Biscuits are our go-to treat, and we all have our favorites: Hob Nobs, Jaffa Cakes, Oreo, Parle G, Britannia, we don’t know where we’d be without a biscuit or two on the treat menu from time to time.
But is our child’s craving for a sweet treat causing harm to our child’s daily regime? And are we putting our child’s health & well-being in danger?
Biscuits & Cookies are all-time favorite munchies for kids.
They taste super yummy, but gone are the days when biscuits were made with real ingredients, hand-baked & healthy too.
Current food processes and quality of ingredients are changing so fast and they no longer are as pure as those good old freshly baked biscuits.
Also Read: Top 7 Health Benefits of Eating Organic Food
There are hundreds of unique biscuit brands in the market that you can choose from. Further, it might seem like good food for your baby as they are soft and can be easily crushed
What are the ingredients of biscuits
Although biscuits are tasty, they offer no nutrition to babies and children. From a nutrition standpoint, they have zero value. The ingredients used in making biscuits are not healthy at all. Hence, you should avoid giving biscuits to your little one.
They Contain
Refined Wheat (Maida) – Maida is refined wheat flour. Most of the nutrition & fiber is wiped off in the refining process. White flour is rich in carbs and quickly raises blood sugar, very similar to what sugar does.
Most biscuits contain maida or refined wheat flour if it has been labeled as “wheat flour”. We as consumers are mislead to think it could be whole wheat flour.
Babies take a lot more time to digest maida. So, you must avoid giving biscuits that are made of refined flour to your baby.
Too much Sugar
All biscuits are very high in sugar and hence in calories too. This is quite dangerous for a variety of reasons.
First, it can cause mild addictions known as sugar rushes, making your baby crave for biscuits even at the expense of a healthy meal.
the sugar often used is known as inverted sugar, Inverted sugar is hygroscopic, which means that it can hold moisture quite well, preventing the biscuits from drying on coming in contact with air, thus improving the shelf life of the product.
Trans Fats
Trans Fats are a certain kind of fat used in processed food to maintain shape, flavour and consistency.
In babies, it is known to result in vision problems, nervous disorders, allergic conditions, diabetes and obesity.
Many brands might mention that there is no trans fat in their product, but this is often misleading as there is almost always a small amount. Even this can be problematic for your baby.
They Offer Zero Nutrition
store-bought biscuits offer zero nutrition to the baby. Biscuits may satiate your child’s hunger but they will offer zero nutrition to your baby.
This also applies to other foods like sweets, chocolates, cakes, soft drinks, and so on. These items are known as empty calorie foods, as they provide energy for basic body functioning but nothing else.
So make sure you don’t give such foods to your baby.
Artificial Additives & Preservatives – Additives are substances added to food to preserve flavor or enhance its taste, appearance, or other qualities.
Preservatives prevent or inhibit spoilage of food due to fungi, bacteria and other microorganisms.
Artificial Flavors & Colours – Flavors are additives that give food a particular taste, colour or smell and may be derived from natural ingredients or created artificially.
Technology is so advanced that the cheaper alternative, synthetic chemicals, can be used to mimic this flavoring to be like the real thing. Most of the time, the ingredients do not include any of these mentioned fruits at all.
Constipation
Biscuits have almost no dietary fiber or roughage in them. As you are aware, roughage is important in the efficient passage of stools out of the body. This could cause severe constipation in your baby
They Can Trigger Allergic Reactions
Biscuits contain allergenic substances like gluten and soy lecithin in them. These can cause an allergic reaction in your baby. The reactions might be simple such as skin rashes or dangerous such as difficulty breathing due to lung inflammation.
store-bought biscuit brands are not recommended for all the reasons mentioned above. You can replace biscuits with healthier snacks like fruits, nuts, and so on.
There no best biscuits for babies;
Instead, you can opt for homemade biscuits and search for a few healthy recipes which include jaggery, millets, ragi, almonds, and few dry fruits.
Choose whole wheat biscuits, so that they don’t contain any refined flour.
Select biscuits which contain no chemical preservatives or artificial flavours.
Now that you know the ingredients of the commercial biscuits, be selective on the foods you give to your kids to make them healthy.
So think smart and nourish only delicious and yet nutrient-dense food to your children.
