What your children eats affects their total well-being

According the Government's Health Survey for England, as many as one in three children are overweight and one in ten is obese. Over consumption of fatty, processed food, laden with sugar, is making our children fatter. Other research shows that increased consumption of food additives and preservatives has been linked to a dramatic increase in conditions such as asthma, eczema and food allergies.

Giving your child a healthy start in life will have a vital impact on their future. If children are taught now to eat healthily, they will still be doing so in ten years time. They are also more likely to be full of energy, more alert, less prone to illness and have improved concentration. It is not easy to make radical changes to your child's diet but we have reviewed a couple of books that will certainly make the process easier both contain valuable nutritional advice as well as many delicious but healthy recipe ideas.

Annabel Karmel's New Complete Baby and Toddler Meal Planner
Ebury Press, £12.99 (hb)

Since it was first published in 1991 this book has become a classic guide to feeding babies and young children. Now Annabel Karmel has completely updated her feeding bible for 2004. Complete with delicious new recipes it also includes nutrition guidelines following those set by the UK Department of Health last year.

This new edition also contains a useful meal planner that shows busy parents how to use a wide range of fresh foods to produce quick and tasty home-made recipes that will hopefully establish a healthy eating pattern for life.

Healthy eating for kids by Anita Bean
A&C Black, £12.99 (pb)

This excellent book doesn't preach an evangelical diet, not does it assume that parents have endless free time to create interesting meals. Healthy easting doesn't have to mean boring meals. It's all about making nutritious food appealing and fun for kids. Packed with essential advice on healthy eating, feeding fussy eaters, dealing with an overweight child, and plenty of ideas for no-hassle meals, quick snacks and lunch boxes.

Written by Anita Bean, a renowned specialist in children's nutrition, who has won top awards for her work and written several best-selling books. The recipes will give you a new inspiration on what to feed your children.