Many doctors believe that eating healthily in early childhood is the key to a healthy life. So when shopping for your child’s lunchboxes, don’t be tempted to buy the brightly packaged processed food that your child tells you everyone else’s mother buys — check labels for fat, salt, sugar and additives. The average child’s lunchbox contains a sandwich, a yogurt, a packet of crisps, a piece of fruit and a fruit flavored drink.
Yogurt
Yogurt is a good source of calcium. It is one of the oldest foods known to man — but check that there is not too much sugar and that it contains real fruit. A pot of yogurt should have less than ten percent sugar. If your child will eat plain yogurt, all the better.
Sandwiches
These are great for giving your child energy for the afternoon. Try and persuade them to eat brown bread. Vary the fillings, such as tuna and sweetcorn, cheese and tomato, egg, chicken or salad.
Fruit
Its usually the apple that mum puts in everyday that gets left, so vary the fruit — bananas are a good source of energy; try kiwis, peaches, melon, grapes, mangos and berries.
Crisps
Children do seem to love them but they can be high in salt, and some contain lots of chemicals. Try and get children to eat popcorn or nuts instead or some other treat. Or keep crisps to an occasional treat. Nuts should not be given to children under the age of five in case they choke.
Drinks
Children in the Gulf need to drink lots of water for their kidneys and also to help them work hard at school. Always enclose a water bottle even if they tell you they drink from the school water fountain. Give children diluted real fruit juice or milk to meet their energy requirements. Squashes or fizzy drinks are high in artificial colorings and high in preservatives, which may cause hyperactivity in some children. Our bodies are 90 percent water and children need lots to perform well at school.
Always make sure your children eat breakfast as research has shown that children who eat a healthy breakfast perform better in school.
Exercise Hint
Five Good Reasons to Exercise
1. It boosts your confidence — by giving you a feeling of accomplishment.
2. It gives you mind a workout — the increased blood flow to the brain helps with memory and quickens your thought processes.
3. It stops diet slip-ups — exercise soothes stress. One of the classic reasons why we overeat or break diets.
4. It helps you sleep better
5. It’s great for your posture
Recipe of the Week
Mango Salsa
Ingredients
1 ripe mango
1 small red onion
1 tablespoon lime juice
2 teaspoons chopped fresh mint
pinch of sea salt
Method
Peel and stone the mango flesh, then chop the flesh, reserving any juice. In a bowl, combine this with all the remaining ingredients, and leave in the fridge for 30 minutes. Serve cold with chicken or fish.
Slimming Lifestyle
Low Fat Snacks
Switch from high fat snacks to low fat snacks. If you know you are a snacker, plan and buy low fat snacks to satisfy your needs.
Under 50 calories:
* 10 jelly beans (40 cals)
* 20 raisins (35 cals)
* 1 small peach (35 cals)
* 8 baby carrots (32 cals)
* 8oz popcorn (airpopped) (30 cals)
* 8fl oz tomato juice (43 cals)
* Non-fat cappuccino (43 cals)
Ask Alva
How much fat should I eat? A.R.
Reducing your total daily fat is important for weight loss. It is recommended that fat should be limited to 30 percent of our daily calorie intake. This advice is for everyone, whether they are overweight or not. Try to buy foods that are not more than 2-4g fat per 100g portion. Anything over 20g of fat per portion is considered high in fat. For complete guidance on healthy eating, email me at [email protected]. Alva
