Diet for Diseases of Childhood

Ads

When children are sick they usually lose their appetites to some extent and become faddy feeders. This does not matter for a short time but, in any illness which is prolonged, failure to eat will not only delay healing but will hinder normal growth and development. Any devices to coax children to eat the right foods at this time are worth trying.

Tips Others Have Found Useful

1. Concentrate on familiar and well-liked foods, as far as the diet will allow.

If a strange food has to be given, try to make it look as like the familiar as possible or serve it with a very popular food.

2. Make food attractive to look at by using coloured food and pretty dishes.

3. Individual portions appeal more than a helping from a big dish and cook more quickly. individual jellies and cold sweets set more quickly.
4. Avoid stodgy and lumpy food, and food which is difficult to handle and chew. Serve it cut into convenient-sized pieces.

5. Remove all bones from fish and serve it in a colourful sauce, e.g. tomato, anchovy, parsley.

6. Serve only small portions and allow second helpings if needed.

7. Serve meals at regular times.

8. Drinking straws are often a help in getting children to take fluids and also help to avoid spilling
9. Milk is more attractive if served in tall pretty glasses with a little flavouring or colouring and a straw.

10. If children refuse to eat, don't let them see you are worried about it.

11. Children with a preference for savoury things will take milk flavoured with marmite or meat extract or dried milk added to soups and broth.
12. Use plenty of milk in cooking, either liquid, dried, or evaporated. As the last two are concentrated, a lot can be given in a small bulk.

It can be used not only in all kinds of puddings, but also in soups, gravies, mashed vegetables; the milk powders can be added dry with the other dry ingredients to cakes and steamed or baked puddings.

13. If children dislike eggs by themselves, use them in cooking. Choose puddings 'made with egg, add eggs to mashed potatoes, milk puddings, sauces, and make savoury supper dishes with eggs.

14. If refusal to eat cooked vegetables is the trouble, try raw salads and salad fillings for sandwiches or give very small amounts of three or more different vegetables on the plate to make it look interesting, colourful, and tempting.

15. If they need concentrated sources of vitamin C such as blackcurrant syrup and rose-hip syrup and do not like it as drinks, use it in or with puddings.

16. If a special diet is needed, explain why to older children as they are more likely to cooperate than if merely told it is doctor's orders, or good for them.

17. Make sure hot food will stay hot for as long as the child takes to eat it; for slow feeders insulated plates are a help.

18. Small children who have just learnt to feed themselves will probably need help again when they are ill, but do not continue this longer than is necessary.

The Liquid or Fluid Diet for Children

This is basically the same as for adults, but the quantities will naturally vary. The following are quantities that are. likely to be taken at different ages (check with your doctor).

Pull fluid diet six times a day

Age Amount per feed

2-5 yrs 4-5 fl. oz.

5-8 yrs 8-10 fl. oz.

8-14 yrs 10 fl. oz

The Semi-Solid or Soft Diet

Light, Convalescent, and Full Diets for Children

These are usually the same as for adults, except that for small children soups would be omitted from the basic menu and tea and the evening meal suggested in the meal-pattern would be combined into a high-tea meal taken at about 4.45-5.0 p.m.

Fruit juice or milk drinks would be given between meals if needed.

Conditions Affecting the Mouth and Throat

Removal of tonsils, sore throat, tonsillitis, mumps, swollen glands, or any disease which makes chewing and swallowing difficult and painful.

How the Normal Diet is Modified

(Check this with your doctor)

As with adults, a good normal diet is important, the main change being one of consistency.

Any normal foods are usually allowed provided they are soft enough to be easily swallowed without chewing or without hurting when swallowed.

If the throat is sore, highly seasoned foods (vinegar, lemon, salad dressings, and acid fruits and juices such as orange, grapefruit, or blackcurrant) should be avoided. The normal diet is resumed as soon, as possible.

Popular foods with most children will be:

Soft ice creams, ginger ale, water ices, cold milk shakes with ice cream, sherbet, apple, pear, or apricot juices, clear jellies made with fruit juices. When the throat is sore all drinks are usually preferred cold. Feeds are given every two hours.

Add those foods as the healing progresses:

Milky soups, minced meat, mashed potatoes, lightly cooked eggs, sieved vegetables, cereal milk puddings with fruit purees.

Meal-Pattern for a Child Recovering from a Sore Throat

On waking. Chilled milk or fruit juice.

Breakfast. Lightly cooked egg. Milk drink or creamy milk gruel.

Mid-morning. Milk shake.

Dinner. Minced meat with mashed potatoes and sieved vegetable. Ice cream with fruit puree.

Tea. Milky vegetable soup (sieved). Jelly.

Bedtime. Milk drink.

Fevers and Feverish Colds

Influenza, tonsillitis, infectious diseases, measles, chickenpox, bronchitis, pneumonia.

Why the Diet is Important

Whenever there is fever the body loses protein, which is the main constituent of all cells.

This causes loss of weight and wastage of muscles and other tissues, and, in the case of children, growth is not normal.

The object of the diet; is to give food which is as nourishing as possible in a form the child can digest. This is given at frequent intervals, as not much will be taken at any one time.

How the Diet is Modified

(Check this with your doctor)

In the early stages milk and fruit juices form the basis of the diet and are given at two-hourly intervals.

Milk. With fruit-flavoured syrup as used for milk shakes, egg nog, ice cream, jelly creams, cream soups, semolina or rice pudding or arrowroot pudding. Soups.

Proprietary starch foods, e.g. Bengers', Farex. Sugar and glucose added to all liquids.

As the child recovers and appetite retaarns add :

Steamed lamb cutlets, white fish, chicken, cheese, minced beef or lamb, cooked egg dishes, liver, chopped vegetables, and fresh fruit.

Some bread and cereal should be added too, but not served instead of the other foods.

When the appetite is poor the milk used should be a fortified one, e.g. made with 1½ pts of fresh milk, 1½ oz. Casilan (Glaxo), and 1 egg. Use this sweetened and flavoured or made into soup with tomato juice or chicken broth.

Meal-Pattern for a Child Who is Recovering

Breakfast. Fortified milk with porridge or cereal. Scrambled egg or bacon. Bread and butter or toast.

Mid-7 morning. Orange or blackcurrant juice.

Dinner. Meat, or fish, or grated cheese. Vegetables. Custard or cereal pudding made with fortified milk. Fresh or stewed fruit.

Tea. Fortified milk with tea to flavour and colour. Egg cheese, or sardine sandwich. Cakes or fruit.

Bedtime. Fortified milk with cereal. Biscuits or cake.

Typhoid Fever (Acute Stages)

(Check this with your doctor)

Give milk, cereals, ice cream, plain chocolate. Then give a low-fibre diet using the following foods: Scrambled egg, steamed white fish, pounded chicken, calves' foot jelly, custards and junkets, finely pureed stewed fruit, broths, pounded brains, creamed potatoes, milk puddings.

These foods are given at regular mealtimes. Give plenty of fresh fruit juices as well.

Similar of Diet for Diseases of Childhood