We have heard and will continue to hear concerning news about childhood obesity.  Do you know where your state ranks?I share this with you because kids need our help.  They need our guidance and modeling for healthier living.  Most of these overweight children will carry that added weight into adulthood.I left these in alphabetical order so you could find your state easily.  Here are the childhood obesity rates by state for kids 10 to 17 years old. If we look at Alabama, 16.7% of all children are overweight or obese.  (Remember that when we were children the rate was 5% or less) This is based on 2004 data:

Arizona  12.20% Arkansas  16.40%  

 District of Columbia   22.80%    Florida  14.40% 
Georgia  16.40%  Hawaii   13.30%

Indiana   15.60%     Iowa   12.50%

Louisiana  17.20% Maine   12.70%

Michigan  14.50%   Minnesota  10.10%  

  Montana  11.10%   Nebraska  11.90%

 New Jersey  13.70% New Mexico  16.80%  

North Dakota   12.10%   Ohio   14.20%

 Pennsylvania    13.30%  Rhode Island   11.90%

  Tennessee   20.00% Texas   19.10%

Virginia   13.80%   Washington 10.80%

 Wyoming   8.70%
Resources:
 BMI Calculator Tool- Check your child’s Body Mass Index (BMI)
Family Nutrition Tools and Tips - Free Interactive nutrition Tools
Online nutrition games for kids- Nourish Interactive’s nutrition games.

Mondays are a great day to renew Family Health vows. Every Monday, you will find some healthy tip to help your family start the week off on a Healthy Note!

Holiday shopping with the kids can sabotage your good intentions just as much as party food.  Make sure you and the children have a healthy snack or a light meal before you hit the mall.  Eating before you shop can help avoide the food court.

A study just released by the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior has been causing headlines like “removing soda from the schools may not make a difference in teen’s consumption of soda”I am not sure what they are trying to imply with this study but teenagers are a pretty hard group to change habits.  These headlines are so misleading, are they implying we should put soda back in the school because it won’t make a difference?We don’t need a study to tell us that soda  IS NOT okay for children.  We know that one can has 10 or more teaspoons of sugar in it.  Who would give that to their child while they were in school?  We know that simple sugar gives us calories for some energy but no nutrition?  no vitamins, no minerals, no fiber…just calories.But regardless of all that, it speaks to one important key point. We need to help our kids form their habits  while they are younger.  Keep high fat and high sugary foods, including soda out of the house.  This is one of the best ways to limit the amount your child eats.  Help your child learn that these are not every day foods but once in a while foods.  Your actions can really send a strong message to your young child.The younger your child is the more impressionable they are to your ideas, thoughts and actions as they are beginning to form their own ideas and habits!  Show your child what foods you really value and love by keeping those foods in your house readily available for eating.And sometimes when you bite into your apple or whatever your favorite fruit or vegetable is, let out that “ahhh, this tastes soooo gooood!” So your child can not only see but hear how good those foods really are!  They are listening and learning…

Thanksgiving is one of those special meals that families look forward to for several weeks.  It is one of those times where we might just want to enjoy the full rich recipes that have been handed down generation to generation.

Some suggestions to help Thanksgiving be enjoyable and still healthy:

• Don’t skip meals:  Make sure your children have their regular breakfast and lunch prior to the Thanksgiving dinner.  This will help you and your children eat  more reasonable portions because you won’t be starving.  We think “now don’t eat because you will spoil your appetite”.  Yes, I am guilty of this too but it really sets us up to overeat.

• Don’t forget those veggies and salads: They make great side dishes, color up the table and go great with turkey

• Think about the time your family will be eating:  Eating earlier is better than later so your family doesn’t go to bed with a full stomach

• Make an after dinner activity part of the holiday festivities: A brisk family walk or a little dancing is a great way to help digest that meal and burn off some of the calories and fun

• Add fresh fruits to the list of desserts:  Add some cut up fruit to the assortment of pies, they taste great and compliment pies nicely

And most importantly,  have a fun, memorable Thanksgiving.  These are some of the memories kids fondly look back on as they grow up, and will carry forward to their own families one day.

The USDA has announced that they have formed a new team, lead by Brian Wansink PhD, to develop the 2010 Food Guidelines.I met Brian Wansink when Nourish Interactive received recognition from the USDA, back in June 2008 for our work promoting nutrition education.  He is a very dynamic, passionate man and I was really impressed with his commitment to creating a slimmer, healthier America.He has written several books on how cues trigger us to eat more.  I was reading about some of his experiments and was fascinated at the results.  He rigged a soup bowl to continually fill as it was being consumed.  The result:  75% more soup was consumed.  Bottomline, there are many cues purposely designed to get us to eat larger portions, fattier foods and generally be less healthy.I developed a few Family Nutrition Health Tips that you can print up that gives short quick tips on

•  eating out with the kids- how to have a healthier experience
•  getting the family to be more active
•  specific suggestions on improving your family’s overall nutrition status.

We will continually add to this resource.  Check them out, they are colorful and designed to look and be positive and fun as you work with your children to change habits.  Remember, each step no matter how small is a step towards a healthier child.  Be patient and have with your kids!Just like everything on our site, it is free.  We will soon be posting our spanish version.

Mondays are a great day to renew Family Health vows. Every Monday, you will find some healthy tip to help your family start the week off on a Healthy Note!

Teach your child to slow down when eating their meals. When you eat, it takes several minutes for your body to start feeling full. If you eat your food too fast, you may not even notice you’re full until you’ve overeaten. Take plenty of time to enjoy the food and your family will probably eat less, too.  Healthy Monday Tips

The American Academy of Pediatrics has just released its new guidelines for Vitamin D. They have doubled the dose required for children from 200 units to 400 units. New evidence has shown that by increasing the amount of Vitamin D, children could see significant health benefits later in life.

Vitamin D helps our immune system fight disease, cancer and diabetes. It is also critical for children who need Vitamin D, in order for the body to absorb calcium, to develop strong bones.

But did you know that 3 out of 4 kids are not getting the recommended levels of calcium & vitamin D before the recommended increase! What makes it harder is that vitamin D is not required to be shown on food labels. And let’s face it, who can realistically calculate number of units for all the different vitamins and minerals your child’s growing body needs.

That is just not practical and not a realistic way for us parents to figure out how to make sure they get the vitamins and minerals they need.

The work has already been done for us. Follow the USDA MyPyramid and just make sure that your child is getting the number of servings per food group.

For example, if your child gets 1 serving of milk (1 cup) that equates to 100 units. So no worries, make sure your child is getting their proper servings from the milk group and your child is just about there. Depending on their age, they need 2 or 3 servings of low fat or nonfat milk or milk related products.

Use our meal planner to see what your child needs and create a meal that has the right number of servings.

FYI- here are some other foods high in vitamin D:

• Salmon, cooked (3.5 ounces) 360 units
• Tuna, canned (3 ounces) 200 units
• Milk (1 cup) 100 units
• Vitamin D-fortified orange juice (1 cup) 100 units
• Soy beverage (1 cup) 100 units
• Sardines, canned (1.75 ounces) 250 units

Focus on the well balanced meal and your child will be getting all the vitamins and minerals they need. Fish, nuts, fruits and vegetables and whole grain cereals pack that nutrition punch..and they taste good.

It is your turn to bring in the snacks for the your child’s sport team. You want to be the fun mom and bring treats that the kids will love. But that doesn’t mean it has to be high sugar drinks and sweet treats for the little athletes to love it.

Talk with the other parents. Chances are they are looking for better options as well. Healthy moms and dads have got to band together.

Here are some tasty and healthy snacks.

• fruit: frozen kebobs are a tasty treat
• frozen fruit juice bars made from real fruit
• popcorn, non buttered served in individual happy face bags (you remember, paper bag with the face drawn on it!)
• beef jerky
• low fat muffins
• granola bars (look for the ones higher in fiber)
• nuts
• trail mix with unsweetened fruits (no candy)
• pretzels
• corn nuts

As for drinks. Water is the best drink you can give those little athletes. Keep em active and healthy with treats that pack the punch in nutrition!

Mondays are a great day to renew Family Health vows. Every Monday, you will find some healthy tip to help your family start the week off on a Healthy Note!Stomach problems are no fun for kids, so plan to keep foods safe during holiday season to avoid food-borne illnesses. Cold foods should be kept below 40 degrees until served. Hot foods should be kept above 140 degrees until served. Bacteria multiply quickly when food is in the “danger zone” of 40-140 degrees Fahrenheit. With holiday parties, food can be left sitting out too long, so teach your child to avoid eating anything that’s been sitting out for more than two hours.More Healthy Monday tips!

Happy Halloween. As you get ready for today’s events, here are some quick reminders on how to keep it real - healthy habits, that is.

• Have your child eat a good well-balanced meal before going trick or treating
• Avoid all unnecessary sugar that day. (they’ll have enough of it!)
• Make sure they brush those teeth, at least twice a day
• Decide ahead of time (before going out the door) and agree with your child, the number of treats they will be able to eat

A little extra candy won’t hurt your child’s health. It is ongoing habits that make the difference. And of course, Have FUN and be safe.