– Mahima Setia is a Bengaluru-based nutritionist, diabetes educator and lifestyle coach

My elder daughter (13) has put on weight during the pandemic lockdown of schools. One or another of our family members brings junk food into the house and she gobbles it up. Later, she feels guilty and tries to skip meals now and then. I don’t think this is helping her lose weight. How do I convince her to give up junk foods?
— Seetha Chidambaram, Chennai

Skipping meals is a bad idea. It will prompt her to consume larger portions at a later time and in turn disrupt her eating routine. It will also lead to late dinners and thus less time gap between meal and sleep. This causes digestion problems such as acidity and bloating and flatulence. Skipping meals also tends to make people eat mindlessly and make poor food choices such as choosing calorie-dense but less nutritious foods.

Explain the harmful effects of foregoing scheduled meals and consuming junk foods to your daughter. Snacking on junk foods can precipitate several ailments, including obesity, high blood pressure, cardiovascular diseases, and metabolism problems. Bingeing on packaged foods also makes children more prone to nutritional deficiencies that impact the immune system and lead to poor concentration. You need to firmly discourage her from snacking on junk foods and substitute them with natural foods options — the Internet is a mine of healthy recipes. Also most important, encourage her to exercise regularly.

My 12-year-old son often complains of indigestion and feeling bloated. He doesn’t overeat but he doesn’t exercise much either, especially after the pandemic lockdown. What could be the cause of his digestive complaints?
— Revathy Siri, Mumbai

The human digestive system is muscular. The mouth, food pipe, stomach, intestine and colon, together known as the gut, form the digestive system, which uses these muscles to digest food. Exercise leads to better contraction and performance of digestive muscles. Digested food nutrients are circulated through the blood, hormones and digestive enzymes. Therefore improved performance of muscles, release of hormones, and production of acid and enzymes, are all important for optimal digestion. Exercise boosts and improves overall digestion.

Moreover during exercise, the body produces endorphins or happy hormones, which stimulate the nervous and endocrine systems. I strongly recommend that you encourage your son to integrate a healthy exercise and fitness routine in his daily schedule.

Since closure of schools because of the Covid pandemic, my children wake up late, eat late, and eat their meals at unusual times. It’s hard for me to monitor them constantly as I have a hectic work-from-home schedule. Prior to the pandemic, when we all went out to work and school, our meal times were fairly regular. Is it important for children to follow a fixed routine?
— Sini Oomen, Trivandrum

The human body has a natural cycle of eating and resting. Eating at fixed times daily makes a huge difference to overall physical and mental well-being. A disciplined daily schedule will ensure that your children eat at the same time every day followed by good sleep. When the digestive system knows when to expect food, it prepares the body for optimal metabolism. This goes a long way in preventing problems such as acidity and bloating. I recommend that together with your husband and children you make the time and effort to create and follow a daily family meals routine.

Also read: Promoting healthy food habits in children