This signal from the child’s body is actually nutritional imbalance!

Many parents are very concerned about whether their children eat enough at every meal. They are always worried that their children do not eat enough or eat well, which will lead to malnutrition and affect their height growth. In fact, when a child is malnourished or has an unbalanced nutrition, he or she will send out signals through some physical or psychological manifestations. If parents can recognize these signals in time, they can correct the nutritional problems in time.

1. Height, weight and head circumference do not meet the standards

Every time a child has a health check-up, the doctor will always measure the child's height, weight, and head circumference. Ke Haijin, deputy chief physician of the Child Health Department of Guangdong Provincial Women and Children's Health Hospital, said that these three indicators are important reference standards for whether children's physical growth and development are normal.

Before the age of 3, if nutrition is not adequate, the child's height and weight will lag behind. Similarly, head circumference is also an important criterion. The baby’s head circumference should be measured when doing child health care. A head circumference that is too large or too small may be a sign of illness.

Therefore, parents should take their babies to the hospital regularly for child health care. If they find that their children lag behind their peers in physical growth and development, they should adjust their children's diet structure under the guidance of a doctor.

2. Slow reaction and insufficient brain function

The baby's diet is very important. Malnutrition can reduce the division rate of brain cells, lead to neuroregulatory dysfunction, and cause delayed motor and language development. Therefore, it makes sense for parents to care about whether their baby eats well and enough for every meal.

Ke Haijin said that when parents find that their children are often slow to react, have insufficient brain power, and are forgetful in recent times, they should be alert to possible warning signs of malnutrition.

3. Decreased immunity and poor health

The lack of certain trace elements (such as vitamins, zinc, iron, etc.) can lead to a decline in cellular and humoral immune functions, making children prone to illness and infection, such as frequent colds, recurrent gingivitis, folliculitis, angular cheilitis, glossitis, keratitis, etc.

Therefore, some babies who do not like to eat meat, milk and eggs may be prone to colds and gingivitis if they do not consume enough protein. Parents should try to make their children's diet more diverse, and find ways to make meat easier to eat and chew, so that children will love eating meat.

4. Constipation and bad breath

Another extreme in children's diet is that they prefer meat, sweets, fried foods and other foods, but are not interested in vegetables and fruits. Ke Haijin said that when children do not consume enough fiber, their intestinal motility can easily slow down and cause constipation. When feces stay in the intestines for too long, harmful toxins will be further produced, causing bad breath.

Therefore, parents cannot only feed their children the food they like, or the types of complementary foods they eat are too single. Otherwise, it is easy for children to develop picky eating habits, which may lead to certain nutrient deficiencies or nutritional imbalances over time, and even cause diseases.

5. Mood swings

B vitamins can indirectly affect people's emotions by regulating the human nervous system. When vitamin B1 is deficient, people can become irritable and moody; when vitamin B6 intake is insufficient, it can lead to emotional excitement, drowsiness and impatience; when vitamin B12 is deficient, people can become slow to react, etc.

Experts say that vitamin B1 is mainly found in the seed coat and germ, and oats contain a lot of vitamin B1. In addition, it is most abundant in foods such as soybeans, yeast, and lean meat. In addition, cabbage and celery are also rich in vitamin B1. Vitamin B6 is abundant in animal liver, grains, meat, fish, eggs, beans and peanuts.

Experts suggest that when parents notice signs of nutritional imbalance in their children, it is best to improve the situation through dietary adjustments first. If medication is necessary, it is best to do so under the guidance of a doctor.