Table of contents:
- Why do good bacteria have to be in the intestines of children?
- Tips for increasing good bacteria for a healthy child's digestive tract
- 1. Provide high-fiber foods
- 2. Give foods that contain prebiotics
- 3. Do not prohibit children from playing outside the house
- 4. Avoid taking antibiotics unnecessarily
Not all bacteria are bad. In the human body generally live two types of bacteria, namely bad and good bacteria. The type of good bacteria itself is often referred to as probiotics. Now for children, the presence of good bacteria in their bodies is important for maintaining digestive health. You can cheat the following tips to help increase the number of good bacteria in your child's intestines.
Why do good bacteria have to be in the intestines of children?
Basically, the child's digestive system is not fully functional. His immune system is also not strong enough to ward off disease.
On the other hand, young children do not fully understand what is clean and dirty. They often put hands or toys that are not necessarily clean in their mouths, reuse the spoon that has fallen off, and so on.
These various things will make it easier for bad bacteria, parasites, or viruses to enter the child's body and cause various digestive diseases, for example diarrhea. Well, maintaining the number of good bacteria in your little one's intestines can help prevent this risk. Good bacteria are able to stimulate the child's immune system to work more actively to inhibit the growth of bad bacteria in the body.
The good bacteria actually live naturally in the intestines of children. However, parents still need to keep the number of these bacteria so they don't decrease. One way you can do this is to give your little one enough fiber intake.
Tips for increasing good bacteria for a healthy child's digestive tract
Optimal children's health is indicated by the large number of good bacteria in the gut. Increasing probiotics in a child's gut can prevent the risk of indigestion and support the overall health of the child's body.
Fortunately, how to increase probiotics is not difficult. You can apply the following tips at home:
1. Provide high-fiber foods
Good bacteria live naturally in your little one's body. So, maintaining the good bacteria population that is already in the child's gut is very important.
For that you need to provide a diet rich in fiber, such as vegetables, fruit, whole grains, and high-fiber milk.
Intake of fiber prevents starvation gut microbes from eating the mucus that coats and protects the intestinal wall. In the long run, this method prevents the child's digestion from becoming inflamed which can increase the risk of inflammatory bowel disease, allergies, or asthma.
To supplement the child's fiber intake, mothers can outsmart it by processing a more interesting menu variation, or giving toddlers milk which is good for digestion and make sure the milk is high in fiber.
2. Give foods that contain prebiotics
You can give your little one a high-prebiotic diet to help nurture the good bacteria in his stomach. Prebiotics are fiber components which are the main food for good bacteria so that they can continue to multiply in the body.
Fiber, which is soluble (FOS: GOS) and insoluble, both work to facilitate children's digestion so that their bowel movements are not problematic. That way, your little one can be free from the problem of constipation and diarrhea.
You can get prebiotics from fibrous food sources such as vegetables (asparagus and spinach), onions (leeks, garlic, onions, and onions) and high-fiber milk.
Adequate intake of prebiotics can reduce the risk of inflammation in the intestines and stimulate calcium absorption. Prebiotics also work at the same time to suppress the growth of bad bacteria.
3. Do not prohibit children from playing outside the house
The main activity of the child is playing. Whether it's playing alone in the house or outside like a yard or a garden complex with friends.
Both are mutually beneficial. Not only for mental maturity of children, but also to support the gut microbes to become stronger.
According to a study in the journal JAMA Pediatrics, children who like to play "dirty-dirt" in the field have a stronger immune system than children who only play indoors. Children who actively play outside also get sick less often, or recover more quickly when sick.
However, you should still supervise your child when playing outside. Teach children to get in the habit of washing their hands and feet or taking a shower after playing outside the house.
4. Avoid taking antibiotics unnecessarily
Every time your little one is sick, it doesn't mean he needs to take antibiotics. Antibiotics are effective at killing bacteria, but not just bad bacteria; good bacteria also die.
A study conducted by Johns Hopkins University found an association between long-term antibiotic consumption and the risk of being overweight during childhood. Researchers reported, the effect of antibiotics inhibits the work of good microbes in the gut.
Long-term use of antibiotic drugs as a child can also lead to the risk of drug-resistant bacteria (antibiotic resistance) when they are adults.
So, the use of antibiotics in children must really be considered. Only a doctor can determine whether a child needs to take antibiotics or not when sick.
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