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When your child gets the munchies, be prepared to offer a quick-and-healthy fix. Start with these 10 tips for healthier children's snacks.
By Mayo Clinic staff
Snacking is a major pastime for many kids — and that's not necessarily bad. Snacking can help your child curb hunger throughout the day, as well as provide energy and important nutrients. But the quality of the snacks is the key. Consider these 10 tips for healthier children's snacks.
1. Keep junk food out of the house.
Set a good example by snacking on healthy foods yourself. Drink water rather than sugary or carbonated drinks.
2. Go for the grain.
Whole-grain snacks — such as whole-grain crackers or tortillas and high-fibre, whole-grain cereals — can give you energy with longer staying power.
3. Mix and match.
Serve baby carrots or other raw veggies with fat-free dressing. Dip crackers, sticks or fresh fruit in fat-free yogurt. Top celery with cottage cheese, apples or bananas with peanut butter.
4. Broaden the menu.
Stimulate your senses and offer out-of-the-usual choices, such as fresh pineapple slices, blueberries, red or yellow peppers, mangoes, tangelos or roasted soy nuts. Select in season fruits.
5. Revisit breakfast.
Many breakfast foods — such as low-sugar, whole-grain cereals and whole-grain toast — make great afternoon snacks. Likewise, a small serving of last night's casserole could double as an after-school snack.
6. Sweeten it up.
Healthy children's snacks don't need to be bland. To satisfy your child's sweet tooth, offer fat-free pudding, frozen yogurt or frozen fruit bars. Use skim milk, fat-free yogurt and fresh fruit to make your own smoothies.
7. Have fun.
Use a biscuit cutter and make shapes out of low-fat cheese slices, whole-grain breads or whole-grain tortillas. Eat diced fruit with chopsticks or make fruit kebabs. Make a tower out of whole-grain crackers, spell words with carrot sticks, or make funny faces on a plate using different types of fruits or raw vegetables.
8. Promote independence.
Keep a selection of ready-to-eat veggies in the refrigerator. Leave fresh fruit in a bowl on the bench. Store low-sugar, whole-grain cereal and fruit canned or packaged in its own juice in an easily accessible cabinet.
9. Don't be fooled by labeling gimmicks.
Foods marketed as low-fat or fat-free can still be high in calories. Likewise, foods touted as cholesterol-free can still be high in fat, saturated fat and sugar. Check nutrition labels to find out the whole story. Stevia is a natural herbal sweetner - try some.
10. Designate a snacking zone.
Restrict snacking to the kitchen. You'll save countless calories from mindless munching in front of the TV. If your child needs to snack on the go, offer cheese triangles or bites, yogurt sticks, cereal bars or other drip-free items.
Teaching your child to make healthy snack choices now will set the stage for a lifetime of healthy snacking. Start today!
HONEY EASES NIGHT-TIME COUGH.
A spoonful of honey can quiet children's night-time cough and help them -- and their parents -- sleep better.
When compared to the cough syrup ingredient dextromethorphan or no treatment, honey came out on top.
The results were so strong that the researchers were able to say clearly that honey was better than no treatment and dextromethorphan was not, according to Dr. Ian M. Paul of Pennsylvania State University in Hershey, one of the study's authors.
There is currently no proven effective treatment for cough due to an upper respiratory viral infection like the common cold.
Honey has been used around the world as a folk remedy for cough for centuries, and provides a safe, effective alternative to cough medicine.
To investigate, the researchers compared buckwheat honey, a honey-flavoured dextromethorphan preparation, and no treatment in 105 children who had sought treatment for night-time coughs due to colds.
Parents were surveyed on the day of the doctor's visit and on the next day, after those in the treatment groups had been given honey or dextromethorphan at bedtime.
Of the three groups, children given honey had the greatest reduction in cough intensity and frequency, and the most improved sleep... as did their parents.
There are several explanations for why honey might ease cough the researchers note; its sweet, syrupy quality may be soothing to the throat, while its high antioxidant content could also be a factor. Honey also has antimicrobial effects. (particularly Manuka honey)
However honey isn't recommended for infants younger than 12 months old, because of the rare but serious risk it may possibly cause a type of food poisoning known as botulism. For older children, however, it is generally safe. The researchers used a dosage identical to that recommended for cough syrups: half a teaspoon for two- to five-year-olds, a teaspoon for six- to eleven-year-olds, and two teaspoons for children twelve and older.
The study offers an interesting alternative to traditional over-the-counter remedies for cough in children, according to Dr. Michael Warren of Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee and colleagues conclude in a commentary accompanying the study.
SOURCE: Archives of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, December 2007.
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CHOLESTEROL LOWERING TIPS
A healthy food habit when combined with a regular physical exercise or activity programme can help to dramatically reduce your cardiovascular cholesterol level and risk. Just 45 minutes of exercise per day can help dramatically reduce your cardiac risk and lower your cholesterol level.
A good fluid intake is important, ideally 8 glasses of non-alcoholic liquid a day. Alcohol is a major contributor to a high cholesterol level, along with fried fast foods and chocolate.
Eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, especially green, orange and red vegetables. Acai, blueberries and muscadine fruit high in polyphenols, anthocyanins and
resveratrol antioxidants are powerful natural boosters to help lower your cholesterol and are now available in supplement form for when out of season.
Pears also help to lower your cholesterol as they contain a compound called lignin. Lignin attaches itself to the cholesterol in your body thereby trapping it in the intestine, and moving it through your system so you don't absorb it.
Eat a variety of grain breads made with whole grain products. Barley, oatmeal and oat bran are very good. Good fibre is essential for weight and lipid control. Avoid pastry, cakes, biscuits and croissants.
Steam, grill, bake, boil or microwave cook your foods rather than frying.
Walnuts are one of the main non-fish source of omega-3 fatty acids, an important nutrient, which in addition to helping fight heart disease, have also shown promise in easing arthritis. Many nut varieties significantly contribute to lowering cholesterol levels.
When cooking with oils or using spreads aim to use products that have been made from nuts and seeds. Naturally low in cholesterol, virgin olive oil has been shown to produce less harmful and more beneficial effects than other vegetable oils.
The non-saturated fats which make up olive oil, are not only cholesterol-free, but have actually been shown to reduce cholesterol levels. Avocado, soya-bean, canola, safflower and linseed oils are also good.
Use low-fat milks and cheeses. Edam cheese has 1/3 less fat than other varieties. Use yoghurts, cottage cheese and ricotta cheese, avoiding the hard cheeses, ice-creams, sour cream and full cream milks.
Choose lean, trim cut meats and avoid eating the fatty parts, for example, chicken skin, bacon rind or pork crackling. Avoid fatty meats like sausages, bacon, luncheon sausage, pate, salami, liver and duck.
Fish is an excellent alternative as a protein source, full of omega 3 and low in cholesterol too. Include muscles, oysters and scallops and all fish types in your diet.
Garlic and chives, both of the allium family, are renowned for their antibacterial properties and their ability to digest fats. They can also help to lower cholesterol. Garlic is particularly renowned for its ability to decrease LDL cholesterol and triglycerides while increasing HDL cholesterol.
Garlic and chive syrup. Chop up 2-3 garlic cloves and a good handful of chives. Make 250ml of syrup and add the chopped herbs. Cool, strain and store in a sterile bottle. Take up to 1 teaspoonful two-three times daily before meals or add to meals or dressings. This may also be made up successfully into a medicinal vinegar.
Chickweed and soy incorporated into the diet is said to reduce the fatty build-up on the walls of blood vessels.
All processed foods that you buy at the supermarket are now required to list the number of fat calories and grams of fat contained in them, which makes it much easier for us, the consumer, to control our fat intake. Beware of snack foods that are labelled 'low-fat' or 'non-fat'. These foods may be low in fat but they are often high in calories, so if you wish to include these foods in your diet you must take care with the portion size. Read the label of commercially prepared and processed food labels, tins, packets and wrappers. They will often tell you the amount of cholesterol in a product. Check they are labelled low in saturated fat and salt, and high in fibre. Lecithin, shortening and copra are saturated fats.
Making these subtle healthy changes to your diet does not mean that mealtimes have to become plain and boring, they can still be very enjoyable and full of flavour.
Spices and herbs make an excellent flavoursome, low caloric, accompaniments to most meals as well as providing the benefits of their special unique properties.
For example turmeric is seen as an excellent culinary natural antibiotic. At the same time it aids digestion and helps to improve the intestinal flora (the naturally occurring bacteria in the gut involved with digestion). Hence it also makes a good natural anti-bacterial for those whom are chronically weak or ill.
Included in the diet, turmeric not only purifies the blood, but also warms it and stimulates formation of new blood tissue. Turmeric has also been used in Pakistan, India, and in the Far East since ancient times as a preserving spice, preventing food from spoiling. Cur cumin, which is the major yellow pigment in turmeric and mustard, has powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
Chilli was originally brought to Europe in the fifteenth century when Christopher Columbus bought it back from the Americas. The spice trade soon saw chilli spread around the world where it was embraced by many cultures.
In Indonesia, chilli has been used for treating such things as scabies, pimples, stomach ache, and loss of appetite, diarrhoea and low blood pressure. In India, chilli has been used to ease chronic lumbago, or back ache.
The topical application of milk steeped with the whole chilli plant was also used to reduce swellings and hardened tumours. Chilli in a lozenge form has been used for sore throats and laryngitis.
A chilli tincture; using 10 to 15 drops in a cup of hot beef tea is said to calm the stomach and increases appetite. This is particularly good for alcoholics, whose digestive powers may be too weakened to absorb food or medicine. Continued use of chilli tincture tea has shown to reduce the desire for alcohol, and chilli when combined with cinnamon and sugar has been known to help calm delirium tremors.
Exercise is the other very important aspect of maintaining a healthy lifestyle and of particular importance when attempting to modify lipid (cholesterol) levels. Most of us dread the idea of slaving and sweating over a rigorous exercise schedule, however it really does not have to be so difficult and will slowly improve your overall health.
Initially you should plan to do at least 45 minutes of regular exercise a day to improve your weight and overall conditioning. The key is to take it slowly based on your level of fitness. Don't try to run a marathon during the first week, a stroll along the beach or through the park is often a good place to start.
Make your activity one that you will enjoy such as walking, biking, swimming, going to the gym, or joining a sports club. Aim to increase your heart rate and to break into a sweat for approximately 10 minutes each day remembering to warm up and cool down. Gradually, as you can tolerate it, increase this time to 45 minutes or longer each day.
Make these healthy life-style changes gradually and they will last you a lifetime.
Consult your doctor, nurse or dietician for specific calorie and exercise guidelines that are right for you.
If you have high cholesterol, you should have a regular check-up, usually 6 monthly, with your doctor to monitor your blood-pressure, heart and cholesterol levels.
Some medications are available that are prescribed by your doctor to aid in the reduction of cholesterol. The main new class, or group, of drugs used to reduce cholesterol are known as statins. They are generally used as a last resort when diet and lifestyle modifications have been unsuccessful. It must be pointed out that statins are known to interact with grapefruit and its juice therefore grapefruit should be avoided if you are taking a statin medication.
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MEASURE YOUR AEROBIC THRESHOLD
This is the best way ever to burn body fat.
Talking or singing when you exercise is a good way to measure your 'aerobic threshold'.
If you can exercise and still keep up a conversation you are more likely to burn
fat and calories than if you over-exert yourself.
SLEEP AND WEIGHT.
The connection between a child's weight and the amount of sleep that child gets may not be immediately apparent, but new research has found a strong correlation between the two.
Children who get less sleep are more likely to be obese according to researchers from the Michigan University Centre for Human Growth and Development, in the November 2007 issue of the Paediatric Journal.
Even after compensating for other factors, such as the home environment, the link between less sleep and heavier weight was still apparent.
Three likely reasons why sleep might affect weight.
. If children don't get enough sleep at night, they'll be less likely to run around and get exercise during the day.
. When children are tired, they're more irritable and may reach for junk food to help regulate their mood.
Also, what Dr. Lumeng called a "hot area for future research" is the possible connection between sleep and fat metabolism. There have been studies done with adults that have shown that a lack of sleep may disrupt the secretion of hormones involved in appetite and metabolism, such as leptin and insulin.
Bedtimes and wake times are both important -- for children and adults.
Did you know...
Body fat in the abdomen is more closely associated with health risks than any other fat stores.
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Research is verifying what our grandmothers knew; healthy eating habits are the essential key to longevity and good health. Many of our supplements are derived naturally from foods to ensure maximum benefit is retained.
HAVE YOU GOT YOUR GREEN PRESCRIPTION?
As you read through this newsletter a recurring theme of healthy eating and regular exercise starts to emerge.
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