WHAT'S IN YOUR PANTRY?

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS

"Pasta, vegetables, fish, and good bread...That's my idea of how to eat well and healthfully."  

---Marion Nestle

The Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health, and Professor of Socialogy, at New York University, and the author of Safe Food (2002), What to Eat (2006), and Food Politics (revised ed., 2007)

Last night, one of my wonderful neighbors stopped by the house to ask me for some healthy food ideas for her dad (who has Type 2 diabetes).  She walked into the kitchen, picked up a bag of Bob�s Red Mill Whole Grain Oat Flour (which I just bought for the Growing Healthy Kids Test Kitchen�s new challenge later this month), and started asking questions.  

Here are some of my answers:

• Eating whole grain foods is key to a balanced eating plan.  
• Make AT LEAST HALF of all your grains whole grain.  Think of all the foods you eat that contain grains:  breads, pastas, cereals, tortillas, cookies, cakes, crackers, rice, and more.   

Whole grain foods are central to the recipes created in the Growing Healthy Kids Test Kitchen.  We love Bob�s Red Mill products because of their purity, quality, and dependability. Here are ten items from Bob�s Red Mill you can ALWAYS find in my pantry:

1. Steel cut oats
2. Whole grain oat flour
3. Coconut flour
4. Brown rice flour
5. Ground flax seeds (you can use these as a substitute for oil in baking!)
6. Corn grits/polenta
7. Organic quinoa
8. French lentils
9. Raw pumpkin seeds
10. Quick cooking wild rice

What is YOUR favorite whole grain product? To learn more about one of Growing Healthy Kids' good food companies, click here,

In gratitude,
Nancy Heinrich

Growing Healthy Kids

NATIONAL CHILDHOOD OBESITY AWARENESS MONTH AND YOUR DAILY EXERCISE

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS

"Every hour you sit at work increases your mortality eleven percent.  Think about that."

----Dr. Mehmet Oz

Up.  Just get up.  Leave the desk and take a ten minute break.  The company will not fall apart while you take a short break to get up from your desk and walk for ten minutes.  The above quote by America�s favorite doctor, Dr. Oz, really resonates with me as I observe adults who think they are productive by not leaving their desk for hours at a time. 

Did you know that a minimum of ten minutes of exercise gives you heart health benefits?  Are you getting thirty minutes a day at least five days a week?  How many days a week are your kids getting at least an hour of exercise a day?  How do you plan fitness into your day?  Deliberately or by accident?  What about your kids?  Do you schedule recess for yourself every day?   

Fitness guru Richard Simmons recommends that you should never eat lunch at your desk.  Simmons says, �Stop thinking you can eat at your desk.  You need to take 15 minutes and go just eat something.  It�s bad for digestion.  You can get diverticulitis, you can get stomach aches and you can get depressed.�   He added, �We�re not winning the war [on obesity]; we�re losing it.  There are more overweight children, more overweight teenagers�there should be more rules about food.�  Make the commitment to take walk breaks and lunch breaks away from your desk.  Your mind will thank you. 

Reversing America�s childhood obesity epidemic will happen by improving the health literacy of parents.  Here's a challenge:  Be a better role model for your own children.  Let them see you sweat! 

One of my favorite Growing Healthy Kids� T-shirt designs created by Get Shot by Ella designer Ella Chabot promotes the mantra, �Exercise Daily�.  Write these two words on the top of every day�s �To Do� list and plan movement and physical fun into your schedule.  Make it a habit.  Commit to it for 28 days. 

This WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS' column is dedicated to Baby Ellie.  She is the reason our family traveled great distances this week (we calculated over 32,000 miles - ONE WAY) to celebrate her first birthday together.  Ellie is my mother�s first great grandchild, daughter of my nephew, Robbie Heinrich, and his wife, Sara Stout Heinrich.  This child is healthy because her mother plans time to cook and prepare fresh fruits and veggies every week for her.  Sara has scheduled to make access to good food choices easy by planning around what foods are locally grown and in season.  Baby Ellie is the

Baby Ellie with her proud parents, Robbie Heinrich (my nephew), his wife, Sara,
and Stella (the dog, looking for cake crumbs),
at Ellie's first birthday party last weekend

picture of health and that is why I was so happy to deliver a GHK shirt of her own so she can be our youngest ambassador in Kentucky.  

All children deserve access to fresh fruits and vegetables.  Support your local farmers.  Eat rainbows from the garden!  

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Growing Healthy Kids

To check out the Growing Healthy Kids' store, click here.

BACK TO SCHOOL LUNCHES

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS

"Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower."
                                                  -- Steve Jobs

Summer vacation for America�s kids is coming to a close and the first day of school is almost here.  What was the best part of YOUR summer vacation?  

Lead the way for a great school year by innovating with school lunches.  The best school lunch your kids will get is the one they make with you.  Getting the right balance of good carbohydrates, lean protein, and the healthy fats can make the difference in your kids' success at school (and your success at work).  

Let�s start by planning:

1.  Pick out a great lunch box for each of your kids (and one for you so you can take healthy lunches to work).  Google �bento lunch boxes� for new ideas.  What is a bento?  Quite simply, a bento is a visually appealing lunch in a box.  According to Wikipedia, a bento is �a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine.  A traditional bento holds rice, fish or meat, with pickled or cooked vegetables, usually in a box-shaped container.�  Remember to plan for a way to keep the lunch cool with an icepack inside an insulated lunch bag.  Some of the containers I have been using in our Growing Healthy Kids� programs are the square and rectangular plastic boxes with built-in cooler packs.  Check out stores like TJMaxx and Homegoods for a great selection. 

Ready to learn how to make a bento box? Click here to watch the video!

Click here for an overview of how to make a bento lunch.

2.  Take a walk with your kids through your favorite food market or big box stores like Costco and Sam�s Club.  Make a list of 10 foods that store well and can be bought in bulk (to keep costs down).  Here are some ideas:

• Nuts (almonds, walnuts, pistachios, pecans, etc.)
• Dried fruits (bananas, apples, apricots, peaches, cherries, blueberries)
• Dark chocolate squares (Ghirardelli has always been my favorite brand since visiting Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco throughout my childhood growing up in California.)
• Pretzel sticks
• Triscuit crackers
• Miniature whole grain bagels (which can be frozen)

3.  Now make a list of protein foods that can be easily prepared once or twice a week.  Here are some ideas:

• Hard boiled eggs
• Quinoa salad
• Hummus (pack with celery, carrots, or cucumbers)
• Tuna
• Canned wild salmon
• Wrap sandwiches made with whole grain breads (check out flat-outs and La Tortilla Factory�s choices).  These can be used with sliced cheeses and low-fat meats like turkey. 
• Peanut butter or almond butter (make your own cracker sandwiches with whole grain crackers or flatbreads)
• Whole grain pasta salad (use Dreamfields rotini pasta as the base)

4.  Keep a chart in the kitchen of the seasonal fruits and veggies where you live so you can incorporate those into the plan.  Fresh is best! Buy from your local farmers whenever possible.  


5.  Buy a stainless steel water bottle.  Your kids can fill it with water each night and place it in the fridge to chill overnight.  Make a family pledge to stop using disposable plastic water bottles.  Go back to school in style with the stainless steel Growing Healthy Kids water bottle--click here.

6.  Create a weekly lunch menu with your kids.  Keep a notebook for this so you can note which lunch items were a hit!   

Email your favorite summer adventures to us and we will post some in the next couple of issues of WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS.  Email us at growinghealthykidsnow@gmail.com.  

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Growing Healthy Kids, Inc.