What should the baby eat at dinner for easy digestion and good sleep?

This is an automatically translated article.

Some young children often wake up every night and have difficulty falling back to sleep, affecting the health of the whole family. Fortunately, once your baby is used to solid foods, there are a number of dishes on the baby's dinner menu that will help improve this situation.

1. How does food promote sleep in young children?

The composition of any food consumed has an effect on overall health. While some foods wake the brain and maintain alertness (adult coffee, for example), there are a few foods known to promote sleep.
These foods combined with complex carbohydrates help release sleep-promoting substances in the body, in children and adults alike. This will quickly make your baby feel more comfortable, easier to digest after his dinner, and easy to fall asleep. Simply put, parents can put their babies to sleep more gently.

2. What should the baby eat at dinner for easy digestion and good sleep?

Here are 9 baby dinner dishes that are not only nutritious and easy to digest, but also help them have a good night's sleep:
2.1. Warm Oatmeal Oatmeal itself is a healthy food that is extremely healthy for both children and adults. Oats are a great source of melatonin that helps trigger insulin production. It is insulin that helps promote sleep quickly after dinner for the baby.
Parents can process oatmeal in many different forms, the simplest is oatmeal porridge, light bar, easy to digest for babies. Also, one option to feed your baby for dinner with oats is fresh apple, to improve both the taste and the nutritional profile.
2.2. White rice helps babies sleep well, easy to digest. The most suitable type of rice for children's dinner is rice with a high glycemic index. According to some scientific studies, this has been shown to help the body sleep better and faster. This is also the reason why many people tend to feel sleepy after eating rice.
Although brown rice is highly recommended for babies due to its higher nutritional value, white rice has a higher glycemic index than brown rice. In addition, white rice is easy to digest for young children and is also very light on the stomach.
2.3. Add spinach to your baby's dinner A nutritious dinner for your baby should always emphasize the composition of green leafy vegetables. It is an important source of essential nutrients such as iron, vitamins and minerals.
However, parents need to know that, in addition to providing the necessary nutrients, green vegetables are also rich in tryptophan - an amino acid that the body uses to synthesize proteins in general, produce melatonin - 'hormone' sleep' of the body in particular. Among them, spinach is the most prominent choice.
2.4. Cherries help baby sleep Cherries are another great bedtime dinner food, for the same reason as spinach. It is also a good source of melatonin, the sleep hormone.
On the other hand, the ripe cherries are also quite delicious, the colors are vibrant, so the children will be very interested. However, it should be remembered that sour cherries contain the most melatonin, so choose sour ones instead of sweet ones.

2.5. Bananas make children sleep better. Bananas are loved by many babies because they are soft and sweet. Besides, bananas also contain a good amount of magnesium, which is a natural muscle relaxant. When the muscles are relaxed, it means that the child will feel more sleepy after dinner and ultimately sleep better.
In addition, bananas also contain a good amount of melatonin and serotonin. This banana puree smoothie recipe can be both a baby dinner or a delicious dessert for an older baby.
2.6. Chicken dishes help babies to digest and sleep well Since children can eat meat, parents should consider early inclusion of chicken in their children's nutrition. Chicken contains high levels of tryptophan and it is this amino acid that will surely make children sleepy after dinner.
Besides, needless to say, chicken will also meet the protein needs of young children. A bowl of chicken soup or chicken porridge for dinner is definitely an option to help your baby digest and sleep well.
2.7. Walnuts help to relax the mind Walnuts work to help the body stimulate the production of serotonin - a chemical that calms the brain and affects people's mood, helping to relax the mind. This helps the body to quickly fall asleep and sleep more deeply.
Furthermore, walnuts also contain melatonin so parents can add walnuts to their baby's dinner. Younger babies who are just starting to eat solid foods may need to puree them, mix them in milk or soups, while older children can eat them whole.
2.8. Chickpeas promote sleep In general, legumes are high in protein as well as tryptophan and are therefore an excellent sleep promoter. However, in addition to high protein content, chickpeas are also high in iron, potassium, fiber and vitamins K, C and B6. It is these ingredients that make chickpeas a suitable choice when you are wondering what to feed your baby for dinner.
The easiest way to prepare chickpeas for babies is to boil them and grind them finely, cook them in porridge or soup according to a diet suitable for children. This makes it easy for children to consume as well as digest chickpeas.
2.9. Dairy products Last, this is no surprise - drinking milk before bed is a very familiar way to help sleep well, especially a glass of warm milk before putting your baby in bed.
Even in addition to milk, other dairy products such as cheese and yogurt contain large amounts of tryptophan. Thus, the combination of the above ingredients such as bananas, walnuts, pureed cherries with fresh milk is not only a delicious sweet treat but also helps children sleep comfortably throughout the night.

3. Foods that should be avoided for children before going to bed

If your child has trouble sleeping, it may be partly because he ate something inappropriate before going to bed. Here are 5 foods that kids need to avoid before going to bed:
Caffeinated drinks: Iced tea, milk tea, coffee and some energy drinks contain caffeine. Children should absolutely not drink these drinks and especially should not drink them before going to bed because they contain caffeine, a stimulant. Children may have trouble sleeping after drinking caffeinated beverages. Furthermore, these drinks should only be consumed by adults. Sugary drinks: Avoid giving your child soda, sugary juices and drinks with a lot of sugar before bedtime. These sweets can cause tooth decay if children forget to brush their teeth before bed. In addition, sugary drinks often have a euphoric effect on the brain, not only making it difficult for children to sleep, but also causing behavioral disorders or hyperactive behavior. Fried foods: If your child's favorite food is fried chicken or French fries, it's okay to offer it occasionally. However, it is necessary to choose the right time to eat fried food during the day, do not give it to children before going to bed. Oily foods take longer to digest, fill your baby's stomach, and can cause stomach upset. Chocolate, candy and sweets: Chocolate is also a product that contains a small amount of caffeine mixed with a high amount of sugar. Neither of these ingredients is suitable at all before bedtime for children. Dried or preserved fruit: Fruit is generally a healthy choice. However, before going to bed, eating too much fruit can make children full, have to have bowel movements and lead to late bedtime. It is better for parents to give children fresh fruit earlier in the day or at least a few hours before bedtime. At the same time, limit eating dried or preserved fruits because they also contain high sugar content.

4. Other eating habits adjustments to help children sleep well

In addition to the problem of what to eat for a good night's sleep, parents also need to know more factors that affect sleep. Here are some tips to help parents schedule appropriate meals, make children feel light, easy to digest, help children sleep better without waking up in the middle of the night:
Avoid large meals before going to bed. sleep. A large meal will increase a child's metabolic rate and body temperature, making it difficult for them to fall asleep. The biggest meal of the day for your child, especially in the weaning age, should take place at midday. Dinner should be slightly smaller than lunch and should be eaten at least 2 hours before bedtime. A very light meal right before bedtime can be a great idea. The choice is usually a glass of warm milk, which helps keep the baby from waking up hungry during the night. Parents can choose from other options, just make sure they're healthy and don't contain refined sugar or caffeine. In addition, the time to give the child a snack is at least 30 minutes before the child goes to bed. A comforting, easy-to-digest dinner will help your baby sleep better. However, it should be remembered that choosing what to eat to help your baby sleep well does not completely solve the baby's sleep problems, but also depends on the time of eating before putting the baby to bed. In other words, feeding your baby the right foods along with a careful dinner arrangement can help improve your baby's effective sleep habits.
Besides, parents should also add necessary micronutrients such as zinc, selenium, chromium, vitamins B1 and B6, ginger, acerola fruit extract (vitamin C),... to help their baby improve the taste. feel good, eat well, reach the correct height and weight, strengthen the resistance to get sick less often and have less digestive problems.

Please dial HOTLINE for more information or register for an appointment HERE. Download MyVinmec app to make appointments faster and to manage your bookings easily.

References: tommeetippee.com, parenting.firstcry.com, timesofindia.indiatimes.com