Healthy bodies, brains and bellies part 1

Healthy Bodies, Brains and Bellies Part 1

Hello everybody, today I am going to speak from my heart and talk about a touchy subject.  There is a crisis in our country, the food we eat and the lack of exercise we allow can lead to childhood obesity, ADHD and many more things.  It is scary how many children are overweight and the long term damaging effects obesity can cause.  There are many factors that have contributed to this crisis:  fast food, modern conveniences, television, and technology.  Even if a child has a high metabolism they still need to eat healthy.  It is sad how many chemicals and dyes are in our foods these days.  The more color it has the more a child is drawn to it and wants to eat it.  I strongly believe that a lot of the behavioral and medical problems that we deal with in children can be attributed to their food. 

In part one I am going to discuss healthy bellies and how we can make healthy eating fun! 

Healthy eating at home prepares kids mentally and physically for their day.  Create a healthy home environment by offering your kids nutritious options for family meals, lunches and snacks.  Healthy eating isn’t always enough.  You also need to educate your family on why and how to eat healthy.  I will be the first to tell you it is not easy to stay the course with healthy family eating.  It is a battle that requires constant planning and dedication.  Over the last year since my daughter was diagnosed with ADHD I have been on a quest to figure out what diet works for her and our family’s busy schedule.  When I started researching food dyes I was shocked at how many foods had them in it and what the negative side effects were.  Here are some articles on food dyes Click Here and Here, when you have time check out this research on food dyes.  We try to only allow “school lunch” for our kids once a week.  This gives me better control over what they are eating.  As a busy family there are definitely days when we do eat unhealthy foods.  But there is also a balance.  Recently our family has been trying to eat more "clean".  We try to eat no processed foods, dyes, low sugar and only brown pastas and breads.  Since we began "clean eating" and taking Advocare products I have personally lost 40lbs, my husband hasn't had any migraines and my daughter with ADHD has improved her focus.  The question is how do we make healthy eating fun?

One way to make healthy eating fun is to have a “mascot”.  The very hungry caterpillar is a great mascot.  He ate healthy and it helped him grow.  Reading together will also aid in family bonding. 

Allowing children to help with food prep will get them exited to eat more healthy.

Here comes the fun part!  What can we put in our kids lunches and what can we give them for snacks that is fun and healthy?? 

I like to start every “fun” project I do with a theme.  It organizes my brain and helps me come up with better ideas.  We have weekly themes at preschool so you could use the same themes or come up with your own family themes.  After you come up with themes you should plan a menu.  Start with a week’s worth and include your kids in the planning and shopping.  This will be a great way to educate them on cooking, family time and healthy eating. 

Here is my fun snacks and foods pinterest page for ideas.  The ideas on this page are not all healthy but there is a wealth of healthy kid lunch ideas.

http://pinterest.com/kidzoneteacher/kid-snacks-and-food/

I hope you enjoyed these fun ideas!!  Let me know if you would like more information on My weight loss journey!

Rachel Supalla

Director Discovery Kidzone Montessori School

Owner www.discoverykidzone.blogspot.com