TEN FOODS TO EAT MORE OF

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS

"I see the lack of access to what we need the most, fresh fruits and veggies.  I'm concerned about what the kids eat in school, all the processed foods.  I'm concerned about the health of the children and what diseases they are going to be growing up with because of poor food choices or the lack of availability of good food choices."

---Nancy Heinrich (from "Locavores unite to promote local farming" by Stephanie Labaff in Vero Beach Newsweekly, August 28, 2013)

For each adult who parents or mentors a child, we have a responsibility to be a good role model.  With 2 in 3 adults overweight or obese,  teaching children the habits they need for a lifetime of good health means taking a look at ourselves in the mirror first. 

What is something you can do right now?  Eat less of the bad foods.  Look at food labels for the ingredient �high fructose corn syrup�.  By eliminating this highly processed sugar from the foods you buy and bring into your home, you are taking a huge step in the right direction.  Eating less of the bad foods and more of the good foods is a simple strategy that all families can use.  Let your kids become NUTRITION DETECTIVES by checking processed foods for high fructose corn syrup and letting them search for a similar food product that does not contain what we at the Growing Healthy Kids project call the Evil Empire ingredient. 

GHK on the Move:  Teaching kids how to make Healthy Snacks
at a recent Boys and Girls Clubs of Indian River County.

If high fructose corn syrup is something we need to eat less of, then what are the good foods we need to eat more of?  Here are ten good foods to get your family started on the path to wellness:

1. Wild salmon (full of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids)
2. Kale (rich in vitamin K)
3. Avocados (a good source of glutathione, an antioxidant that improves overall hormone function)
4. Olives and olive oil (containing the �good� fat called unsaturated, olives are known to lower blood pressure and cholesterol)
5. Walnuts (ounce for ounce, walnuts have almost twice as many antioxidants as any other nut)
6. Sweet potatoes (loaded with vitamin B6 and potassium, they also help regulate blood pressure)
7. Dark chocolate (can aid in lowering blood pressure and cholesterol levels)
8. Garlic (when garlic is crushed, allicin is released, which wards off heart attacks and strokes)
9. Blueberries (LOADED with antioxidants, this is a key disease-fighting food)
10. Asparagus (a natural diuretic, this vegetable is high in vitamin B12 and potassium)

For some affordable breakfast ideas, check out this website I found this week.  Click here.

To read the brand new "F as in Fat: How Obesity Threatens America's Future 2013" report from the Robert Wood Johnson foundation, click here.

If you have suggestions of topics you would like to covered in a future issue of WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS, we'd love to hear from you.  Please contact us at: growinghealthykidsnow@gmail.com.

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Growing Healthy Kids, Inc. 

BREAKFAST OF WELLNESS CHAMPIONS

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS

"What you do has far greater impact than what you say."
                                                ---Stephen Covey

My best friend, Chris Ann, surprised me this summer when she invited me to celebrate my birthday at a great little restaurant called "Three Doors Down from Nancy".  The restaurant was, indeed, three doors down from Nancy, which turned out to be a little dress shop.  I asked Chris Ann to take this picture of me because, come on, how often does something this cool happen to yours truly?  What magical experiences have YOU had during your summer vacation? 

Now that it is the end of August, it is back to school for parents who can lead by example with healthy eating habits.  Back to school for the kids means alarm clocks, getting a healthy breakfast before leaving the house, and packing a school lunch. I talked about school lunches last week, so let's back up and talk about breakfast. 

  

Here are a few questions:

How many days a week do your kids eat breakfast?

How often do they skip it?

What do they eat to kickstart their day into high gear?
Does your breakfast include some protein? 

What are you having for breakfast to set the right example?

Why is breakfast such an important meal for the kids (and you)?  Here are reasons why:

• Breakfast is our first meal of the day.  
• It literally means �break the fast� after not eating all night.  Breakfast is the meal that gives our bodies and minds the energy to get up and go. 
• When you skip breakfast, you do more harm than good. 
• Kids who do not have breakfast do not perform as well in school. 
• Choosing a breakfasts with either soluble fiber (found in oats, apples, and pears) or insoluble fiber (found in whole grain breads and waffles) actually protects you against blood sugar spikes and crashes later in the day.

Here's a BIG reason to eat breakfast.  Did you know...that one of the key habits of �successful losers� (from a national database of over 5,000 people who lost at least 30 pounds and kept them off for at least a year) is that they eat breakfast every day?  Let�s give our children the fuel for their brains to perform and their bodies to be in great shape.  Breakfast�it does a body good!

Bob�s Red Mill Steel Cut Oats is one of my favorite breakfast foods. Steel cut oats are a less processed version of what most people think of when you say �oatmeal�.  Oats are full of soluble fiber, which acts like a scrubber for keeping the bad cholesterol from sticking to or staying inside of our blood vessels.  Other foods high in soluble fiber include apples and pears.  Steel cut oats take up to 30 minutes to cook, so a tip for making healthy breakfasts for the kids (and you) is to cook it on Sunday, then just heat it up to make a great breakfast for 2-3 days.  Serve with some almond or soy milk, a little cinnamon, agave nectar or honey, and some diced apples.  Add a piece of whole grain toast and the kids will be thanking you for the brainpower food!

Bob's Red Mill Steel Cut Oats make a delicious - and healthy - start to the day!  

Use one of the 100 calorie whole grain flat breads to make a peanut butter and banana sandwich.  Look for the ones that have 5 grams of dietary fiber per serving.  Add a glass of almond or soy milk and hit the power button for school! 

SOAR LIKE AN EAGLE THIS YEAR AT SCHOOL!  This is a picture I took recently in Sebastian, Florida.  

You�ve got to watch the video of this little kid with his words of empowerment he learned at pre-k.  Wish every kid started with this kind of attitude.  Thank a teacher for making a difference!  Click here and scroll down to watch the video.

Lead by example.  When you go shopping with your kids, talk with them about breakfast ideas and involve them in the decisions.  With just a little bit of planning, you can send your kids off to school with a breakfast that will kickstart their day and help them be smart and healthy!

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Growing Healthy Kids, Inc. 

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. 

3 HABITS FOR HEALTHY FAMILIES

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS

�It is extraordinarily difficult to fight the headwinds of our society that has promoted obesity in our children.  We have a lot to do to truly tackle this epidemic.�  

                                   --Lawrence J. Cheskin, M.D., F.A.C.P.

Here are some questions to ask yourself:  Where do I buy food?  How much of my weekly food expenses are spent on vegetables, fruits, and whole grains?  How much am I spending on prepared foods that come in boxes?  Is my child getting a healthy meal at school?  How many hours of �screen time� is my child having on average every day?  How often do my child and I exercise together?

We�ve all heard this phrase:  �It takes a village to raise a child.�  I like to say, �It takes an educated village to raise a healthy child.�  Children deserve access to foods that will help them maintain healthy weights.  Children deserve to be surrounded by informed adults who will provide guidance and love to help shape children and youth into healthy and happy adults. 

Improving health literacy of adults is a big part of what we are doing in the Growing Healthy Kids movement to reduce, halt, and prevent childhood obesity.  As Dr. Cheskin said, we have a lot to do to tackle the childhood obesity epidemic in light of all the added sugar, fats, and salts found in packaged foods and the pharmaceutical industry looking to profit from overweight and obese adults and kids who develop high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes as a result. Here are three habits which can position your family for better health:

HABIT ONE.  Keep a log for 3 days of how much time your child � and you - are spending on �screen time� a day.   Include TV time, computer time, and texting time.  Use the logs to determine if your child is spending too much time watching TV and playing computer games and not enough time outside playing.  How much screen time is too much for children?  Current recommendations from American Academy of Pediatrics are to limit screen time to no more than 1 to 2 hours of quality programming a day. By comparison, a 1999 study found that children spent an average of 6 hours and 32 minutes a day in front of a screen. Click here to read the full statement from American Academy of Pediatrics.

HABIT TWO.  Rate your plate.  Half of your dinner plate should be veggies.  To be able to have fresh vegetables every week, find out what is in season and what your local farmers are growing.  Veggies at the height of their growing season can be bought for the best price.  Click here to find a local farmer near you.

HABIT THREE.  Cut your sugar consumption in half.  Sugar contains what we call �empty calories� � calories with no nutritional value.  Start with sodas and fruit juice.  At the Growing Healthy Kids program, we teach kids two rules:  �Drink water not soda� and �Eat fresh fruit.�  Soda is loaded with sugar.  Become a nutrition detective:  divide the grams of sugar per serving by 4.  The result is the number of teaspoons of sugar one serving contains.  A typical carton of flavored milk served in public schools contains about 7 added teaspoons of sugar.  Start the new school year off right and find out what your kids will be drinking at school by scheduling to have lunch with them at least once a month. 

Kids love to grate the zucchini and carrots!

Zucchini patties with fresh cilatro

As promised to our readers several weeks ago, here is the debut of our newest addition to the Growing Healthy Kids Recipe Collection, featuring zucchini, a great vegetable that is abundant this time of year and easy on the family food budget. These store well for a day or two and make a great healthy lunchbox item!

GROWING HEALTHY KIDS:  Our Recipe Collection

Zucchini Patties

IN A MEDIUM BOWL, place:

• �  2 cups grated zucchini (about 1 large or 2 medium)
• �  � cup onion, shredded
• �  1 small carrot, grated finely
• �  1/2 cup potato flour (I like Bob's Red Mill brand)
• �  1 teaspoon baking powder
• �  � teaspoon sea salt
• �  � teaspoon pepper
• �  1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (optional)
• �  1/3 cup Braggs Nutritional Yeast (or substitute grated Parmesan cheese) (optional)

IN ANOTHER BOWL, whip until they �hold a peak�:

• �  2 egg whites

FOLD egg whites into zucchini mixture and gently mix well. 

Add a little more flour if mixture is too wet.

MIX in a shallow plate or small bowl:

• �  1 cup panko bread crumbs
• �  2 Tablespoons smoked paprika

USING a measuring cup (1/4 cup), scoop batter and roll into balls.  Roll lightly in panko and flatten to about � inch.  

Fry on griddle, using spray oil.  Patties should be about 3� in diameter. 

  

COOK for about 5 minutes, then flip and cook about 3 more 

minutes.

SERVE with a spoon of fat-free sour cream, salsa, and 

chopped cilantro or flat leaf parsley.  

Hope you enjoy putting these 3 habits to work for your family�s health.  Enjoy the remaining few days and weeks of summer vacation before the kids return to school!  

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Founder, Growing Healthy Kids, Inc.

A CHALLENGE FOR ADULTS

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS

"Let food be thy medicine."

                                             ---- Hippocrates

In a recent talk to employees of a large nonprofit organization, I asked participants to write down one thing they would like to change about their health. 

Can you guess what the overwhelming answer was?  It was �lose weight�.  In one hour, I taught these employees, from the CEO down to the truck drivers, five specific ways to start making changes to put them on the path to healthier weights and better health.  

With two in three adults in the United States overweight and obese, it seems to me that solutions to the childhood obesity epidemic must begin with raising the health literacy of adults.  There is no question in my mind as to why we have a health crisis in this country. 

Here�s my challenge to you:  help me identify three organizations in the southeast U.S. (Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama) where at least half of the employees are overweight and obese and the employees want to get to healthier weights.   Growing Healthy Kids, Inc. is looking for companies who want healthier and more productive employees.  These three organizations will work with me over 90 days.  As your virtual Chief Wellness Officer, I promise to improve the health literacy of your employees, improve your productivity, get your employees to healthier weights, AND lower your absenteeism. 

Growing Healthy Kids, Inc. is a movement to provide leadership and solutions to the childhood obesity epidemic in the United States and beyond.  Without the commitment of America�s businesses, local governmental units, and organizations, kids don�t stand a chance of growing up healthy and free of obesity-related diseases.  

With the commitment of businesses, government employees, and local organizations, our kids DO have a great chance of being growing healthy kids and adults.  

As adults, we are the role models for the children in our communities.  If they see us drinking sodas and energy drinks loaded with sugar every day, then they think it is OK to drink a soda and think nothing of stopping by the local 7-11 to buy a Monster energy drink or a Coke on the way to school.  We are our children�s teachers.  Do we want our children to grow up to be obese adults with old people's diseases because we didn�t dare to care about how much sugar they are eating every day in their school lunches or in their afterschool programs with snacks supplied by the school district?  Do we want our children to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes when they are 17 years old and suffer from the amputation of a foot or the loss of their vision when they are in their twenties and we bought honeybuns for them to eat for breakfast every day because it was convenient for us? 

If your organization is willing to accept my 90 day challenge and be part of the solution to the OBESITY EPIDEMIC, then shoot me an email at: growinghealthykidsnow@gmail.com.  Get ready to lead your community�s wellness challenge! I�m ready.  The question is, are you ready?

Growing Healthy Kids, Inc. is a movement dedicated to improving the health - and lives � of America�s children with a laser focus on halting, reversing, and preventing childhood obesity.

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Growing Healthy Kids, Inc.

SUMMER FOODS AND FITNESS

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS

 �Success is not convenient.  You have to make room for it.  Stop waiting for the ideal or perfect situation to show up in your life before you make your move.  Now is the time to convert your prayers into performance.  

Faith without works is dead.  There will never be a perfect time in life.  If it�s not one thing�it�s another.  So do what you can and do what you must�NOW!  Most people let things happen.  You have the power to make things happen!  You have GREATNESS within you!�

                       ---Les Brown

Can you believe that summer vacation is half over already?  Let�s kick off the rest of summer with some great ideas to �HEALTH UP� your kids and your family. As my friend Les Brown said, "You have the power to make things happen!"  

COOL IDEA NUMBER ONE: Check out this health snack idea to help everyone keep their cool AND take advantage of the great summer sale prices on fresh grapes while they are in season.

STEP ONE:  Wash and gently dry (air dry is fine) purple or green grapes.

STEP TWO:  Place grapes in zip lock bags (15 grapes per bag). 

STEP THREE:  Place bags in freezer.

STEP FOUR:  When kids need a snack, let them take one bag from the freezer for each kid and watch them explode with excitement over the flavor of frozen fruit!

STEP FIVE:  Listen for your kids (and your spouse) to say, �THIS IS BETTER THAN CANDY!� 

Kids teaching other kids in one of our peer education projects at local schools.  Healthy Habit 1:  More fruit, less juice!

Growing Healthy Kids' Peer Educators setting up for one of our parties at Imagine School.  

COOL IDEA NUMBER TWO: Here�s another very cool idea for keeping all the kids (your and the kids in the neighborhood) busy and healthy:  FRUIT PIZZA.  Click here for the step by step instructions for making the best fruit pizza ever!

COOL IDEA NUMBER THREE:   Need to get your kids outside more (and less screen time)?  Start growing your own veggies using this ultra-cool new technology aeroponic personal grow system.  Assign your kids the job of check the water levels every two days and within 28 days you will be harvesting your own fresh, very locally grown greens. Click here to order your personal grow system (use discount code "growhealkids" at checkout).

Enjoy the rest of your summer vacation and send me your favorite healthy kid-friendly recipes at growinghealthykidsnow@gmail.com.  Look for your recipe in a future issue of WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS!

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Founder, Growing Healthy Kids, Inc.

Note for new readers:  The Growing Healthy Kids movement is dedicated to creating solutions to our national childhood obesity epidemic and to the prevention of obesity-related diseases, such as Type 2 Diabetes, in children.  See the top right corner to order NOURISH AND FLOURISH which provides a road map for parents.  

CHILDREN DIE IN SCHOOL LUNCH POISONING

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS 

�It should be emphasized that the problem of contamination with antibiotics in our foods and particularly in milk is a small one compared to our other current food safety problems which have arisen in large part as a result of technologic progress in food production, processing, and distribution in the processing of food, preservatives, antioxidants, colors, bleaches, flavors, coatings, drying agents, moistening agents, thickening agents, sequestering agents, �aging� agents, stabilizers, emulsifiers, neutralizers, acidifiers, and sweeteners are used.� 

-- from a 1957 report from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration minimizing the risk from antibiotic contaminants in our food supply as reported in �The Life and Legacy of Rachel Carson: On a Farther Shore� by William Souder

Today in India, dozens of children died from an insecticide in their free school lunches.   According to CNN.COM, �The poison was organophosphorus, a chemical that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says is commonly used in agriculture.  It is a nerve agent related to sarin gas, which is commonly used in chemical warfare, the U.S. Health Department says.� Click here to read the CNN story.

Children in the United States are also consuming foods containing chemicals commonly used in food production that can be harmful, if not deadly.  As parents, it is time to talk to the Food and Nutrition Manager for your child�s school district, asking questions about what chemical are in the foods your kids are eating in their school breakfasts and lunches, how the foods are grown, and what additives are in the foods served to your kids. 

What can parents do?  Call your school district's Food and Nutrition Program Manager.  Here are some questions to ask him or her:

• How many chemicals, additives, preservatives, artificial food dyes, and chemical "stabilizers" are in the foods served to our children?
• How many teaspoons of added sugar are in the flavored milks served in public schools?
• What percentage of the vegetables and fruits served to children in the free and reduced meal program are grown in the state and what percentage are trucked/flown in from other states/countries?
• What percentage of the vegetables and fruits served to children in our public schools are grown chemical-free?
• What percentage of the vegetables and fruits served are GMO (genetically modified organisms)?  

In the county where I live (Indian River County, Florida), two in every three kids (66%) qualifies for the free and reduced meal program.  What that means is that 2/3 of all children eat most of their meals at their school.  My dear friend, Bonnie Swanson, who retired last December as principal of Vero Beach Elementary School, taught me about the �situational poverty� of her students� parents, who, through no fault of their own, were unemployed or underemployed due to the economic downturn of the past five years. What I learned from Mrs. Swanson is a lesson I will never forget because Vero Beach Elementary School is in the heart of Indian River County.  Many of America�s wealthiest Fortune 50 CEOs retire here because we live in �a slice of paradise.� Yet, children are struggling to thrive and learn each day because they are starving. 

The way I was raised, paradise is not supposed to include children who don�t know where their next meal is coming from, let alone whether it is filled with delicious, locally grown vegetables.

Mothers and fathers are the heart of the food revolution to protect the health and lives of America�s � and the world�s � children.

As a mother, I ask a lot of questions.  We trust that schools will provide healthy foods, not poisons such as sugars and foods laced with chemicals.  We want our children to thrive.  In light of the tragedy in India, it is time to change the questions we ask of our nation�s schools and the foods provided by the USDA. 

My heart aches for all the mothers and fathers in India making funeral arrangements for their children who died today because they ate their free school lunch. 

Chemicals are killing our children.  Ask questions.  Read food labels.  Find out about the foods your kids are eating at school or in snacks at their after-school programs.  Their lives may depend on it.  

Please say a prayer for the parents in India who lost their children today.  Act to ensure that the same thing does not happen here to our children.  Know your farmers.  Know where your food comes from.  

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Growing Healthy Kids, Inc.