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.

The American Dietetic Association released their 2008 survey results and the trends were promising, indicating that an increasing number of Americans are more concerned about eating healthy and exercising.  The survey is done every year and asks a series of questions that will put you in one of three categories.  These categories represent people’s overall attitudes toward maintaining a healthy diet and getting regular exercise.  The three categories are:

• I’m Already Doing It:  These are people  who feel that maintaining a healthy diet and regular exercise are very important; are concerned about diet, nutrition and overall fitness; and feel they are doing all they can to eat a healthy diet.

• I Know I Should: These are people who feel that maintaining a healthy diet and regular exercise are very important, but may not have taken significant actions to do all they can to eat a healthy diet.

• Don’t Bother Me: People who do not feel diet and exercise are very important to them and are the least concerned with their overall nutrition and fitness.

The “Don’t Bother Me” category (this is not your category because you would not be reading my blog if it was!) was at 32% in 2002 and is now at 19% in 2008.  A significant drop!  This is the first time that this group is less than 1/3 of the population.  It was as high as 40% back in the mid 90’s.

So what category is your family in, have you taken the leap to “We are already doing it”  or  has your family not quite begun yet.  Remember, you do not have to change everything all at once.  Small changes add up to a healthier family.  Being healthy does not mean “Never, ever can you eat…(whatever that is for you), it really means just not all the time, some foods are great once in a while.

If you need a jump start on goals to set for your family, we have many goals and tracking sheets that are focused on just one healthy change at a time.  And please, keep it simple and keep it fun.  Be patient and reward small changes with fun family activities.

To read more about the report, click here.

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!

This week, go grass! Look for meat, eggs and dairy products that come from grass-fed animals. Grass-fed products are higher in important nutrients and lower in fat than grain-fed products. Try it and have a healthy Monday!

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!

Want to improve you and your kids’ brains? Exercise your bodies. That’s right. Aerobic exercise isn’t just good for your heart, it’s good for your brain, too. So why not start your own Monday Mile Fun club? Grab those kids and maybe even some neighbors and circle the block a few times after dinner.

Resources:
Family Nutrition Tools -Nutriton and Fitness Goals Sheets

More Healthy Monday Tips

I know I am usually blogging about children nutrition but this number was too scary so I had to read the article. And since parents are the prime role model for children’s food habits…. there’s lot so reason to pay attention.

This study was based off an analysis of the weight gains in American since 1970’s. If the same trend line continues than we end up with the warning….nine out of ten Americans will be overweight or obese.

Currently, there are about 2/3s or 66% of American who are overweight or obese…and about 1/3 of our kids. There have been some recent studies that have shown some “flattening” of the trend, so perhaps some of us are starting to change our habits.

That is what is boils down to. Can we change some of our habits? Can we take the stairs instead of the elevator? Can we walk some places instead of drive? Can we grab a piece of fruit rather than a bag of chips? We can change our destiny by working on some key habits.

And the good news. Small changes do add up, so we don’t have to change everything all at once.