Best Immunity Boosting Foods For Toddlers

You feel very bad when your small child keeps falling sick. One week cold is gone and next week cough starts again. You take the child to the doctor again and again. You give all medicines on time. Still the child does not stay well for more than ten days at a stretch. You start thinking maybe something is wrong with your child. But most of the time nothing is wrong. The child just needs daily help for the body's own defence system.

That defence system is called immunity. A toddler does not have a fully grown defence system like an adult. It is still learning. It is still building. And the only way to build it properly is through everyday food. Not through syrups. Not through powders. Not through outside health drinks. Just simple food that you already make in your kitchen.

I have written this article for mothers and fathers in India. I have not used any hard words. I have not given any false hope. I have only shared those food ideas that real families have used for many years. You do not need to buy anything new. You do not need to follow any foreign diet. You just need to know which food to give and best immunity boosting foods for toddlers.

Let me explain everything from the beginning.

Why Toddlers Need Special Food For This Purpose?

A toddler is not a small grown up person. Their stomach is very small. Their body cannot digest heavy food. Their defence cells are made new every single day inside the bone and blood. If the child does not get the right building material from food, then the body cannot make strong defence cells. That is why the child falls sick even from a small germ that does not affect older children.

Another thing is that toddlers touch everything. They put dirty toys in the mouth. They play on the floor. They forget to wash hands after coming from outside. So the body has to fight many germs every single day. Without good daily food the defence system gets tired and stops working well.

Do not wait for the child to get sick. Do not start giving good food only after the fever comes. That is like locking the door after the thief has already entered. Start giving the right food from today. Every day. In small amounts. Without forcing the child.

Read Also: 7 Warning Signs Of Dengue Fever In Child

Ten Foods That Help The Defence System

Below I have written about ten foods. For each food I have explained why it helps and how to give it to your child. Read slowly and do not try to do everything on the first day.

Turmeric

Turmeric is that yellow powder which you put in every dal and every vegetable. It is not just a colouring thing. It actually helps the body clean the blood. It also helps kill small germs before they can grow inside. And it reduces swelling inside the body. Many child sicknesses start because of some swelling inside the stomach or throat. Turmeric stops that swelling from growing.

How to give it to your child
Take one very small pinch of turmeric. Mix it in warm milk. If the child is above one year old then you can add one drop of honey. Give this milk at night time. You can also put the same small pinch of turmeric in dal or rice or vegetable soup while cooking. Do not put more than one small pinch for a toddler.

Ginger

Ginger is that brown root which has a strong smell. It makes the body warm from the inside. When the body is warm from inside, the common cold and cough germs cannot live easily. Ginger also helps the stomach digest food properly. A happy stomach is very important for a strong defence system.

How to give it to your child
Take a very small piece of ginger. Grate it with a grater. Boil this grated ginger in one cup of water for two minutes. Then cool this water and give it to the child as normal drinking water throughout the day. You can also put the same small piece of ginger in khichdi or vegetable puree while cooking. Do not give raw ginger to a small child because it is too strong. Always cook or boil it first.

Garlic

Garlic has a very strong smell and a very strong taste. Because of this strength it is a very powerful fighter of germs. When a child eats garlic regularly, the body becomes like a closed fort where germs cannot enter easily. In many Indian homes mothers put garlic in everything during winter months.

How to give it to your child?

Take one small piece of garlic. Crush it with a stone or with the back of a spoon. Cook this crushed garlic in one spoon of ghee for one minute on low flame. Then add this to dal or rice or egg curry. Once it is cooked well the child will not taste it much. Do not give raw garlic to a toddler. It will burn their small stomach.

Spinach

Spinach is that green leafy vegetable which has a lot of iron. Iron is that thing inside the blood which carries oxygen from the lungs to every part of the body. When the blood has good iron, it can carry more oxygen. More oxygen means the body can make more defence cells easily. Without iron the defence system becomes weak and slow.

How to give it to your child
Wash spinach leaves very well with running water. Then boil them in water for two minutes. After boiling make a soft puree by pressing with a spoon. Add this puree to paratha dough or rice or soup. You can also make spinach dal by adding this puree to regular dal. Do not give raw spinach to a toddler because the child cannot digest raw leaves properly.

Pumpkin

Pumpkin is that orange vegetable which is sweet in taste. Most children like its sweet taste without any fuss. Pumpkin has a lot of vitamin A. This vitamin keeps the outer skin healthy and also keeps the inner skin of the stomach healthy. These two things are the first wall of defence for the body. If germs cannot enter from the skin or from the stomach wall then they cannot make the child sick.

How to give it to your child
Cut pumpkin into small pieces. Boil or steam these pieces until they become very soft. Then mash with a little ghee and a pinch of salt. Give this mashed pumpkin as it is. You can also add it to khichdi. Pumpkin is very safe for children. Even a one year old child can eat it without any problem.

Yogurt

Yogurt is that white sour food made from milk. It has good living bacteria inside it. These good bacteria live inside the child's stomach. They fight against the bad germs that enter through food or water. They also help the stomach digest other foods properly. A stomach that has many good bacteria is a strong stomach that does not get infected easily.

How to give it to your child
Take fresh yogurt made at home. Do not use the sweet readymade yogurt from the market because it has too much sugar. Make sure the yogurt is not too sour. Give it plain to the child. Or mix mashed banana or mashed pumpkin into it to make the taste better. Do not give yogurt at night if the child already has cold or cough because it can make the cough worse.

Moringa Leaves

Moringa leaves are those small round leaves that grow on the drumstick tree. In Indian villages mothers give these leaves to children from a very young age. These leaves have more vitamins than most fruits you can buy in the market. They clean the blood. They give energy. And they help the body repair itself very fast when the child is sick.

How to give it to your child?

Take only the soft leaves from the top of the branch. Wash them very well with running water. Steam them for two minutes. Then grind them into a fine paste using a small stone grinder or mixer. Mix one spoon of this paste into dal or rice. Do not give more than one spoon per day to a toddler.

Carrots

Carrots are that long orange vegetable which is sweet and hard. The orange colour comes from a thing called beta carotene. The body turns this beta carotene into vitamin A. Vitamin A makes the nose and throat strong. Most germs try to enter the body through the nose. A strong nose stops these germs at the door itself before they can go inside.

How to give it to your child?

Boil carrot pieces until they become very soft. Then mash with a little ghee. Give this mashed carrot as it is. You can also make carrot soup by adding water and boiling more. Or grate raw carrot and add to roti dough before cooking. Carrots are naturally sweet so most toddlers like to eat them without any fuss.

Ghee

Ghee is that yellow fat that comes from milk. Many people think fat is bad. But a toddler needs good fat to make new defence cells. Without fat the body cannot build any new cells at all. Ghee is a good fat. It also helps the body take out all the vitamins from other foods and use them properly.

How to give it to your child
Add a few drops of ghee to dal or khichdi or vegetables after cooking. Do not deep fry anything in ghee for a toddler. Just a small amount of melted ghee on top of the food is enough. Do not give too much ghee because it can cause loose motion in small children.

Amla

Amla is that green sour fruit which is called Indian gooseberry. It has the highest amount of vitamin C among all fruits in the world. Vitamin C is the main food for the defence system of the body. Without vitamin C the defence cells become weak and lazy and they cannot catch the germs properly.

How to give it to your child
Take one small piece of fresh amla. Remove the hard seed from the middle. Steam it for one minute to reduce the sharp sour taste. Then mash it very well with a spoon. Mix with a drop of honey or a small piece of jaggery to make it sweet. Give one small spoon of this mixture per day. If fresh amla is not available then use good quality amla candy from a shop. But fresh amla is always better.

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What To Feed In One Full Day?

Sometimes parents feel confused about how to give all these foods without making the child angry or tired. Here is a simple one day plan that you can follow.

• In the morning at seven o clock give warm milk with one small pinch of turmeric.
• At eight thirty for breakfast give one soft roti with a little ghee and mashed pumpkin on the side.
• At eleven o clock in the morning give a small bowl of mashed amla mixed with jaggery.
• At one o clock for lunch give khichdi made with spinach and carrot and one small garlic piece. Put a few drops of ghee on top.
• At five o clock in the evening give fresh plain yogurt with mashed banana.
• At seven thirty for dinner give rice with dal and one spoon of moringa leaf paste. Add a few drops of ghee.
• At nine o clock at night give warm milk with one drop of ginger juice that has been boiled first.
• If you follow this one day plan your child will get all ten foods in one single day. You do not need to buy any outside health drink or expensive powder.

Foods That Make The Defence System Weak

Giving good food is only half the work. Stopping bad food is the other half. Below are the things that make a toddler sick again and again.

Sugar is the biggest problem. Biscuits, cakes, packaged juice, chocolate, sweet drinks. When a child eats sugar the defence cells stop working for many hours after that. So the body becomes like a house with open doors.

Packaged food is the second problem. Instant noodles, flavoured milk, breakfast cereal, readymade soup. These things have no real nutrition inside them. They fill the stomach but they do not give any building material for defence cells.

Cold things taken directly from the fridge are also a problem. Cold water, ice cream, cold yogurt taken directly from the fridge. These things slow down the digestion process. When digestion is slow the body cannot use the good things from food properly.

Reheated oil is very bad for toddlers. Samosa, pakora, puri made in old oil that has been heated many times. This oil is very hard for a small stomach to digest. It creates swelling inside the stomach.

Do not feel bad if your child eats these things sometimes. That is normal. But do not make them daily food.

Other Things That Help The Defence System

Food is the most important thing. But there are three other things that also help a lot.

Sleep is very important. A tired child falls sick much faster than a well rested child. Your toddler should sleep at least ten hours at night. And one to two hours in the day as afternoon sleep. No amount of good food can fix the problem of no sleep.

Sunlight is also important. Ten minutes of morning sun on the childs back and arms. This gives vitamin D from the sun. Vitamin D helps the defence system work properly. Without sunlight even the best food does not work fully.

Clean water is very important. Give only boiled and cooled water to your child. Do not give tap water directly. Do not give filtered water without boiling first. Many stomach infections come from bad water.

Less crowd helps too. Do not take the child to very crowded places every day. Many germs spread in markets, buses, trains, and large family functions. The child does not have a strong defence system to fight so many germs at once.

Do not force feed the child. A child who cries while eating cannot digest food well. Digestion and immunity are deeply connected. When the child is stressed the defence system stops working properly.

When To Take The Child To The Doctor?

Food helps the body stay strong. But food is not a cure for serious sickness. You must take the child to the doctor when these things happen.

• If fever does not go away for three days even after giving the medicine that the doctor gave.
• If the child stops eating completely and stops drinking water completely.
• If there is blood in the loose motion.
• If the child looks very tired and does not want to play at all even after the fever is gone.
• If the breathing becomes fast or the child makes noise while breathing.
• Do not replace the doctor with home food. Use home food to keep the child strong every day. Use the doctor when the child becomes very sick.

FAQs

Many parents ask me the same questions again and again. I have written the answers below.

Can I give all these ten foods every single day?

Yes you can give them every day. But only in small amounts. One small pinch of turmeric. One small piece of garlic. One spoon of moringa paste. More is not better. More can upset the stomach.

My child does not like vegetables at all what should I do

Mix very small amounts of vegetables in khichdi or paratha. Do not force the child to eat a full bowl of vegetables. Keep trying for many days without getting angry. Taste changes slowly over many weeks.

Can I give immunity powder from the shop to my child?

That is not needed at all. Fresh food from the kitchen is always better than any powder from the market. Market powders often have sugar and preservatives and other things that are not good for a small child.

From which age can I start these foods

Most of these foods can start from eight to ten months of age. But start with very very small amounts. Watch the child for two days to see if there is any allergy. For children above one year of age all these foods are completely safe.

My child cannot drink milk at all what should I do for yogurt

If the child has a confirmed milk allergy then do not give yogurt also. In that case use coconut curd made from coconut milk. And give more pumpkin and more amla to make up for the missing things.

Conclusion

You do not need to spend a lot of money on expensive health drinks. You do not need to follow foreign food trends that your child does not like. Your own kitchen already has everything that your toddler needs. Turmeric, ginger, garlic, spinach, pumpkin, yogurt, moringa, carrots, ghee, amla. These are not new things. These are things that your grandmother used and your mother used.

Start with one food from this list today. Give it to the child for three days. Then add another food. In one week your child will be eating a strong daily diet without any extra effort from your best immunity boosting foods for toddlers.

Keep the meal time happy. Do not fight with the child. Do not compare your child with other children. Every child is different. You know your child better than anyone else in this world.

If you have any question about any food from this list please ask your family doctor or a child nutrition expert before giving it to your child.