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We sat down with the Coin Street Nursery Chef, Simon, to find out more about how the nursery promotes healthy eating habits in our children through his nutritious menus.
Why is healthy eating important for children?
Instilling healthy eating habits in children is crucial for their growth and development. In this blog, we will explore the benefits of a nutritious diet during early childhood, setting the stage for a lifetime of health and vitality.
Some of the benefits of healthy eating habits in children include:
- Creating a strong foundation for growth and development – Proper nutrition is essential for building strong bones, developing muscles, and supporting brain and nervous system development.
- Enhanced cognitive abilities – Healthy eating positively influences cognitive abilities, improving attention span, memory, and problem-solving skills.
- Disease prevention – Establishing healthy eating habits early in life reduces the risk of obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, certain cancers, and other chronic conditions.
- Improved digestive health – A diet rich in fibre, probiotics, and prebiotics promotes a healthy gut microbiome, leading to improved digestion, nutrient absorption, and reduced risk of gastrointestinal issues.
- Establishing lifelong healthy habits – Introducing nutritious foods and modelling healthy eating behaviours in early childhood helps develop a preference for healthier options later in life.
- Increased energy and improved physical performance – Balanced meals and snacks fuel children's bodies, enhance endurance, and support muscle development.
- Positive emotional wellbeing – Healthy eating stabilizes blood sugar levels, preventing energy crashes and mood swings.
Healthy eating in early childhood establishes a solid foundation for physical, cognitive, and emotional wellbeing. It fuels growth, supports brain development, and reduces the risk of chronic diseases.
At Coin Street Nursery, we provide the nourishment children need to thrive, ensuring a healthier future.
Meet Simon: Coin Street Nursery’s Chef
Simon joined our nursery almost 2 years ago, having previously worked as the head chef for Unilever in Leatherhead.
Simon tells us his role is primarily to get the children to eat a healthy diet, which involves hiding lots of vegetables in sauces!
Every Tuesday, Simon rolls out what he calls ‘Taster Tuesdays’, which involves preparing new healthy dishes for the children to try to see if they like them, while on Thursdays, Simon bakes a cake as a healthy dessert for children to enjoy. These cakes don’t include any sugar; instead, he will use date syrup as a sweet but healthier and nutritional alternative to sugar in the cake.
The Coin Street Nursery menu is constantly evolving. Dishes that the children don't favour as much are usually replaced with alternatives that they prefer, with as little salt used as possible. Instead, Simon will use flavours from roasted vegetables. Some of the most popular dishes in the nursery include Spaghetti Bolognese, Mac ‘N’ Cheese, and a vegan roast.
On Fridays, Simon even makes healthy pizzas using vegetables and minimal amounts of cheese, as a pre-weekend treat!
Coin Street Nursery also works with Chefs in Schools, an organisation that aims to feed nutritious meals to children in nurseries and schools and improve their diet.
Chefs in Schools provides a huge support network for its partners, including Coin Street, and Simon can access a broad range of excellent recipes that cater to any children who have dietary preferences or allergies.
Being a nursery, there are quite a few children who have dietary requirements which involve making extra alternative dishes that don’t contain any allergens in them.
Give your child the best start in life and fuel their future at Coin Street Nursery.
Find out more about our nursery below:
