Young children have boundless energy, but they need the right nutrition to function optimally. I’d be the first to admit that I have a fussy eater, and I’ve also experienced those kids who just are not keen to eat. There is a back up plan to make sure that they get all the nutrients they need: PediaSure.
Little kids are constantly on the go, indeed one of their primary functions is to move and investigate the world. We have one kid in our class at school that starts eating very early in the day, and it certainly keeps the hunger at bay. Most of them have a little bit to eat and then want to go and play at snack time. But snack time is very important and I have to take my hat off to parents who go to a lot of effort to provide a wide variety of fruits, nuts, raisans, bread, egg, yoghurt, cheese, meat, and many more offerings. Then they also give a selection of drinks from water, to tea to milk and juice.
Toddlers in particular tend to “graze” and have a little bit to eat here and there. It can be frustrating as a parent to prepare a whole lot of food and see it go to waste. But somehow they keep on growing and eat as much as they need.
To make sure they are getting all the vitamins and nutrients that they need, it’s good to have some kind of insurance in the background to take up the slack when you’re not sure if they have a complete diet. Having vitamins or a shake that contains these vitamins and minerals is a good idea to boost their immune systems in winter before they get sick.
PediaSure Complete is a nutrient-rich, lactose-free drink that provides balanced nutrition for children from age three to ten, experiencing growth challenges. Long-term clinical studies using two glasses of Pediasure Complete daily has been associated with improved appetite and physical activity and a reduction in the number of sick days (Huynh DTT, Estorninos E, Capeding RZ, et al.)
Here are some recipes to entice your kids to eat or drink healthy:
No-bake Energy Balls
| Ingredients |
- 1 Cup Raw Oats
- 2/3 Cup Desiccated Coconut or Coconut Flakes
- 1/2 Cup Peanut Butter or Almond Butter
- 1/2 Cup Ground Flax Seeds
- 1/2 Cup Dark Chocolate Chips
- 1/3 Cup Honey
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
| Method |
Stir all ingredients together in a medium bowl until thoroughly mixed. Cover chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes,
Once chilled, roll the mixture into golf-balled sized portions. Store in an airtight container and keep refrigerated for up to 1 week.
Makes about 20 energy balls.
Choc-Berry Smoothie
| Ingredients |
- ½ Cup Milk
- 1 Scoop Vanilla PediaSure® Complete
- 75g Frozen Mixed Berries
- 1 Tablespoon Drinking Chocolate
| Method |
Measure all ingredients into a blender jug.
Blend until smooth.
Serve at once.
Peachy Iced Tea
| Ingredients |
- 4 Rooibos tea bags
- 2L Boiled water
- 1 Cup Diced Peaches or 1 Tin Peaches (in Fruit Juice), Drained
| Method |
- In a large jug, add 4 tea bags to 2L of boiling water. Allow to steep for 5 – 10 minutes.
- Remove tea bags and 1 tin of peaches, roughly chopped. Cool in the fridge overnight.
- Serve chilled. Makes 2L of peachy iced tea. Serves 8.
SA Mom blogs is giving away two hampers of PediaSure consisting of:
- Toy Voucher (ToysRUs, worth R300)
- Notebook
- Shaker
- USB
- 400g Product of PediaSure
The worth of the hamper would be R750.
All you have to do is leave a comment below. Tell me about your child’s eating challenges.
My 2 year old tends to only eat what he feels like. One day I’ll make something and he’ll devour it. The next time I make it, he won’t want to know it. Especially the veggies! He loves Pediasure Sure though. Especially when he is sick and not feeling like eating! Megan xx
SO AWESOME FOR MY GRAND CHILDREN WHEN THEY ILL OR NEED A BOOST IN THEIR SPRTS ACTIVITIES
SO AWESOME FOR MY GRAND CHILDREN WHEN THEY ILL OR NEED A BOOST IN THEIR SPORTS
I have a 6 year old boy and he’s so limited to what he likes to eat. He eats no fruit or veg and only meat he will eat is chicken nuggets. He mostly lives on carbs and cheese and yoghurt. He can go the whole day with me begging him to at least eat something I’m lucky if he finishes one meal a day, even limiting to no snacks in between is still a struggle now my 18 month old is following in his footsteps
Hi there Mums: since my son has allergies(cod fish/grass pollen,etc) and he eats like a bird, that at 8yrs old he looks starved, getting him to eat veg is a nightmare! Yes I have stooped to bribery when my “counting” doesn’t work…iam ashamed. 🙁 so I try hiding the veg in foods that he does like but it doesn’t seem to improve his eating??! Would like to give PediaSure a try. 🙂
sorry i pressed post comment before i finished, she was such a good eater but know refuse to eat veg’s and only eats meat
My daughter is supper skinny 12 kg at 4 years old and always a bit worried that she lacking in vitamins would love to give this product a go iam pretty sure it would do her the world of good
Excellent product and an excellent prize. I struggle with my 7 yo son, who has an extremely high metabolism, he is super skinny and I’m always paranoid that he isn’t receiving enough nutrition.
My toddler refuses to eat veggies and fruit ans as much as I try to disguise them he is just too smart. I have to give him vitamin supplements now.
Thanx for the post. Pediasure is such a lifesaver. My son, Oliver (now 4), was eating so well when I introdcued him to solids as a baby. I made delicious, healthy food & he was eating like a champ. Then, at around 18 months he decided he wasn’t interested in eating anymore. Well, most things at least.
So, for the laste 2,5 years, he has survived (& thrived) on bread, cereal, Pro-Vitas, cheese, yogurt, bread, occasionally french toast & more bread & more cheese. I find it so super stressful, but with some help from an OT (to sort out oral sensory issues) & great products like Pediasure, we’ll get there….
My toddler has been a poor eater since he was 6 months old. It is exhausting for a mum as I am constantly stressing about getting him to eat a nutritious meal yet he only nibbles here and there. His lack of food has not affected his growth or development but I just wish he would love food as much as I do 🙁 lol
Hi Lynn my son would live on jam sandwiches if he could so I can totally relate!
My kids age 6 and 5 are very bad eaters. I am totally to blame as veggies is not one of my favourites. I should have given them a bigger variety at a young age. My son would live on peanut butter bread given half the chance. Pediasure sounds like a fantastic option to get all the goodness and nutrients in. I would love to give it a try 🙂
I’ve been wanting to buy pediasure for my 5yr old for ages now, but it’s always out of stock, or I’m broke when I remember I need it. My 5yr is tall and skinny (around 17kgs and 1-ish m tall, maybe 1.2m). He literally lives on a diet of apples everyday. I buy 3 bags of apples at a time and he finishes it in 3 days. A bag a day…I kid you not. So I’ve been wanting to get pediasure just to ensure he is getting all the nutrients that he requires.
My kids would love that smoothie….I’m totally making that for them!
Wow these recipes all delicious and healthy, I have 4kids with different eating habbits .they fussy eaters and struggle to get them breakfast in the morning that I’m most worry about .2nd veggies they don’t like at all. I’ve tried making food fun and creative still nothing.
My daughter is also very selective with regards food. I pack a mean lunch box, but the healthy things come back. I love having a pediasure tin in the cupboard to address any shortcomings in her diet. Love the recipes! Thanks!
My daughter always says she is full everytime she has to eat a full meal, she likes to snack a lot
My son is on the spectrum so certain foods he wont eat. We were recommended pedisure as he wasnt allowed cows milk and even now he cant have alot neither my daughter
I am struggling trying to get my daughter to eat fruits and veggies, this is my number one challenge at the moment.
Wow. Where to start? I have three children aged 8, 5 and 2. My eldest has no problem but my two youngest are very fussy. Gag for any veggies and just point blank refuses any meat. So their meals consist of mash, noodles and bread. Fruit is a struggle too. Would be such a blessing to win. ❤