Acharya Mahaprajna
Provide Only Beneficial Things
Children develop some illnesses because of carelessness on the part of their parents. We know of a case when bypass surgery had to be performed on a five-year old child. Several factors could have led to that situation, but carelessness of parents could have probably been the major cause. Small children go and sit very close to the television sets and watch the programs for hours on end. Their eyesight becomes weak. Even when they are just two or three years old, spectacles become like an organ of the body. If the parents show alertness, this habit can be controlled.
A small child is fond of eating sweet things. He eats a lot and all kinds of things. People give to their children even the harmful things like paan-parag. If such things go into their mouths in very large quantities, their teeth would be spoilt, they would have worms in their teeth and their intestines would be harmed. Disorder in the digestive system would be an invitation to many diseases. This too is a very complicated problem.
Whenever a child sees thing, he cannot help asking for it nor can be from eating it. He has no sense of discretion to decide what he should eat and how often he should eat. It is the responsibility of his parents to awaken that sense in him. He should be persuaded gently and with affection. They should not give to the child anything that is harmful to him just to pacify him because he is crying or creating a row. They must see what is beneficial for the child and give only that thing to him. Only the beneficial food can protect the health of the child. From this point of view, it is possible to keep the child in good health only by being constantly vigilant.
