Children’s health is related to various topics including physical, mental and social wellbeing. The most critical areas of children’s health are proper nutrition, necessary immunizations, use of vitamins and various diseases or safety concerns. Due to the number of health concerns, it is recommended that children have regular visits to their pediatrician to check up on significant changes in weight, sleeping problems, sore throats, breathing problems, temperatures over 120 or any rashes or skin infections.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the best health plan for children is a stable diet of three meals and two snacks per day. A vegetable or fruit should be included in each meal, but they make great snacks as well. A primary concern regarding nutrition and children is obesity. The CDC recommends rewarding children with attention or playful activities rather than foods as a way to avoid feeding children too often.

Another means of providing nutritious and balanced meals to children is following the food pyramid. The food pyramid in the past simply broke down how many servings of each food type to eat in one day. For instance, the bottom row of the pyramid suggested 6-10 servings of bread/grains a day. For a child 10 servings of bread can be far too large a quantity. The new food pyramid released by the United States Department of Agriculture provides a tool to calculate how much of each food group a person should intake daily according to their age, height and daily physical activity. This new pyramid is available at MyPyramid.gov.

A balanced and healthy diet is often an adequate way to ensure a child receives all of his or her necessary vitamins and nutrients. A common concern among parents, however, is whether or not their child should take multivitamins. There are a number of multivitamins available for parents who are looking for vitamin or mineral supplements to their child’s diet. Among the important vitamins and minerals that children need are Vitamin D, iron, calcium and fluoride.

• Vitamin D can be obtained from Vitamin D fortified milk. The recommended amount is 500 ml, but exposure to sunlight can also provide needed Vitamin D.
• Iron prevents anemia and is especially important among young girls who are starting their menstrual cycles. Good sources of iron are meats, fish, legumes, fortified breads and cereals.
• Calcium is necessary for healthy bones and teeth and is most commonly found in dairy products.
• Fluoride provides for healthy teeth and can be found in the tap water of cities or bottled water of companies that add fluoride to their products.

Common multivitamins are available at grocery stores and pharmacies/drug stores.

Immunizations are also especially important for the health of children. Most immunizations are recommended in the early months of a child’s life, but many times follow up doses are required 5 or more years after the initial injection. Common immunizations include:

• Hepatitis B which is administered at birth, at 1-4 months and again at 6-8 months;
• Diphtheria and Tetanus are given at months two, four, six, 15-18 and again between 4 and 6 years old;
• And other immunizations include: Haemophilus Influenzae Type B, Inactivated Poliovirus, Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Chickenpox (Varicella), Pneumococcal disease (PCV and PPV) and Hepatitis A (in certain areas).

Sample Legislation

Active Bill 2007 CA A.B. 967 Assembly Committee on Agriculture Farm Fresh Schools Program Summary: Creates the Farm Fresh Schools Program. The purpose of the program is to reduce obesity, improve nutrition and public health, and strengthen local and regional economies by increasing access to, and promoting the consumption of, locally and regionally grown fruits and vegetables in schools and increasing access to physical activities and programs that promote pupil wellness. Bill Analysis

Additional Resources

United States Department of Agriculture: My Pyramid Plan

Various Articles and Videos on Topics Related to Children's Health

Immunization Schedules.

Healthy Food Choices for Kids 2-5

Nutrition for Kids: Guidelines for a Healthy Diet for Various Ages, Boys and Girls