The Foundation Years

“There are two things we should give our children: one is roots and the other is wings.” — Author unknown.

Your child’s growth can be likened to the growth of an apple tree. Just as a tree establishes itself during the early years before it can bear fruit, so the early years of your child’s life are spent developing the essential foundations they need for life. In fact, the first five years are the most important. The foundations they develop during these years shape their future health, happiness, development, academic achievement and social interactions. With the right care and environment, your child will grow, play and learn and this will help them thrive and bear fruit later in life.

Grow

Your child will flourish in a stable, nurturing environment. Think of it as the soil that provides a tree with support and nutrients. Various nutrients are important for healthy brain development such as essential fatty acids. Good quality protein, the right amount of vitamins and minerals and live cultures all form part of the nutrition little ones need for optimal growth and development. Apart from nutrition, emotional support and opportunities to play in a stimulating environment also help a child’s physical development.

Play

Your child loves to play and the skills learnt through playing teaches them wonderful life skills that they will need to flourish in life. These include problem solving, creativity and collaboration. The social skills required to play a game give your child practice in paying attention, solving disputes and to focus on tasks. Playing helps build the brain. It boosts curiosity and develops memory and learning.

Free play should be encouraged because it is an enjoyable way for a child to develop their social skills, literacy and ultimately school readiness. Limiting screen time is something all us moms struggle with. Active engagement with toys such as building blocks and real person-to-person interactions are far more beneficial than machine-to-person ones. Your 3–5 year old will love to sing, dance, tell stories, perform shows and help you with household chores. Encourage them to do these activities.

Learn

A tree needs sunlight for warmth, energy and photosynthesis and without it they can’t grow. Learning is like sunlight for a child’s brain cells as they continually make connections while skills are learnt. These connections affect all areas of their development, namely learning, behaviour, physical and mental health. Increasingly complex connections (and skills) are built on the simpler ones that were formed before. Your child’s capabilities are all intertwined, like the roots of a tree, that enable multiple functions to operate.

A child learns more rapidly during the first five years of their life than any other time in their life. This critical period of development – that forms the foundation for cognitive, language and motor development – is shaped by love, affection, encouragement and mental stimulation, as well as good health care and nutritious meals.

NESTLÉ® NANKID 4® is a premium drink made specifically for children from three years to five years of age. It contains B. lactis, along with OPTIPRO®, Omega Smart and HMOs to help build a strong foundation for life.

Build a strong foundation for life – give your child NESTLÉ® NANKID® 4.



IMPORTANT NOTICE. A-well balanced diet, both during pregnancy and after delivery, helps sustain an adequate supply of breastmilk. Exclusive breastfeeding is recommended during the first 6 months of life followed by the introduction of adequate nutritious complementary foods, along with sustained breastfeeding up to two years of age and beyond.

NESTLÉ® NANKID® 4 is not a breastmilk substitute. As babies grow at different rates, seek advice with your health professionals on the appropriate time when your baby should start receiving this product.

Ogilvy 28464, April 2020

Recipe code: ZAJEPB017