Day 99- Nutrition Bite

A mother has a five-year-old son, Lukas, who has never consumed refined sugar. She gives one tip--ignorance is bliss! This mother has good advice--don't let the child know what they are missing for as long as possible. Lukas won't crave what he hasn't tasted. Lukas has not eaten a donut, ice cream or candy. For now, as far as he knows, a donut may taste like his whole grain bagel, and ice cream may be no tastier than his fruit smoothie popsicle. However Lukas eats cookies, cakes, and popsicles like all other children his age, but his treats don't contain any refined sugar. Today there are several healthier sweeteners available other than refined sugar such as fruit juice, honey, molasses, agave, maple, stevia, etc. Click on article for more parental tips http://www.mothering.com/articles/growing_child/food/my-sugar-free-son.html.

Sugar Preacher's Experience

You don't know what you are missing if you have never tried it! I wonder if my parents had withheld refined sugars from me as a child, I would not crave desserts. July 3rd was my birthday, and I couldn't resist the birthday pistachio cannoli. I did eat a small amount of refined sugar in the cannoli but quickly passed it around the table. Today is the 99th day on my no refined sugar lifestyle, and I rarely crave desserts. However for a minute, I did crave my traditional carrot birthday cake with cream cheese frosting. If carrot cake hadn't been a birthday tradition, I wouldn't know what I was missing!

Day 53-Nutritional Bite

"I have a tip for you. Something to tell the parents--unplug the TV for a week and make the kids go outside and play. Then, they won't sit around and eat junk food."

- Jake, kindergarten student


Sugar Preacher's Experience
This quote is from my nephew. He was serious about unplugging the TV by showing me how to disconnect the wires so kids can't turn on the TV. You have to love 5-year-olds; and they can give some great advice. When I watch TV, I eat more than when I am active. I am planning to be more active this weekend and backpack the Grand Canyon!

Day 41-Nutritional Bite

“The Miracle of Life nurtured by a woman who gave us love and sacrifice…MOTHER.”
Joel Barquez

Sugar Preacher's Experience
I'm grateful for my mother who taught healthy principles! My fondest memories were working in the garden with my mother. I also remember making homemade bread and canning fruit. The memories we create centered around food. Have a wonderful Mother's Day!!

Day 26-Nutritional Bite

Avoid food battles! Food battles can lead to negative experiences at the table. Children may rebel and even avoid eating all together. It's easy for food to become a source of conflict. Well-intentioned parents might find themselves bargaining or bribing kids to eat healthier foods. A better strategy is to empower kids by giving them some control, but limit unhealthy food choices.

Sugar Preacher's Experience
A few years ago, I was taking care of my niece. At mealtime, I asked her to eat some vegetables. The encouragement lead to a food battle. I gave her a bribe--if she ate her vegetable, she would be rewarded with soda. The reward didn't work, and she didn't eat her veggies. I lost the battle. Next time, I am hoping it will be a win-win sitiuation by giving a child two healthy choices.

Day 25-Nutritional Bite

Let children take an active role in meal planning. Plan healthy recipes and teach them how to combine ingredients in creating nutritious meals. As you involve children, they will learn to make good decisions and healthy food choices. Healthy habits taught now can lead to a lifetime of healthier choices. 

http://www.kidshealth.org/parent/nutrition_fit/nutrition/habits.html

Sugar Preacher's Experience

As a teacher in the public schools, I observe that empowered students appear to be happier and more successful. If children take an active role in the classroom, they take more ownership of their learning experience. Empowering can lead to healthier decisions!

Day 24-Nutritional Bite

Make healthy food taste good and have fun! Children and teens are motivated by taste and fun. Studies indicate taste is a critical motivating factor in food choice. Only 27% of students report that health motivates them in making food choices. Unfortunately, nutrition is perceived to be negatively correlated with taste. But, you can make snacks into fun shapes, such as whole-wheat pitas into triangles and pancakes into alphabet letters. You can also try different combinations like chocolate grahams with strawberries, yogurt with bananas, or steamed vegetables with ketchup. Make it fun!
-Studies from Journal Public Policy and Marketing, Fall 2007.

Sugar Preacher's Experience
I agree nutrition and tasty foods don't correlate. However, I have increased creativity with my sugar-free diet by working on a sugar-free ice cream recipe and sorbet from fruit. Ice cream has been my craving for the past few days possibly due to the beautiful warm weather. I heard Soy Delicious makes an ice cream with brown rice syrup and other natural ingredients, but a sorbet from fruit will be healthier. You can be creative with your children and make food tasty and fun!

Day 23-Nutritional Bite

Parents please make healthy choices for yourself! Be a good role model for your children. Your example of eating healthy will be most crucial. Studies have shown the most effective strategies to reduce obesity are parent's modeling behavior and the accessibility of healthier foods. The fruit and vegetable consumption by parents is the best predictor of young children's consumption of fruits and veggies, and the same is true for soda consumption.
- Creating an Environment in which to Eat a Healthier Diet by Leslie Lytle and Jayne Fulkerson

Sugar Preacher's Experience
Luckily, I have a grandmother and parents who are vegetable and fruit consumers. As a child, I helped my grandma make a green drink in a Champion juicer. We also made fruit leather in her dehydrator. My mother made sure we ate fruits and veggies with every meal. The garden in the backyard was also a nice addition. I enjoyed eating from the apricot tree, raspberry bushes, tomato plants, peach tree, etc.. My parents definitely set a good example of healthy eating patterns for their children. I'll end this paragraph with a fellow co-worker's mantra "what you model is what you get!"

Day 22-Nutritional Bite

Enjoy an Earth Day dinner with food, family, and friends! Celebrating Earth Day doesn't mean to only reuse, recycle, and reduce. You can also cook from scratch and enjoy a good family conversation as you eat together. Make meal time a positive experience and eat at least one meal daily as a family. Kathleen Zelman, MPH, RD, LD mentioned that studies verify what some might consider common sense--families that eat together eat more healthfully. They consume less fast food, soft drinks and fat, and more fruits and vegetables. Developing good eating habits early in life will stay with your children for a lifetime. A study reported in the 2003 Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine found that adolescents who frequently sit down to family meals receive better grades, less depression, and were less likely to drink alcohol, smoke, or use marijuana than kids who ate with their families less than twice a week. Let's celebrate Earth Day by cooking dinner from scratch or just dinner together!

Sugar Preacher's Experience
Some of my vivid memories were eating together with my family. I remember my Grandma and parents always encouraging us to eat our vegetables. Our conversations were lively with everyone trying to comment. I recall the conversations were predominately about school and sports with a father and two brothers heavily into sports. Family mealtime is an important time to receive nourishment and nurturing!

Day 21-Nutritional Bite

Teach children not to be sold by TV commercials. The Sesame Street Organization studied preschool children's perception of food in relationship with character appeal. The study was intended to see if character appeal would increase children's interest in choosing particular foods. The children in the control group were first shown stand alone Sesame Street characters and secondly shown stand alone food. The results were 78% children chose a chocolate bar and 22% chose broccoli. However, when Elmo was placed with the broccoli and Kludge was placed with the chocolate bar, 50% chose the broccoli and 50% chose the chocolate bar. These findings suggest that Sesame Street characters could play a strong role in increasing the appeal of healthy foods. Click on link for Sesame Street hands-on resource kit and health videos.
http://www.sesameworkshop.org/healthyhabits/


Sugar Preacher's Experience
A few weeks ago, I attended a Healthy Kids Nutrition Forum. The information gained from the Forum prompted me to dedicate this week's nutritional bites to methods for parents to help children eat better. When I visit the store with my nephews and nieces, they always ask for sugar cereals advertised on TV. Children spend more and more time in front of the tube, meaning more time influenced by advertisements and other media messages. A media discussion with your children can be beneficial to help them develop critical thinking skills and media literacy.