Healthy Kid’s Snacks: Fruit Smoothie Recipes Hit the Mark

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Fruit smoothie recipes are great for kids.

 When my sons rushed home from gradeschool, their after-school snack was often a frothy blend of oranges and other healthful ingredients. Even if we search for blends that omit certain ingredients, today’s fruit smoothie recipes are varied enough that parents can find easy choices for quick and healthy kid’s snacks. The article below contains a link to popular recipes.

Fruit smoothies offer an alternative to fast food, while supporting better nutrition and healthier training for life-time eating habits.

A typical double cheeseburger, medium fries, and a medium drink in a well known fast food chain restaurant will give you this: 1,400 calories, 62 grams of fat, and 186 grams of carbohydrates. In just one meal! Mind you, these specifics came right off of the chain’s nutrition website. And, in case you “supersize” the fries as well as the drink,the numbers are far worse.

Check those numbers with these USDA recommendations for day-to-day calories:

For boys age range 4-8 and active 2,000; Sedentary 1,400

For girls ages 4-8 and active 1,400; Sedentary 1,000

For boys age 14-18 and active 3,200; Sedentary 2,200

For women ages 14-18 and active 2,400; Sedentary 1,800

According to the USDA, the term “active” means that the individual does an amount of exercise equal to walking three miles at 3 to 4 mph as well as the mild physical activity of daily life.

There are numerous analyses that reveal that the quicker in life children are fed a balanced and healthy diet the higher the likelyhood those children will keep those behaviors through their lifetimes.

Fruit smoothies in all their numerous forms are a perfect choice. Fruit smoothies can be used as a breakfast, lunch, mid-day snack and after dinner desserts.

Adding smoothies to your family’s meal plan is also a great way to introduce your young ones to preparing their own foods. Learning to make their own smoothies will teach them about good food selections and how to become self reliant. They will also be much more interested in eating almost anything they make themselves.

Creating healthy kid’s snacks can be a family affair. If good food is fun, how much easier will it be for children to carry those positive eating habits forward? More details are here.

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Foods That Reduce Stress When You Travel

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Most of us can recall feeling tired, wilted and stressed with airline delays, uncooperative luggage or rushed gate changes.

Now Men’sHealth News comes to our rescue with simple tips to fuel our bodies for better traveling. Tuck a few foods that reduce stress into your carryon bag and disolve some problems before they begin.

Ease Stress with . . .
Oranges: Research has shown that vitamin C combats stress. A German study found that when 120 people were told they had to give a speech and then complete tough math problems (stress fest!), the ones who ate vitamin C–rich foods before hand showed lower blood pressure and lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol afterward. Plus, oranges’ tough skin makes them good travelers—they won’t get crushed in transit.

Walnuts: The omega-3 fatty acids in walnuts keep your stress hormones and adrenaline in check in those high-stress, high blood pressure, Your flight is delayed . . . indefinitely moments.

Say Sayonara to Jetlag with . . .
Almonds and sunflower seeds: These nuts are high in melatonin, which regulates the chemicals in your body that control alertness. Chowing down on some foods rich in the “sleep hormone” can help your body orient between your internal clock and an unfamiliar time zone.

Bananas: While they pump you with melatonin, bananas can also help prevent muscle cramping from no-legroom seats or long drives. They’re high in the muscle food potassium—which, when in low supply, triggers cramps. They have a calming effect, too, which comes from the fruit’s high levels of tryptophan—a key building block of the feel-good hormone serotonin.

Apples: Snacking on an apple can help prevent hyper highs and depressing lows associated with sugar rushes. They’re rich in fiber, which will keep you full and keep your blood-sugar levels under control. Other fiber-rich, on-the-go snacks? Almonds, pistachios, raisins, and carrots.

Of course, foods that reduce stress are terrific for long driving trips, everyday errands around town or easy office snacks. Learn more here.

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Good Food for Health in 2012!

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Many of us will see ourselves healthier as we imagine our top 2012 resolutions. A cornerstone for achieving vibrant well-being will be the total of our everyday actions in choosing good food for health. Adding or subtracting in small steps, to match our goals, can be more effective than going “cold turkey” in our efforts to enjoy good healthy food.

McDonald’s fanatic or ardent vegan? No matter our current habits, or level of knowledge and action, there may be many better choices available to each of us. In the past, we may have had trouble finding the best information for our personal situations—or ways to make any changes as fast, easy and painless as possible.

A simple way to begin is by adding power foods.

When it comes to eating for good health, not all foods are created equal. Some are packed with rich nutrients, while others fail to provide anything but empty calories. Fortunately, there is a wide variety of healthy foods to choose from, including…ten powerhouse foods, all filled with the vitamins and minerals necessary for good health.

This Top Ten list includes blueberries, salmon, cantaloupe, potatoes, tomatoes, oranges, garlic cloves, eggs, broccoli and dark chocolate. As shown below, they range from very low to higher on our calorie scale, but all ten can be healthy food choices.

Broccoli–you either love it or you hate it, but you can’t deny that it’s a powerful source of nutrients: 117 percent of the day’s supply of Vitamin C, 39 percent of Vitamin A, along with some potassium, protein, thiamin, iron, calcium, niacin and riboflavin. Broccoli can be eaten raw or cooked, and contains only 20 calories per 1/2 cup.

Yes, dark chocolate makes the top ten list–it decreases LDL (bad) cholesterol oxidation, increases blood flow, reduces the risk of blood clots and may lower high blood pressure. Not only that, dark chocolate contains calcium, magnesium, and potassium, and elevates mood (you already knew that, right?) by elevating serotonin and endorphin levels.

I love broccoli, but even I will admit it might be challenging for any of us to over indulge. On the other hand, one key to enjoying dark chocolate is definitely moderation. See the benefits of each good food for health here.


This image of blueberries is used with permission from WikiPedia.

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