Nutrients for baby's brain development

A child's brain is made up of a dense network of neurons that work continuously to maintain vital functions. To maintain daily activities, the brain needs the main source of energy, glucose. This substance is synthesized from the amount of sugar and carbohydrates that the body takes in through food.
Many studies show that adding enough sugar to children will help enhance cognition, attention, memory and learning. However, using too much sugar can easily cause the child's body to encounter some unwanted health problems such as diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease... Therefore, parents need to make sure to use sugar regularly. Reasonably follow the suggestions below:
Should use foods with slow absorption of carbohydrates to keep blood sugar levels stable. Example: Raw cereals (black bread, unmilled rice, sweet potatoes, potatoes, corn...); less sweet fruits (apple, grapefruit, acerola, ..). Limit giving children juice (because fruit juices have nutritional value and low fiber content, they also contain a lot of sugar, which makes children easy to gain weight). Avoid giving children soft drinks, carbonated drinks, sweets, tea, etc.

These are important substances that make up nerve cells. However, these substances cannot be synthesized by the body, but can only be supplemented through the diet:
Omega-3: abundant in fatty catfish (mackerel, pangasius, etc.) salmon, tuna...), seaweed, cabbage... Omega-6: found in oily seeds (sunflower seeds, peas, pumpkin seeds...), vegetable oils , chicken... Especially fish rich in fatty acids and Omega-3 is a rich source of nutrients for the brain, helping to protect blood vessels in the brain, promoting brain cells to function and improving memory loss. , risk of stroke and dementia . In general, this is an especially necessary food for the elderly and children.

The human brain needs Lecithin and Phospholipid to maintain functioning. These are two trace elements that help create myelin sheaths around nerves to enhance the brain's ability to transmit instructions. In addition, these two substances also have the effect of prolonging the life of nerve cells and preventing platelet aggregation.
These two substances are abundant in egg yolks and peanuts. Adding eggs and peanuts in the child's diet will ensure nutrition for the brain, enhance blood circulation and increase memory.
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Folate (folic acid, vitamin B9) is a very important nutrient for the body's ability to circulate. In addition to the treatment of anemia and a number of other diseases, folate can also prevent or slow down memory decline due to aging. Not only that, folate has also shown many benefits in reducing the effects of mood disorders, depression and dementia. Parents can get folate for their children through dark green leafy vegetables such as spinach, kale, fruits, liver, nuts, beans and whole grains.

Amino acids have the effect of making the brain clear, alert, comfortable, active and relaxing. Two amino acids are very important for the brain: Tryptophan and Tyrosine.
In which, Tryptophan is a substance that cannot be synthesized by the body, so it must be supplemented through the diet. Foods that stimulate intelligence in children that contain a lot of Tryptophan are: milk, cheese, fish, eggs, meat, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, seaweed, peanuts,...
And Tyrosine is a nutrient. which the body can synthesize on its own, so although it is important and necessary for the brain, it is not an essential amino acid, the child's body can still regulate itself appropriately if it is provided with adequate nutrients daily. day.

Iodine and iron are 2 nutrients that are essential for the brain. Lack of iodine, children's bodies are prone to passivity, stagnation, poor perception, intellectual limitations. Therefore, in the daily meal, parents should supplement with iodized salt at a suitable level for the child. In addition, iron is also an essential micronutrient for blood formation, iron deficiency will lead to anemia in general and cerebral anemia in particular. Anemic children will feel tired, poor concentration, often feel sleepy, lose alertness.
Iron is found in: meat, fish, blood, animal liver, eggs, green vegetables and legumes. In particular, iron from animal sources will be better absorbed than those derived from plants.

If you have a vitamin D deficiency, your child is at greater risk of cognitive decline than the general population. Vitamin D can be obtained from foods and sunlight. Just 5 to 15 minutes of sunbathing a day will help the body produce enough vitamin D. However, the safe times to sunbathe children are 6-8 am and after 4 pm. Parents should also remember to apply adequate sunscreen to protect children's skin from cancer-causing UV rays.
In addition, parents can also supplement vitamin D for children through brain foods rich in vitamin D such as breakfast cereals, fish containing many fatty acids (salmon, tuna ..), milk. , orange juice,...
Above are brain foods that you should give priority to if you want to enhance memory, enhance nutrition for young brains. What the body consumes will be the fuel that helps the body and brain function properly. So if you want to prevent brain problems, change your whole family's diet now. In particular, do not forget to add necessary micronutrients during this period such as: Zinc, selenium, chromium, vitamins B1 and B6, ginger, acerola fruit extract (vitamin C),... to improve the taste. sense, eat well, reach the correct height and weight, and exceed the standard, have a good immune system, strengthen resistance to reduce minor illnesses, limit stress and fatigue.
Also according to leading nutrition experts, parents need to be calm and persistent when supplementing with nutrients for children, even through eating or functional foods. In particular, the use of functional foods should choose those of natural origin that are easily absorbed, do not allow simultaneous use of many types or continuously change the types of functional foods. Besides, nutritionists also emphasize on the role of biological zinc; Parents should learn and supplement zinc for children properly at the appropriate time, to avoid zinc deficiency affecting the comprehensive development of children.
For more nutritional knowledge and child care for each age, parents should regularly visit the website vimec.com and make an appointment with the leading doctors, pediatric and nutrition experts of the National General Hospital. Vinmec when needing advice on children's health.