Salt and Toddler’s Diet: Important Tips for Parents

Common salt that we consume daily is called sodium chloride. Just like adults, salt plays a crucial role in toddlers’ diet as well. Some of the crucial jobs of salt are as follows:

•         Helps in the absorption of important nutrients in the small intestine.
•          Balances the amount of water in the body.
•          Regulates the balance of acid in the body.
•          Helps in potassium absorption which is required for muscles and nerves to function.

So, salt is important when it comes to ensuring healthy muscles, bowel, and nerve function in toddlers.

Need for limiting the intake of salt

Now if the salt is that good for the body, why is it important to limit its intake?

Well, for healthy growth, toddlers require a very small amount of salt in their diet and they can easily get it within a healthy diet. If you do not limit its intake, chances are that kids may develop a predilection for salty foods, which, later in life, may cause several health problems like high blood pressure.

How to keep the salt at a healthy level

There are many nutritious food items that are preserved with salt. While you cannot cut down on healthy things, you can surely reduce excess salt by limiting or omitting packaged snack foods. Even if you cook for your toddler, make sure you use herbs and spices over salt to flavour the food. Check ingredients (especially sodium) before buying your kid a packet of his/her favourite snack. Besides, always choose cereals that are low in salt (preferably 0.7 gram of salt or 0.27 gram of sodium per 100 grams of the cereal). Also, make sure you choose cereals that are low in sugar (less than 8 grams of sugar per 100 grams of the cereal). Try and avoid cereals that are high in oil and trans fats.

In addition to the aforementioned points, train your toddler to make healthy choices. Cook them their favourite food with quality salt. For instance, Tata namak is a popular choice which is extensively used in Indian households. You can easily buy Tata namak online or from your local Kirana store.