The Ministry of Health has a document called “Food Guide for Brazilian Children Under 2 Years Old”, which aims to combat childhood obesity.
In this guide, the folder indicates how to feed children and when to introduce certain foods. Thus, the age of 2 years stands out as a determinant.
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It is recommended that breast milk be given until this age, accompanied by fresh or minimally processed foods, with the consumption of sugar being prohibited.
See too: Childhood diabetes: Learn more about this disease that affects more and more children
When to introduce sugar to children?
According to the Ministry of Health guide, children's food and drinks should not be sweetened in any way until they are 2 years old. With that, they also shouldn't eat anything that takes sugar or any other ingredient with the purpose of sweetening the recipe. However, although sugar can be introduced after 2 years of age, it is recommended that it continue to be avoided as much as possible.
It is therefore necessary to pay attention to the use of this ingredient. This happens not only in the consumption of sugar itself at home, but also when it comes to the market. More processed foods tend to have higher amounts of the ingredient, so read the labels and avoid buying these items for children. This purchase often occurs in search of practical snacks, even to take to school, such as ready-made juices, cookies, yogurt, chocolate milk, etc.
Why avoid sugar?
Sugar is a food that is related to the development of many diseases, and the habit of consuming it in excess usually starts as a child. This occurs because food in childhood will influence how the person eats throughout their lives, as it is at this stage that they get to know foods and define what they like or not.
Thus, the more sugar she consumes and the sooner this ingredient is introduced, the greater the chances of her developing a palate that always asks for more sugar. In addition, it is natural for children to prefer the sweet taste from the moment they are born. Therefore, if they have a lot of sugar in their food routine, they tend to reject healthier foods that do not have a sweet taste, such as greens and vegetables.
