Do You Want Your Little One to Be Smart? These Five Nutrients Will Do!

Parents are filled with hope that their child may grow healthy and smart. All these times, there is a presumption that a child’s intelligence is derived from genetic factors or being inherited. Therefore, if the parents are smart, so does the child. Meanwhile, there are many factors that influence your little one’s intelligence, one of which is a highly nutritious food intake.

Providing your little one with good nutrition will make him or her grow healthy. The brain development will also be perfect. Complete food menu containing fruit, vegetables, and fish may meet your little one’s nutritional needs. One should know that in general, there are two nutrients required, namely macronutrients and micronutrients. Carbohydrate, protein, and fat are macronutrients whereas vitamins and minerals like choline, iron, vitamin A, C, D and E are micronutrients.

Now, let’s get to know more what micronutrients your little one needs for optimum growth and development:

Omega-3 and Omega-6 Fatty Acids

Omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids plays important role in central nervous system and the brain. One of the benefits is to continue the stimulus between neurons to speed up comprehension as well as to prevent memory impairment. Both omega-3 and omega-6 are essential fatty acids. Meaning, they cannot be made by the body. Therefore, they can only be obtained from food, such as green vegetables, salmon or tuna, fortified milk, and walnuts.

Alpha Lactalbumin

Alpha lactalbumin is a part of whey protein within cow’s milk that has benefit to improve sleep quality of your little one. This will then support perfect formation of nerve connections. Not only that, alpha lactalbumin may also help development and improvement of body tissues that are important to your little one’s growth and development.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is beneficial to support the growth of bones and teeth by helping calcium absorption in the body. Fulfill your little one’s need of vitamin D by doing outdoor activities between 6 to 9 am for 10 minutes, as well as by eating salmon, milk, or egg.

Iron

Iron is important to produce hemoglobin that acts as blood oxygen transporter, so as myoglobin that contains pigment that keep oxygen within the muscles. Iron is an important element in the production and maintenance of myelin sheath of neurons. It also influences activities of neurons. Lack of iron may cause anemia that manifests as easily tired, weakness, or being lethargic. In addition, lack of iron may cause negative impact on a child’s intelligence.

Choline

Choline is a water-soluble nutrient that relates to other vitamin such as folic acid, a part of vitamin B complex group. Like other B vitamins, choline also plays role in brain energy and function. Choline can be found in various food or beverages containing fat, such as milk.

By giving the appropriate nutritional intake, your little one’s growth and development will be optimal. Besides meeting his or her nutritional needs, support your little one’s growth and development process by performing correct stimulation for maximum brain development.