You may have seen us on Channel 12!  Liz Bonis came to a Healthy Girls class at Lakota YMCA to report on the program.  It was featured on the 5:oo pm news during the Medical Edge report on 7/13/10.  We are hoping to link up the footage soon!  Teri Reynolds and the healthy girls class provided the Greater Cincinnati area with wonderful information about the program as well as it's benefits!
Sign up today, classes are still being formed depending on which areas we have interested parties!

3:00pm rolls in and so do the kids off the school bus.  The first thing out of their mouth?  "I'm starving!"  So what do we as parents do?  Ahhh... this is the almighty question, and the answer can say a lot about our children's health.

The American Dietetic Association recommends that we eat 4 small portions of food each day.  Typically this equates to breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner.  So snacking is not out of the question, it is what are we feeding our bodies during this snack that is in question.
What is the purpose of food?  Is it to provide us with pleasure?  Energy?  Time-filler?  Entertainment?  Well for some of us, it provides something different than for another person.  But the reason we need to eat, is to provide our bodies with the fuel it needs to perform it's daily functions.  Our body has certain "requirements" for use.  It needs a certain amount of protein, calories, fat and carbohydrates to perform those functions yes, but it ALSO needs vitamins and minerals.

Unfortunately our diets are lacking in this area, and our kids are lacking even more.  According to the United States Department of Agriculture, 1/2 of U.S. children are not getting the recommended intake of calcium, 2/3rds are not getting enough vitmain E and zinc and even 1/3rd are not getting enough iron in their current diets... this can be changed - and not from a multi-vitamin.  Food is the best source of vitamins and minerals and is absorbed more readily into the body.

Snacks are a great way to boost up your kids intake of these essential nutrients! 
A homemade trail mix with nuts (peanuts, almonds), sunflower seeds, yogurt covered raisins, craisins, dried apricots/plums/or other dried fruit and whole grain cereals (wheat chex, or honey nut cheerios) are a great addition!  This snack alone will provide zinc, fiber, folate, magnesium, potassium and vitamins A and E!

Add a Fruit Smoothie, which can be full of calcium, vitamin A and D, and potassium!  Take skim milk, orange juice, frozen berries, bananas and plain low-fat yogurt - mix it in a blender with some ice - and voila! 

You've got a refreashing treat, healthy snack and satisfaction from the kids!

As Registered Dietitians, we have seen the increase in childhood obesity continue to rise over the years.  It is imperative to teach children how to make healthy food choices so that good health is maintained from a young age. 
One may say, "It is hard to teach an old dog new tricks" and it is completely accurate for selecting food choices.  If one learns at a young age how to enjoy foods that are of good nutritional value it becomes second nature to them to continue to select these foods as they grow older.  Thus resulting in a healthier lifestyle. 
View Michelle Obama's Let's Move Campaign at the following link http://www.letsmove.gov/ to stay connected with this initiative.  It's primary focus is to promote improvement in the food offered during school lunch with a goal to offer more fresh/raw fruits and vegetables; to make healthier food more readily available and affordable to the public; and the initiative also promotes an increase physical activity in our youth of today's lifeThe Healthy Girls program is an avenue available to you and your family as a resource for teaching your children about how to eat healthy, be active and have a healthy lifestyle.  The team leaders are Registered Dietitians who are a resource to you for finding ways that you can have a healthier lifestyle in your home. 

Healthy Happenings is a place to find tidbits of knowledge brought to you by Registered Dietitians!  Hopefully you will be able to learn quick and easy ways to bring nutrition to the forefront of your mind when feeding your families.  Submit ways you have adapted your lifestyle to make your family healthier!  We can motivate one another and celebrate eachother's accomplishments.  Stay Healthy and Keep Moving!