Chocolate is delicious, but don’t give it to children under this age…

As the Chinese New Year is approaching, some chocolate candies are always prepared at home; when visiting relatives and friends, children will also receive many chocolates from relatives and friends. The chocolate has a rich aroma and a delicate and silky texture. Children can\’t wait to taste the delicious food as soon as they get it, and they can\’t stop eating it. This makes many parents worry: Can their children really eat chocolate? How much can you eat at one time? It is said that chocolate contains caffeine. Will it affect sleep and health? ……..Today we will talk about whether children can eat chocolate. It is best not to eat chocolate under the age of 3. Don’t worry if you occasionally eat a piece after the age of 3, but try to eat as little as possible. According to the national standards, chocolate on the market can be roughly divided into 3 types: 1. Milk chocolate is made of cocoa liquor (containing cocoa butter and cocoa powder) ), dairy products, sugar, etc. It is brown or light brown in color and has a rich flavor of cocoa and sweetness of milk. 2. White chocolate is composed of cocoa butter, dairy products, sugar, etc. It usually does not contain cocoa powder, so it is milky white, has a sweet taste, and is mixed with the aroma of cocoa milk. 3. Dark chocolate is composed of cocoa liquid (containing cocoa butter, cocoa powder), sugar, etc. It is brown in color and has a bitter taste. The national standard requires that the total cocoa solids content of dark chocolate must be ≥ 30%. No matter which type of chocolate above, we do not recommend that children under 3 years old eat it, mainly for three reasons: Most chocolates contain a lot of added sugar. You may have tasted pure dark chocolate, which is very bitter; in order to change the flavor, in addition to 100% Pure dark chocolate, other chocolates basically add a lot of sugar. The sugar content is generally about the same as milk chocolate and white chocolate, with dark chocolate the least. For example, we commonly see a certain type of milk chocolate, white chocolate, and dark chocolate. From the ingredient list, we can roughly guess: milk chocolate contains about 57.0 g/100 g of sugar; white chocolate contains about 52.5 g/100 g; 66% dark chocolate contains about 48 g/ 100g. It can be seen from the data that chocolate has a higher sugar content, accounting for almost half of it. Image source: E-commerce platform According to the 2022 \”Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents\”: children under 3 years old are not recommended to eat any foods with added sugar. Early exposure to sweets will encourage babies to have a sweet taste and develop unhealthy eating habits; long-term consumption of large amounts of sugar will also increase the risk of children\’s dental caries, obesity and other diseases. The saturated fat content in chocolate is relatively high. The silky texture of chocolate comes from the rich fat in it, which accounts for about 40%, and about half of it is saturated fat. This proportion even exceeds lard. Saturated fat is not good for health and is a bad fat that can increase cardiovascular disease and dyslipidemia. Chocolate contains caffeine, which may affect sleep and other health risks. In addition to containing a lot of sugar and saturated fat, chocolate also contains caffeine. The higher the cocoa content, the higher the caffeine content. There are about 4 mg in 30 grams of milk chocolate. Caffeine; 30 grams of dark chocolate contains approximately 23 milligrams of caffeine, which is equivalent to half a standard latte. We allKnow that consuming caffeine may stimulate the brain and affect sleep, nerves, etc. The research is not yet clear on how safe caffeine is for infants and children, and various countries adopt different attitudes. ● Consensus of four major authoritative organizations in the United States: It is not recommended to consume caffeinated foods under the age of 5. In 2019, Healthy Eating Research (HER) convened four major authoritative organizations: American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, American Academy of Pediatrics, and American Heart The consensus of the medical association: Considering the impact on heart disease, teeth, sleep, behavior, etc., children under 5 years old should not eat caffeinated drinks, including caffeinated chocolate. ● The Food Safety Administration of Europe, Australia and New Zealand believes that for children and adolescents, there is no need to worry if they consume no more than 3 mg of caffeine per kilogram of body weight per day; ● Health Canada recommends that for children and adolescents under 18 years of age, there is no need to worry. Caffeine intake should not exceed 2.5 mg/kg of body weight; we cannot rule out the impact of caffeine in chocolate on children, as it affects sleep, which actually gives parents a headache. Some children who are more sensitive may indeed suffer from anxiety, diarrhea, heart palpitations, elevated blood pressure, sleep disorders and other problems in the short term after consuming caffeine. Long-term consumption may lead to the risk of caffeine addiction. Based on the three points of sugar, caffeine, and saturated fat, it is recommended that children under 3 years old not eat chocolate, and it would be better not to provide chocolate under 5 years old. But during special periods like the Chinese New Year, you don’t have to worry too much about the impact on your health if you eat a small piece occasionally. It’s best to observe your child’s condition when adding it for the first time. I still don’t offer chocolate to my children on a daily basis. After all, it’s not a healthy snack no matter how you look at it. If you occasionally want to try something new after the age of 3, it is best to pay attention to these three points. After the child is 3 years old, although chocolate snacks are very unhealthy, they have some social attributes, especially during the New Year and holidays. When you see other children eating them, you will inevitably get greedy. , we can do a good job of screening and occasionally eat a little to satisfy the children. Do not choose chocolate that substitutes cocoa butter. Chocolate that substitutes cocoa butter may contain trans fatty acids. Even if 0 trans fat is marked, it is not completely 0. According to my country\’s standards, as long as the content of trans fat is ≤ 0.3 g / 100 g (mL), it can be marked as \”0\”. Trans fatty acids have adverse effects on the brain and nerves, so don’t choose chocolate that substitutes cocoa butter. Image source: E-commerce platform Do not choose any chocolate containing alcohol. We may have all eaten wine-filled chocolate when we were children. After eating it, we felt drunk 😵‍💫. Alcohol has irreversible negative effects on brain development and there is no safe dose, so any chocolate containing alcohol should not be given to children. Try to choose small packages and control the consumption. For candies such as chocolate, if the child does not want them, the later the better. If the child shows a craving for food, we can buy small packages to satisfy his craving, such as 5g pieces, and eat one or two pieces. For children aged 4 to 6 years old, it is best to control the amount of chocolate eaten within 34g a day, no more than 2 times a week. at last, remember to rinse your mouth in time after eating chocolate to protect your teeth.