4 Ways To Keep Your Child’s Heart Healthy

Typically when people think of heart health, they think of adult heart health, but children’s heart health is important, too. Did you know that helping your child create heart-healthy habits can help to reduce their risk of heart disease as an adult? Children are more likely to stick to heart-healthy habits if they grow up with them.

Keep Children Active

Jeffrey Moore, MD with ProMedica Physicians Pediatric Cardiology says that healthy movement is a good place to start. “We live in an era where there is ready access to screen time,” said Dr. Moore. “With an increase in screen time, there is an increased effort to keeping kids active. Aerobic activity is one of the most important things for a child’s long-term heart health.”

Aerobic activity provides cardiovascular conditioning, which in turn strengthens the heart and improves the body’s ability to deliver oxygen and other nutrients. Aerobic activity is anything that gets your heart beating faster and your breathing heavier than normal.

The amount of exercise a child needs depends on their age, but physical activity is always important at any age. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), children ages three through five years need to be active throughout the day. Children and adolescents ages six through 17 need to be active for 60 minutes every day.

While that might seem like a lot of time, your child may already be getting close to that goal by doing routine activities at home or school. Most of the daily 60 minutes for older children should be spent doing aerobic activity. School sports, swimming, bike rides, taking a walk around the neighborhood or playing a game outside are all great options for aerobic activity.

“Keeping kids active helps with blood pressure and weight management; it can decrease the risk of future adult cardiovascular concerns, such as diabetes and high cholesterol. It also helps children socially, emotionally and from a mental health aspect,” said Dr. Moore. “It is important to develop good, healthy exercise habits early on in life thus more likely that it will carry over into adulthood.”

Watch the Sugar

It’s no secret that added sugar is in most foods, from breakfast cereals to desserts and candies, but did you know that for children often the biggest source of added sugar in their diet is from what they drink?

The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends limiting added sugar consumption for children ages two to 18 to less than six teaspoons per day (25 grams). Sugary beverages should be limited to no more than eight ounces per week. Children under two years should not consume any food or beverages with added sugar.

“Pop/soda, fruit juices, sweetened water and sports drinks contain a lot of added sugar that kids don’t need,” said Dr. Moore. “Consuming sugary beverages in large quantities can contribute to weight gain, obesity and type 2 diabetes.”

Children should have water and milk accessible as healthy alternatives to sugary drinks. Homemade fresh-squeezed fruit juices and smoothies are significantly lower in sugar than traditionally purchased fruit juices.

Teach Pace Eating

Pace eating can be beneficial to help prevent weight gain in children. “It takes about 20 minutes for the body to realize it is full,” said Dr. Moore. “A lot of young kids and teenagers will eat very quickly and will ultimately end up consuming more calories than are needed.”

Eating slowly or taking breaks during meals is a great way to teach children to listen to their bodies and eat until full. This also helps children eat their favorite foods without having to strictly limit portion sizes or restrict their favorite foods.

Some suggestions for pace eating include encouraging conversation during meals, turning eating into a game by picking a number of times the child should chew each bite, and encouraging at least 20 minutes to pass before allowing a second serving of food. 

Physicals for on and off the Field

“Children should have a physical once a year, especially young athletes,” said Dr. Moore. “We have seen the age of competitive sports becoming lower and kids are becoming increasingly intensive with their competitive sports.”

A sports physical is different than a regular physical because it focuses on the child’s ability to compete in the sport of their choosing.

“It is important to make sure a child’s heart is healthy enough to tackle the risk and rigors that come with competitive athletics,” said Dr. Moore. “It is especially important to reduce the risk of serious injury.”

Regular yearly physicals are more comprehensive than sports physicals, meaning that they not only focus on the child’s physical body but also on the developmental and emotional aspects associated with growing up. Both types of physicals are beneficial for children.

“A lot can change from year to year, even in a child that seems healthy,” said Dr. Moore. “Sometimes there are subtle changes that can be picked up by a good physical done by a primary care physician.”

Your child’s health care provider can also recommend healthy habits to help protect your child’s heart for years to come.

Jeffrey Moore, MD 
Dr Moore is a provider with ProMedica Physicians Pediatric Cardiology. View his profile.