Nutrition and Healthy Eating

HUGGIE BEARS FAMILY CHILDCARE

Nurturing Healthy Eating Preferences

At Huggie Bears Family Childcare, we understand the importance of a balanced diet for children's growth and development. We provide nutritious and well-balanced meals and snacks that promote healthy eating practices.

Our approach to nutrition:

Balanced Meals: We serve a variety of foods from all essential food groups, including fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, proteins, and dairy or dairy alternatives. Our meals adhere to the guidelines of the Eatwell Guide to ensure nutritional balance for healthy growth and development.
Fresh Ingredients: Prioritizing fresh, whole foods, we strive to minimize the use of processed ingredients and avoid those high in added sugars, salt (sodium), and unhealthy fats. Each meal is carefully prepared in a clean and safe environment to maintain the highest standards of food safety and hygiene.
Weaning Menu: For our youngest children, we provide a carefully planned weaning menu that introduces a variety of healthy foods in appropriate textures and flavours, ensuring a positive and enjoyable weaning experience. Babies will be slowly introduced to a varied diet, alongside their usual breast milk or formula milk. We work in partnership with parents to understand foods that have been introduced at home firstly and at what stage of weaning baby is at (not just by age and stage of expected weaning as all babies can be different). We support both baby-led and traditional or spoon feeding weaning.

Hydration: We emphasize the importance of staying hydrated. Fresh drinking water is available at all times, and children are encouraged to drink water regularly throughout the day. Milk is also available for children to drink.
Cultural and Dietary Needs: We respect and cater to the diverse cultural and dietary needs of all children, accommodating allergies, intolerances, and specific dietary preferences with care.
Parental/Carer Collaboration: We maintain open communication with parents, keeping them informed about our nutrition policies and practices. We also encourage healthy eating habits at home, fostering a collaborative approach to your child's well-being. Sharing recipes, tips, and resources to help parents encourage healthy eating at home.
Educational Activities: Our program includes engaging activities and discussions designed to educate children about the importance of nutrition and healthy eating habits. Discussions and hands-on experiences, such as gardening and cooking, help children understand where their food comes from and how to make healthy choices.

A child eats watermelon in the park. Selective focus. Kid.

Mealtimes at Huggie Bears Family Childcare

Mealtimes are a particularly good source of learning. All the children are encouraged to sit down together and serve themselves (age appropriate), placing an early emphasis on social graces and table manners. Children eat each meal with their friends and staff in a family style dining environment and they are encouraged to try a wide variety of foods to widen their knowledge of different foods and tastes together with learn the skill of self-help. The children come together at mealtimes to eat, talk and enjoy the social occasion!

By promoting a positive relationship with food and lifelong healthy eating habits, we aim to support the overall health and development of the children in our care.