Mafraq Hospital

Healthy Tips

• Breakfast is the most important meal of the day and should definitely be at approximately the same time every day.
• A good daily meal schedule for children, should include three meals and two healthy snacks. For more read Tabibi
• Parents are children’s real-life role models; children will pick up on their parents’ good and bad habits and this includes diet and fitness So the only way to ensure your children lead healthy lifestyles is to lead a healthy lifestyle yourself.
• The American Heart Association recommends that children and adolescents participate in at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity every day, exercise has social, mental and physical benefits for children, and urges parents to lead by example.
• Eat healthily : A balanced diet ensures you get all the minerals and vitamins your body needs
• Don't smoke: Smoking means that your kidneys have to work harder to remove toxins from your blood.
• Watch the pressure: Raised blood pressure has no symptoms, but it can increase your risk of kidney problems.
• Keep slim: Being too heavy raises your blood pressure, which is bad for your kidneys
• Instead of sugary fizzy drinks and juice drinks, go for water or unsweetened fruit juice (remember to dilute these for children, to further reduce the sugar).
• If you like fizzy drinks, try diluting fruit juice with sparkling water.
• Swap cakes or biscuits for a currant bun, scone or some malt loaf with low-fat spread.
• If you take sugar in hot drinks, or add sugar to your breakfast cereal, gradually reduce the amount until you can cut it out altogether.
• Rather than spreading jam, marmalade, syrup, treacle or honey on your toast, try a low-fat spread, sliced banana or low-fat cream cheese instead.
• Check nutrition labels to help you pick the foods with less added sugar, or go for the low-sugar version.
• Try halving the sugar you use in your recipes. It works for most things except jam, meringues and ice cream.
• Choose tins of fruit in juice rather than syrup.
• Choose wholegrain breakfast cereals, but not those coated with sugar or honey.