With so many junk foods in the market, finding healthy vegetarian snacks for kids can be an uphill task. Parents and kids can easily get carried away by ads and high-power media promotions into buying unhealthy processed foods in attractively packaged covers; they are mostly high in fats, low in fiber and mixed with unhealthy chemical-based preservatives.
If you have kids, you are probably worried by the amount of unhealthy snacks that you are forced to buy. However, there are a few snacks that qualify to be healthy, nutritionally abundant and easy to store.
If you are searching for healthy snacking options for kids at home and schools, then millet snacks should be given top priority. Snacks made from millets are among the best oil free snacks that mothers should prefer because it is the best way to beat unhealthy eating habits among children and prevent obesity and related disorders such as diabetes in the later part of adulthood. The advantage with millet snacks is that they are high in fiber, essential minerals and important vitamins.
With kids around, you need to add variety to healthy Indian snacks that can be stored and given to children any time during the day. Here is a list of easy snacks for kids to make or buy from healthy snack foods manufacturers.
Saamai Kara Boondi
This is a mouthwatering snack that children as well adults will instantly fall in love with. The high level of proteins, fibers, minerals make it the best snack that you can order straight away and stock for daily use. It has a fairly long shelf life; it is dry and stays fresh during the recommended storage. If you want to pack some dry snacks for kids, nothing can be better than this.
Millet is ideally the best source of iron for growing children and it can provide up to 16% of a person’s daily iron need. Adults should consider taking this millet snack because it can help overweight adults to shed extra body fat and stay healthy and fit.
Ragi Ribbon Pakoda
Ragi Ribbon Pakoda is an excellent snack to take along with your evening coffee or tea if you are an adult or a great school snack idea for kindergarten Indian kids that like crispiness and a little bit of spiciness in their food. The advantage of the ragi Pakoda is that it can be repacked in smaller quantities and added along into midday meals. It will also go well as a side dish for sambar, rasam or curd rice. It is reputed to have twice the fiber content of cereals like rice or wheat and partaking a little more than usual will do no harm.
If you are an adult and want to manage your diabetic conditions, then this is for you. The high calcium content and high fiber content will check rapid sugar release. The other benefits include: faster bone growth in children and delaying the aging process of skin. It is a wonderful source of vitamin D for people who get poor exposure to sunlight.
If you or your kids have low hemoglobin levels in blood, then make it a point to bite on Ragi Murukku at least a couple of days every week. For adults it is an excellent way of preventing constipation and for kids a super way to crunch on snacks and run around their house.
Ragi Murukku taken at least once a week (or not chemically modified or processed ragi snacks) can build strong bones and provide a sense of fulfilled satisfaction that will beat the craving for unhealthy food at odd hours.
Almonds too are excellent snacks for kids (and for adults too). There is no dearth to the varieties of flavoring it can take – from spicy pepper to plain salt; tangy to chili and cheese, you will be baffled by the variety that manufacturers offer to their customers.
For coconut lovers there is a never ending variety – sweet, bland and salted – it is full of verities that you will not like to miss. Chips in jiggery, vanilla chips and kuthiraivali mixture are but a few healthy snacks for kids that mothers must consider for raising kids into healthy strong adults.
FAQ
Which Indian snacks are healthy?
Top on the list are snacks made from millets such as millet Pakoda, flavored almonds…
What is the healthiest snack ever?
The healthiest popular snacks for kids and adults are those made from millets with minimum oil.
What are good snacks for a 2-year-old?
For 2-year old kids, the best snack is millet made savories.