Healthy, Fun and Messy Mealtimes With Cerelac

Being a mom to three kids, I have witnesses how different they are when it comes to their eating patterns and habits. Each of my child has their own way of enjoying and exploring food. But however they want to eat them, I just make sure that the nutrients are well taken care of and they are eating right.

When I had my eldest, I was on the top of my toes because I want him to have the best of everything including the nutrition that I give him through food. But things don’t just go the way I want it to happen. He has become the picky eater while growing up. My second child on the other hand, eats a lot and everything that I serve her. I was amazed because she enjoys food so much that she likes it messy unlike my eldest. Now my youngest has the best of both of my two older kids. He eats messy or sometimes not, and eats almost everything too! The thing is, there is no perfect way of feeding your children most especially if they have different personalities. You just have to know and be certain that you are giving them the right nutrition.

But how will you even know if you are giving them the right nutrition? I personally don’t know and count caloric contents of each food because that is extra work and my aim for each day is that I would feed them right and go through my day without so much dramas. How do you really encourage children to eat their food happily?

Celebrity dad Drew Arellano talks about the challenges he experienced feeding his son, Primo. 

Here are my tips:

• Do not force them to eat when they do not like it, chances are, they are still full and not yet in the mood.
• Set a schedule for eating time. Kids are creature of habits. Not only you get them to follow schedule but you are also instilling discipline.  
• Let them touch their food to stimulate their senses.
• Do not be mad when they have so much mess. It is their way of being creative and another way of enjoying their food.
• Introduce one food at a time and allow them to get used to the taste before introducing another food.
• Offer them the food with a happy face. That way, it will somehow mask the awful taste of the food.
• Lastly, be creative with the food. You can plate their food in a fun way, cut the food pieces into shapes and make their food colorful by adding fruits and vegetables into their meal.

                                                                  

Despite giving your kids the best, sometimes they can’t get all the nutrients from just one food most especially if you have picky eaters like my eldest. For growing babies wherein the nutrition is important, there is a way where we can give them the best and complete nutrition by giving them Cerelac at least once a day.

CERELAC® is a nutrient-dense food with no added preservatives and contains Protect Plus™, a combination of BIFIDUS BL® for a healthy digestive system and DHA which is an important building block for brain and eye development for children up to three years of age. Aside from Protect Plus™, one bowl of CERELAC® contains almost 1/3 of your bulilit’s daily energy requirement and is also a rich source of B Vitamins, Vitamin C, A and D, Iron, Zinc, Calcium, Phosphorus, Protein, Iodine and Folic Acid. Served alone with just water or mixed with a puree, CERELAC® makes mealtimes more fun, nutritious, and memorable for both parents and their children.  

(L-R): Kirby Joseph Neri (Consumer Marketing Manager Lead, CERELAC®), Arlene Tan-Bantoto (Country Business Manager, Nestlé Infant Nutrition PH), Drew Arellano and Syril Silagan (eBusiness Head, Nestlé Infant Nutrition PH)

Cerelac fosters bonding between parents and their children by letting them eat happily and not minding the mess. Also, with so many fruits and vegetables in the market, parents can be also creative with it and experiment according to their babies’ liking.

As a former Cerelac baby myself, I have seen it grow through the years and helped so many parents provide nutrition to their children. So how about you? Haven’t tried Cerelac yet?