20 Best High Fiber Rich Foods for Your Kids in India

Do you also struggle with your kids when it comes to eating vegetables? Is your little one a choosy eater too? As parents, we understand the crucial importance of a balanced diet. Balanced diet helps the tummy keep up a good gut as well as prevent it from different kinds of diseases. Therefore, one of the most essential nutrients for the body might sometimes be missing from our plate and that is fiber. Including high fiber rich foods in your child’s meals is a simple and effective way to ensure they get the necessary fiber for healthy digestion and overall well-being.

What is Fiber?

Fiber is a natural gut cleaner nutrient. It can be labeled as the most underrated yet significant part needed to complete the cleaning process. It helps with constipation, digestive issues, and handling heavy nutrients around the stomach. Maintaining a good, healthy environment in the stomach also makes fiber essential to lower and keep balanced sugar levels in our body. But first, let’s understand what fiber does to a child’s body.

Why Fiber is Essential for Your Kids?

As discussed above, fiber has many benefits. During the early years of your child, their physical and mental health, both are building and require enough nutrition to have a healthy structure. Therefore, adding fiber rich foods to their diet can make all the difference.

Fiber consumption will help them in the following ways –

1. Controlling sugar levels: Fiber, an excellent source for the body to use from time to time, can help in maintaining the sugar levels and preventing them from spiking. It can help them stay steady and not affect your child in any disease-causing manner.

2. Heart health: When the sugar levels are lowered, the cholesterol spike is less likely to happen. Maintaining the levels can support normal blood flow and help the heart stay healthy.

3. Weight management: Fiber, as healthy as it is, also proves to be fulfilling and satisfying for the tummy. It can keep your child’s tummy full for long hours, thus preventing them from binge eating and excess weight gain.

4. Reduced risk of diseases: While doing all things like handling constipation, maintaining good health overall, and improving digestion, fiber also keeps the bad bacteria from entering your sanctuary and protects your child’s body from heavy diseases such as cancers.

(Also Read, What Are the Best Vitamins for Kid’s Immune System?)

Top 20 High Fiber Rich Foods for Kids in India

Whole Grains High in Fiber

1. Oats: With soluble fiber, oats are a powerhouse for your children. You can make a mixture of creamy porridge with milk and fruits, or you can include oats in an upma with vegetables.

2. Ragi (Finger Millet): A staple food consumed by many in different parts of India. It’s high-fiber food and can make the yummiest porridge, dosas, or even rotis.

3. Whole Wheat Flour: The most common ‘aata’ we daily use for rotis and chapatis is a good source of insoluble fiber.

4. Brown Rice: Instead of normal white rice, use brown rice because it has a bran layer which is rich in fiber, and we all know kids are obsessed with rice!

5. Barley: A versatile grain that can be perfectly used in soups.

High Fiber Rich Pulses and Legumes

6. Lentils (Dal): Also known as a staple food in India, lentils are an excellent source of both soluble and insoluble fiber. You can make dal, sambar, or even lentil soup out of them.

7. Chickpeas (Chana): Whether it’s any food item, adding chana masala, hummus, or roasted chana can make everything delicious and tasty.

8. Kidney Beans (Rajma): A rather popular ingredient in North Indian cuisine, they provide fiber and protein. Also, what is this crazy relationship between the kids and the rajma, every second day? Good for us though!

9. Black Beans: These high-fiber-rich beans are also packed with antioxidants. Add them as an ingredient in any vegetable or salad.

10. Split Peas (Matar Dal): Another fiber-rich lentil, known as the comfort food for Indians.

High Fiber Fruits for Toddlers

11. Apple (with outer skin): An apple a day keeps the doctor away, and it also provides loads of great fiber!

12. Pear (with outer skin): Pears are sweet, juicy, and excellent sources of fiber-rich foods that can just be carried in our teeny tiny pockets.

13. Banana: This potassium-rich fruit is also an excellent source of fiber-rich foods in India. It is known to be famous amongst kids and people who are into weight-training exercises.

14. Guava: a tropical fruit, but most underrated amongst all others. 

15. Orange: It is a citrus fruit, but it works wonders in your body with its little fiber units.

Best Vegetables High in Fiber

16. Carrots: Crunchy and easy to eat, anytime or anywhere, carrots are a good source of fiber. The best part is that they can be eaten raw, fully cooked, or semi-cooked.

17. Broccoli: This not-so-liked vegetable is a powerhouse of nutrients, packed with fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Therefore, we recommend giving these to your kids in the form of soups or blended with other vegetables.

18. Spinach: A green leaf, liked by a few, and hated by many kids is not only rich in iron but also a very good source containing fiber. Add it to your child’s palak paneer just like ‘Popeye – the Sailor Man’ used to have it!

19. Sweet Potato: It is a root vegetable filled with fiber. It is tasty and can be easily given to kids.

20. Peas: ‘Chhota packet, bada dhamaka’! Add them to any vegetable, making a perfect bowl of a fiber-rich diet for your children.

Apart from this super amazing list of foods, fiber can also be found in one of the highly consumed sources in India, especially in winters, and that is: Nuts. Dry fruits or nuts are a super rich source of high fiber and they not only keep your gut healthy, but also your skin smooth, hair shiny, and nails strong.

(Also Read, Nourish and Flourish: The Health Benefits of Makhana for Kids)

How to Include Fiber Rich Foods in a Child’s Diet

There are some easy ways to add fiber-rich foods to your kids’ breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Now that you have the perfect list of all foods containing this source, here is an example of how a balanced day can look for your child –

1. Breakfast: Ragi oats with fruits like bananas, oranges, or apples. Cook the oats with milk or water. Mix them well and add fruits. Let it rest and serve it cool. This is super easy to digest for your kid.

2. Lunch: Serve your child whole wheat ‘aata’ rotis, with dal made with different kinds, and a vegetable. If you’re giving this in summer, give curd alongside.

3. Evening snacks: Give them crushed nuts in warm milk and a fruit like a banana.

4. Dinner: Serve hot and fresh rice, with any dal along with some tasty vegetable soup made with love.

What will happen if your child consumes too much fiber?

It’s good that you focus on giving your child the best nutritional requirements for their healthy development. Although, don’t go overboard because too much consumption of anything is bad for health.

While fiber is essential, too much fiber can cause problems such as –

1. Discomfort due to gas: the stomach can swell up from the inside, making your child nauseous and feel heavy.

2. Bloating and cramps: with this heavy feeling, the stomach can increase the pressure . This can lead to a bloated gut and the kid can experience pain and cramps right after eating a meal.

3. Diarrhea: we know how fiber-rich foods can help in dealing with issues of constipation and digestion. Therefore, excess consumption can also lead to a need to always sit on the toilet seat.

It is important to make oneself aware of the causes and consequences, advantages, and disadvantages of everything in life. Knowing that too much fiber-rich food consumption can make your child feel excessively full and cause a lack of space for other important nutrients is also one of those facts.

(Also Read, Easy 30 Indian Lunch Ideas for Toddlers)

Conclusion

Incorporating fiber-rich items can provide an aid to overall health and promote healthy physical development. It has numerous benefits and making informed choices and adding fiber to kid’s diets can ensure optimal levels of nutrients, balanced in their bodies. Happy and healthy eating, always!