7 Top Foods to Include in your Kid’s Diet

Have you ever wondered what foods should I feed my Kid to promote health and weight management?

7 Top Foods to Include in your Kid’s Diet



Here is a list of the top 7 healthiest foods to feed your kid and why it’s so healthy:


1. Oatmeal: A fabulous breakfast food, full of B vitamins, iron, zinc and calcium. Old-fashioned oatmeal offers plenty of carbohydrate for quick energy and high fiber.  Add berries and honey to make it a delicious perfect food for those fast-paced school day mornings! 

2. Yogurt: Kick your child's dairy consumption up a notch and include yogurt on the menu. A great source of calcium, yogurt is easier to digest than regular milk, and the cultures (check the label to make sure they're in there!) are very beneficial to good colon health. Watch it on the sugar content though.  A great idea is to buy plain yogurt and sweeten it yourself with fresh fruit!

3. Broccoli: it is one of the best vegetables for anyone, especially growing kids.  It has loads of calcium, potassium, beta-carotene and a wide variety of the B vitamins.  If your child is not a fan of plain vegetables include broccoli in a casserole or put a little shredded cheese on top to add flavor.

4. Protein: One size does not fit all when it comes to protein. The fact is that growing kids need protein to keep growing. How you're going to give it to them can vary widely, according to your preferences. Good choices include legumes, beans (combined with a grain to make a complete protein), soy products like tofu, eggs or lean meat, fish or poultry.

5. Whole Grains: The best nutrition is found in whole grains. Brown rice and whole wheat bread are a quantum leap over their white counterparts and offer necessary fiber, minerals and vitamins.  Choose grain products with the words “whole”, “unbleached” and “intact” or “ground”.

6. Nut Butters: Peanut butter and other nut butters are great fast and easy foods for kids. Kids need fat (it's a good fat if it doesn't have hydrogenated oils mixed in it) and they need the protein.  Try spreading almond or sunflower seed butter on crackers, toast or celery sticks for a quick and nutritious snack.

7. Fresh Fruit: My personal choice would be cantaloupe in the melon department. Vitamin C, beta-carotene, bits and pieces of B vitamins and trace minerals and calcium fill every juicy bite. Any in season fresh fruit is sure to be packed with healthy goodness!


Keywords:
weight loss, kids, children, fat, diet, food, exercise, fitness, health



7 Tips to Help Your Kid Develop a Positive Self-Image

The adolescent and teenage years is often considered the most difficult years in life, especially for an overweight teen.  Many peers of overweight children do not accept them further fostering negative self-perception.  Research shows that parents who nurture a positive attitude and actively show their children qualities of resilience and optimism make dramatic differences that continue into successful healthy adult years.

7 Tips to Help Your Kid Develop a Positive Self-Image




Try these 7 tips to foster optimism and resilience in your overweight child:

1) Believe in your Children.  Assure your children that you are on their side and that you expect then to be the best person that they can be, although you don’t expect them to be the best at anything.  No one is perfect.

2) Find other adults who believe in your children.  Teachers, aunts, uncles, neighbors and friends can help you make a positive difference for you overweight child.  Other adults that can see beyond the weight and also believe in your child can help your child take control of their lives.

3) Encourage your children to stay interested in activities.  Let them know that their interests are valuable and deserve to be developed, whatever it is.

4) Celebrate your children’s winning experiences and help them to accept defeats graciously.    Let your child know that you appreciate their efforts and positive attitude win or lose.  Positive attitude and effort is for more important than victory.

5) Encourage upbeat conversations about the future.  Assume they are going to college and thinking about good careers.  Let your child know that you believe they are capable.

6) Be a role model for perseverance.  Be sure your children hear you say that some tasks are difficult, but that you are not a quitter.

7) Facilitate family fun and laughter.  A family that can joke, laugh, and lighten up their day’s with humor can help to prevent negativity and tension.




Keywords:
weight loss, kids, children, fat, diet, food, exercise, fitness, health





7 Tips to Health and Weight Loss 4 Kids

Try these 7 easy tips to promote health and weight loss for your kids.

7 Tips to Health and Weight Loss 4 Kids



1 Role Model –Your heath and weight directly effect your child’s health and weight.  Children with just one overweight parent have a 25% risk of becoming an overweight or obese adult.  If both parents are overweight the risk of becoming an overweight adult jumps to 50%.

2 Be Positive- No one enjoys receiving negative feedback.  Talk to your child with compassion and encouragement. Instead of saying, 'Lose weight', say, 'Let's be healthy and start taking care of our bodies'.  Focus on the foods you can eat, not the ones that you cannot. Say, 'Let's go pick out fruits and make a fruit salad,' not 'Don't eat that.'

3 Make healthy eating a family affair - A family that eats together, eats better, according to a recent study in the journal Archives of Family Medicine. Children who report frequent family dinners have healthier diets than their peers who don't, the study showed. Also fill your refrigerator and cabinets with fresh fruits, nuts, low-fat cheese, and things for everyone to snack on.

4 Eat Breakfast – A breakfast that consists of protein, starch and fat will keep your children more alert during school.  Studies have shown that weight loss is much more difficult in people who skip breakfast.

5 Make time for physical activity - Make physical activity a family activity. Every night after dinner in the summer, go for a half-hour walk and make it an activity that kids look forward to. If you can afford it, enroll your kids in dancing or a sporting activity that they enjoy because they need to enjoy it to keep doing it. Or just turn on some dance music and have a dance party around the house.

6 Don't say diet - Put your child on any diet and you are setting them up for an eating disorder - whether binge eating or closet eating or another type of disorder.  Lifestyle changes have proven to be the most effective to lose weight and keep it off.

7 Avoid portion distortion - When serving the food try to portion out meal on dishes and avoid buffet-type or family-style eating.  When exposed to so much food it is easy for your eyes to be bigger than your stomach.  Resist the first temptation to have seconds then check in with yourself to see if you are really hungry.





Keywords:
weight loss, kids, children, fat, diet, food, exercise, fitness, health