Why colorful is healthy

A balanced diet is actually quite simple: drink plenty of water and eat plant-based foods. Eat only a moderate amount of animal-based foods and go easy on fat and sugar. Nevertheless, a balanced diet has to be learned. That is why we at globegarden make a special effort to teach the children the joy of good, healthy food and drink.

The joy of food and exercise

Childhood is formative when it comes to nutrition. That is why nutrition education at globegarden starts from baby and daycare age. The children get to know and taste fresh ingredients. Again and again we cook or bake together. Fixed mealtimes and healthy snacks give the framework. All of these are important building blocks for children to grow up healthy and enjoy eating. In addition to nutrition, we focus on exercise in our facilities. That is why we invest a lot of time in planning and training.

Study to shed light on nutrition of Swiss children

The importance of the early approach is shown by the results of EsKiMo, a representative study on the nutrition of children and adolescents from Germany: too many high-fat, animal-based foods such as meat and sausage and clearly too many sweets are eaten. In order to learn more about the eating habits of children in Switzerland, the Bundesamt für Lebensmittelsicherheit und Veterinärwesen (BLV) has now also commissioned a national study for the first time with menuCH-Kids. 1,800 children and adolescents are to keep a food diary for this purpose.

Family and daycare shape later preferences

The topic is moving. That is why we at globegarden have long since compiled a comprehensive nutrition brochure. With the certified nutrition concept, we want to contribute to the optimal development of children - from infancy to school age. Because as soon as children come into the world, they learn from their environment. Apart from the preference “sweet”, which exists from birth, all other taste preferences are only learned gradually.

Children register exactly which foods their parents like to eat, what is put on the table and how it is eaten. Together or each to their own. Fast food or home-cooked food. With constant TV in the background or conversations about the events of the day.

These experiences are formative and usually accompany the children for a lifetime. Therefore, we pay attention to rituals and atmosphere around the topic of nutrition. In the daily routine of the day care center, we always encourage the children to try new things in order to broaden their taste horizons.

Tips for parents

• The more varied the meals, the lower the risk of an unbalanced diet.
• Include vegetables and fruit in every meal, either raw or gently prepared, so that many nutrients are retained. The more colorful, the better.
• Foods made from whole grains are more filling and contain more nutrients than white flour products.
• Unprocessed or less processed foods are nutritionally the better choice, e.g. oatmeal instead of sugared flakes, fish filet instead of fish cakes, fruit juice instead of lemonade.
• Cook food as long as necessary and as short as possible, with little water and little fat.
• If you don’t get around to buying fresh produce: Frozen vegetables and fruit contain almost all the nutrients, are quickly at hand and often hardly cost more than fresh produce.
• Ready-made products or sandwiches can be nutritionally “spiced up” with salad or sliced raw fruit.
• Vegetable sticks or fruit wedges taste just as good as crisps, salted pellets and the like. Healthy chips can easily be made in the oven from carrots, kohlrabi or apples.
• Ideal thirst quenchers are water, unsweetened herbal and fruit teas. They help to minimize the risk of tooth decay. In addition, studies have shown that children who were already given sweetened drinks as infants also frequently reach for sweetened drinks later on.

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