contain bad fats? You should try to limit your intake of saturated fats to about 10% of your daily diet.
  7. Review the nutrition information panels (NIPs) on your packaged food. The NIPs must list saturated fats separately from total fats. This will help you work out how much saturated fat your family consumes daily.
  8. Replace food with bad fats – such as fatty cuts of meat, full-fat dairy products, butter, deep-fried foods, commercially produced cakes and biscuits, snack foods and lollies – with foods with good fats – such as lean meat, low-fat dairy, margarine made from polyunsaturated or monounsaturated fats, nuts, fresh fruit and vegetables. For treats, try our carrot and muesli mini muffins or our strawberry ice blocks.
  9. When you’re shopping, choose foods that have the Heart Foundation’s Tick. In general, foods with the Tick have met strict standards for saturated fat and trans fat. The Tick helps you ensure you’re making a healthy choice.
  10. Set a good example for your children by making healthy food choices yourself, choosing food with good fat like olive oil, tinned fish, nuts, avocados, and limiting processed food.
  11. Try to limit ‘sometimes’ food to once or twice a week. Sometimes food might include takeaway foods, snack and junk foods, cakes and pastries, and ice cream and chocolate.
  12. Have fun with food! Trying a range of things can be entertaining and creates a healthy attitude to food.
 
  • Last reviewed18-10-2007
  • References

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