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Calories NOT Only Thing Making Kids Fat

Nonna Joann — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 17:23:51 +0000

Invisible Chemicals in Food Making Children Fat

Okay, we know our kids are eating junk food, but what we don’t know is that the chemicals in junk foods are contributing to making them fat. It wasn’t enough that calories, trans fat and High Fructose Corn Syrup contribute to childhood obesity. Now were told “obesogens are making kids fat!”

Dr. Oz devoted a program to “Obesogens: The Chemicals You’re Eating That Make You Fat” and Newsweek ran an article on September 11, “Born to be Big: Early exposure to chemical may be reprogramming kids to be fat.”

What in the world are obesogens?

One more reason to transform picky eaters
into healthy eaters…obesogens.

I wasn’t familiar with obesogens or endocrine disruptors, before looking it up on Wikipeia. I found “Obesogens are chemical compounds foreign to the body that are hypothesized to disrupt normal development or homeostasis of metabolism of lipids ultimately resulting in obesity. Obesogens may be functionally defined as chemicals that inappropriately alter lipid homeostasis and fat storage, change metabolic setpoints, disrupt energy balance or modify the regulation of appetite and satiety to promote fat accumulation and obesity.^”

What all that means is obesogens promote obesity by altering the way you feel hunger and by increasing your fat cells. Obesogens are found in additives in processed foods, in the lining of cans (BPA), even in conventionally grown meat and farmed fish. Our food supply has been altered by the pesticides used on produce and the chemicals and hormones given to cattle. Now it turns out that this has produced toxins called obesogens which target three organs: the liver, brain and fat cells.

Not surprising children are most at risk of obesogens. Children under seven, pregnant women and their unborn babies, and people who are already overweight are most at risk because the more fat in your body, the more obesogen your body can store. What’s alarming is pregnant women eating foods high in obesogens end up programming their unborn children to make more fat cells.

Three Foods High in Obesogens:
1. High Fructose Corn Syrup, which is the most common ingredient in processed foods, is an obesogen.
2. Conventionally raised animals and farm raised fish are foods which have obesogens stored in their fat. Atlantic Salmon is code for “farmed salmon.” Farmed fish contain more pesticides. Conventionally grown cattle have been fed Genetically Modified corn and hormones. To avoid this, purchase free-range, hormone-free and antibotic-free meats.
3. Water! Yikes, tap water. Pesticides are sprayed on crops and those pesticides go into the water table deep in the ground, which then makes its way into your tap water. Dr. Oz encourages everyone to get a granular activated carbon water filter (either the pitcher type that you store in your fridge or the faucet type that filters water as it comes out of the tap).

Fast food is obviously high in calories. I’ve never been a calorie counter, especially for children. My guiding principle has been to eat whole foods, then counting calories isn’t necessary. Now, it’s more important than ever to eat organic produce. Personal choice about what you eat has to now to weigh toxic chemicals in the food causing weight gain. I had no idea that chemicals called obesogens compounded the problem of fast foods. Just in case you needed one more reason to eat whole organic foods you now have obesogens.

Avoid Obesogens By:
Not using plastic food containers for your leftovers.
Don’t purchase food in cans with BPA.
Use a water filter.
Ask your butcher to wrap your meat in paper, rather than plastic or Styrofoam.
Don’t use plasticware (cups, utensils, etc.)
Avoid drinking water from plastic bottles.
Don’t use air fresheners, open the window instead.
Never use non-stick pans.
Buy grass-fed beef.
Eat more organic produce.
Cook at home, you have no control of food purchased out.

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Not So Friendly Kid Food Products

Nonna Joann — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 17:17:57 +0000

We are aware that toxins from paint, plastics and chemicals, inks and dyes, building materials, lead-based paint from walls and windowsills are not healthy. Even imported food has the potential for lead poisoning, but food processed in the U.S.?

I’m as tired as you are hearing about the list of processed foods, which are not healthy. Fifteen million pounds of SpagettiOs have recently been recalled because of possible under-processing. The latest news is that there are toxic metals in kids’ drinks and snacks.

Eighty-five percent of kids’ drinks and snacks that were tested were found to contain high levels of lead. Most scientists agree there is NO safe level of lead exposure, especially when it comes to babies and children.

Hannah is sipping home-made lemonade.

Children are especially vulnerable to toxins. Their brains, nervous systems, and organs are not mature and are rapidly developing.

Quantities of lead in bottled juice, juice boxes, and packaged fruit could exceed federal limits, according to the Environmental Law Foundation. The Bay Area-based environmental nonprofit tested nearly 400 samples from 150 branded products marketed to children, including apple juice, grape juice, packaged pears and peaches (including baby food), and fruit cocktail mixes. The results are alarming. More than 85 percent of the 146 products tested contained enough lead in a single serving to warrant a warning label under California’s Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986.

In California’s Enforcement Act of 1986, the state publishes a list of chemicals known to cause cancer or reproductive harm. The group said under the law, agencies were given 60 days to decide whether to launch prosecutions against the alleged violations. If, after this period, no such prosecutions had commenced, it pledged to file its own lawsuit.

The environmental group says it undertook the testing to see if the kid-friendly juice and food products complied with a California law requiring manufacturers to post safety warnings on products if they exceed lead levels set by state scientists. The group has sent notices of suspected violations of state law to California Attorney General Jerry Brown.

Many individual servings of apple juice, grape juice, packaged peaches and pears and fruit cocktail—all lunchbox staples—contained lead above the daily limit for young kids. Those limits were established by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

More troubling is that the results included both organic and conventional products: Earth’s Best Organic 365 Everyday Value Organic, Trader Joe’s, and Walnut Acres, Welch’s, Minute Maid, Gerber, Del Monte and Dole.

“If someone is making unfortunate choices in the brands that they’re buying and serving their children, this could be a cause of concern because they might be getting more lead than is healthy for them,” said David Schardt, a senior nutritionist at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a consumer advocacy group which tracks food-safety issues.

The warning did not indicate where the lead was coming from. Why are some brands free from lead? Is the lead coming from the manufacturing process? Is it being leached from the container?

Kids will be healthier, when moms return to squeezing their own fruit for juice, have their kids chug plenty of fresh water (stead of sodas) and pack picnics with homemade foods.

LEAD-TAINTED PRODUCTS:
1. 365 Everyday Value Organic 100% Juice Concord Grapes
2. Beech Nut 100% Apple Juice
3. Best Yet Bartlett Pear Halves in Heavy Syrup
4. Best Yet Chunky Mixed Fruit in Pear Juice
5. Best Yet Yellow Cling Peach Halves in Heavy Syrup
6. Chef’s Review Fruit Cocktail
7. Del Monte 100% Juice Fruit Cocktail
8. Del Monte Chunky Mixed Fruit in 100% Juice (peach, pear, grape, etc.)
9. Del Monte Diced Pears in Light Syrup
10. Del Monte Freestone Peach Slices in 100% Juice
11. Del Monte Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup (peach, pear, grapes)
12. Del Monte Fruit Cocktail No Sugar Added
13. Del Monte Lite Fruit Cocktail in Extra Light Syrup
14. Del Monte Pear Halves in Heavy Syrup
15. Del Monte Pear Halves, Bartlett Pears in 100% real fruit juice from concentrate
16. Del Monte Sliced Yellow Cling Peaches in 100% Juice
17. Del Monte Sliced Yellow Cling Peaches in heavy syrup
18. Dole Diced Peaches, Yellow Cling in light syrup
19. Dole Mixed Fruit in Light Syrup
20. Dole Pear Halves in Juice
21. Earth’s Best Organics Apple Juice
22. Eating Right Fruit Cocktail packed in Sucralose
23. Eating Right No Sugar Fruit Cocktail
24. First Street 100% Apple Cider from concentrate
25. First Street Apple Juice from concentrate 100% juice
26. First Street Diced Pears
27. First Street Fruit Cocktail in heavy syrup
28. First Street Grape Juice from concentrate 100% juice
29. First Street Sliced Bartlett
30. First Street Yellow Cling Peaches in heavy syrup
31. Full Circle Organic Apple Juice
32. Full Circle Organic Bartlett Pear Slices
33. Gerber 100% Juice – White Grape Juice
34. Gerber 100% Juice Apple Juice
35. Gerber 3rd Foods Peaches
36. Gerber 3rd Foods Pears
37. Golden Star Mixed Fruit in Light Syrup (peach, pineapple, pears)
38. Golden Star Peach Halves in Heavy Syrup
39. Great Value 100% Grape Juice
40. Great Value 100% No Sugar Added Apple Juice
41. Great Value Bartlett Pear Halves in 100% Juice
42. Great Value Bartlett Sliced Pears in Heavy Syrup
43. Great Value No Sugar Added Fruit Cocktail
44. Great Value Yellow Cling Sliced Peaches
45. Hansen’s Natural Apple Juice
46. Kedem Concord Grape Juice 100% pure grape juice
47. Kroger 100% Juice Apple Juice
48. Kroger Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup
49. Kroger Grape Juice 100% Juice
50. Kroger Lite Fruit Cocktail in Pear Juice
51. Kroger Value Fruit Mix (Peaches, pears, grapes)
52. Langers Apple Juice 100% Juice
53. Langers Grape Juice (Concord)
54. Langers Red Grape Juice
55. Libby’s Fruit Cocktail No Sugar Added (Sweetened with Splenda)
56. Libby’s Yellow Cling Peach Slices No Sugar Added (Sweetened with Splenda)
57. Market Pantry Diced Peaches in light syrup
58. Market Pantry Diced Pears in light syrup
59. Market Pantry Mixed Fruit in light syrup
60. Maxx Value Fruit Mix in Light Syrup (peach, pear, grape)
61. Maxx Value Pear Pieces in Light Syrup
62. Minute Maid Juice Apple – 100% Apple Juice
63. Motts 100% Apple Juice
64. Mrs. Brown’s Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup (peaches, pears, grapes)
65. O Organics Organic Grape Juice from concentrate
66. O Organics Organic Unfiltered Apple Juice Not From Concentrate
67. Old Orchard 100% Apple Juice
68. Parade 100% Juice Apple
69. Polar Mixed Fruit
70. Polar Peach Slices
71. Polar Pear Halves in light syrup
72. R.W. Knudsen Just Concord Grape Juice
73. R.W. Knudsen Organic Just Concord
74. Raley’s 100% Grape Juice
75. Raley’s Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup
76. Raley’s Premium 100% Apple Juice not from Concentrate
77. Raley’s Sliced Yellow Cling Peaches in Heavy Syrup
78. S&W Natural Style Fruit Cocktail in Lightly Sweetened Juice
79. S&W Natural Style Pear Slices in Juice
80. S&W Natural Style Yellow Cling Peach Slices in Lightly Sweetened Juice
81. S&W Premium Peach Halves Yellow Cling Peaches in light syrup
82. S&W Sun Pears Premium
83. Safeway 100% Juice Apple Cider
84. Safeway 100% Juice Apple Juice
85. Safeway 100% Juice Grape Juice
86. Safeway Diced Peaches in Light Syrup
87. Safeway Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup
88. Safeway Light Sugar Fruit Cocktail
89. Safeway Lite Bartlett Pear Halves in Pear Juice
90. Safeway Lite Fruit Cocktail in Pear Juice
91. Safeway Organic Grape Juice
92. Safeway Pear Halves in Light Juice
93. Safeway Yellow Cling Peach Slices in Pear Juice
94. Santa Cruz Organic Concord Grape Juice
95. Simple Value Yellow Cling Peaches in light syrup
96. Stater Bros. 100% Juice Apple Juice
97. Stater Bros. 100% Juice Grape Juice
98. Stater Bros. 100% Juice White Grape Juice
99. Stater Bros. Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup
100. Stater Bros. Yellow Cling Peach Halves
101. Stater Bros. Yellow Cling Sliced Peaches in heavy syrup
102. Sunny Select 100% Apple Juice
103. Sunny Select 100% Grape Juice
104. Sunny Select Fruit Cocktail in Juice
105. Sunny Select Pear Halves in Pear Juice
106. Sunny Select Yellow Cling Sliced Peaches in Pear Juice
107. Trader Joe’s Certified Organic Apple Juice, pasteurized
108. Trader Joe’s Concord Grape Juice made from fress pressed organic concord grapes
109. Trader Joe’s Pear Halves in white grape juice
110. Trader Joe’s Yellow Cling Peach Halves in while grape juice
111. Tree Top 100% Juice Apple Cider
112. Tree Top 100% Juice, Grape
113. Truitt Brothers Pacific NorthWest Bartlett Pear Halves, in pear juice from concentrate
114. Valu Time Grape Drink from Concentrate
115. Valu Time Irregular Bartlett Pear Slices
116. Valu Time Yellow Cling Peach Slices
117. Walgreens Apple Juice from concentrate 100% juice
118. Walgreens Grape Juice from concentrate 100% juice
119. Walnut Acres Organic Concord Grape
120. Walnut Grove Market 100% Apple Juice
121. Walnut Grove Market Grape Juice
122. Walnut Grove Market Natural Peaches Sliced Yellow Cling in Light Syrup
123. Walnut Grove Market Natural Pear Halves in Heavy Syrup
124. Welch’s 100% Grape Juice (from Welch’s Concord Grapes)
125. Welch’s 100% Red Grape Juice from Concentrate

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Probiotics for Healthy Kids

Nonna Joann — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 14:25:44 +0000

Probiotics means ‘for life’

You have hundreds of trillions of bacteria in your digestive tract. They are a major part of your immune system. A healthy lower intestine should have about 85 percent of “good or friendly bacteria” or flora to prevent the over colonization of disease causing micro-organisms like E. coli and salmonella. Today, most people have that number reversed.

Probiotics simply means “for life.” When I ask someone if they take probiotics, I almost always get the response, “I eat yogurt.” Yogurt contains acidophilus, but that is only one of hundreds of friendly bacteria we need. Our bodies should have somewhere between 400 and 500 types of bacteria.

Probiotics inhibit the growth of harmful bacteria which cause digestive stress; they improve digestion and absorption of vitamins; stimulate the immune system, and help make vitamins needed by the body.

Jackson is speechless. He had no idea that hundreds of trillions of bacteria were in his digestive track!

Gut flora can become unbalanced by illness, stress, and drugs, especially antibiotics. It just makes plain sense, that a drug called an “antibiotic” will kill even the helpful bacteria in the gut. Poor eating habits (fast and junk foods) and chlorinated drinking water also damage the intestinal flora.

Elizabeth Lipski, Ph.D. says in her book, Digestive Wellness for Children, “The first two years of life are critical for our long-term immune responses. Bacterial colonization patterns set up in infancy continue to prevail throughout our entire lifetime-and the foods and drugs to which we expose our children dramatically affect this delicate balance.”

Probiotic supplementation promotes health in infants. Probiotics enhance digestion and mineral absorption. They prevent diarrhea and diaper rash, eczema and cradle-cap. Probiotics have been found to decrease anemia and asthma and diminishes milk allergies and they eliminate thrush.

In older children, probiotics have been found to reduce the severity and frequency of childhood respiratory infections and help to prevent irritable bowel syndrome, diarrhea, and constipation. Because digestion is vital for health, children with various illnesses and syndromes have been shown to improve on some level when nutrition is addressed along with the addition of probiotics. You’ll want to consider probiotic supplementation especially for kids with allergies, ADHD, Autism (and the entire Autism spectrum), Celiac Disease, Constipation, Cradle Cap, Diarrhea, Diabetes, Halitosis, (bad breath), Eczema, and Leaky Gut Syndrome.

There are probiotics designed especially for infants and children. When shopping for probiotics look for lactobacilli and bifidobacteria. Lactobacilli is found in the small intestine and bifidobacteria is found in the colon. You can purchase probiotics for children at your whole foods store or online.

You’ll also want to read, Probiotics Found in Food: Click Here.

For a synopsis of the Baby Bites book, Click Here.

Listen to today’s podcast, Click Here.

Do Your Veggies and Fruit Fight?

Nonna Joann — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 07:00:15 +0000

Did you hear that? Bang, Kaboom, Pow!

It’s my fruit and veggies fighting again! You may think your kids fight a lot, but fruit and vegetables don’t like each other at all. They’re probably fighting right now in your refrigerator, too!

The solution for happy produce is to keep fruit and veggies apart from one another. Manufacturers understand this; that’s why they construct refrigerators with separate bins for each. For a long time, I didn’t know that it was important to separate fruit from veggies, so I just shoved produce into which ever bin had the room. I was just asking for a fight to break out.

Vegetables don’t contain seeds and fruit are plants with seeds. We think of some fruit as vegetables, such as tomatoes, bell peppers, and avocados, but they contain seeds. Botanically speaking, Anything with seeds are fruit. Vegetables are roots (like carrots), tubers (like potatoes), stems (like celery), flowers (like broccoli), or leaves (like lettuce).

Apples, avocados, melons, peaches, and pears manufacture ethylene gas as they ripen. When fruit are stored with vegetables, the vegetables loose their green color and spoil more rapidly. You’ll save not only money when your veggies and fruit are stored in separate bins. But also flavor, as vegetables stored with fruit will develop a bitter taste.

Here are some other useful tips for longer produce storage:

• Remove the tops from beets, carrots, and radishes, because the sap will continue to flow from the root to the leaf. This deprives the part to be eaten of some of its nutrition.

• If your lettuce or celery is wilted, soak it in cold water. The vegetable will absorb the water and crisp up once again.

• Place mushrooms in a brown paper bag to enhance longer storage. Mushrooms collect moisture and get slimy when kept in an airtight container, like the plastic bag from the grocers.

• Potatoes, onions, and garlic should be stored in a cool, dark, well-ventilated place-not the refrigerator. Don’t place them under the sink either, as the moisture will cause them to quickly spoil.

• Bananas turn black when stored in the refrigerator. Keep them on the counter. When you have too many ripe bananas, peel, place individually in sandwich bags, and freeze. Defrost a frozen banana for a sweetener in baked goods and they’re very handy when frozen. They turn a regular fruit smoothie into a frozen shake.

• ALWAYS thoroughly wash vegetables and fruit to remove bacteria. Preferably wash and dry before placing in the refrigerator.

Click Here for Go Organic without Going Broke.

God’s Gift of Family

Nonna Joann — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 18:23:54 +0000

Today’s blog is devoted to Joy and Guy’s wedding.

Saturday, Joy my youngest daughter, married the love of her life, Guy. Many out-of-town relatives come for our celebrations, so we cram as much as possible into a few days. We began the wedding week with a bridal shower and ended the day after the wedding with a family brunch. Pretty much partying for the entire week.

Children, grandkids, and extended family celebrated not only the new family tie, but God’s gift of family. Kids are always full of vinegar and unpredictable. Three of our grandkids live in California and four instate. Being able to see all the grandchildren play together is the pride of grand-parenting.

All of our daughters were able to attend Joy and Guy’s wedding. Julie-ann, our eldest, and her family drove from California and Jackie and her family, including newborn Katelyn, were there as well. Our third daughter, Jenny and John, her husband of almost a year, traveled all the way from Australia to be with us. We are truly blessed.

There were no picky eaters at the rehearsal dinner or the wedding, as every adult and child got to choose what they wanted to eat. After snapping a picture of cousins Angel and Ally at the rehearsal dinner, Ally turned to Angel, and said, “I can’t wait to see this picture on Nonna’ website! It was all I could do to keep a straight face. Of course, I had to publish it, just so Ally can see it!

My husband, Dick, Joy & I

Here’s the picture of Angel and Ally at the rehearsal dinner:

Grandkids Galore:

And baby Katelyn makes 7 grandchildren:

A Big Nonna Hug,
Joann Bruso

Oven-Fried Potatoes

Nonna Joann — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 07:00:01 +0000

Cooking is fun and the way to ensure your kids will be healthy eaters is to involve them in the process of cooking whole foods. Peeling potatoes is a basic skill kids can learn and they’ll feel that they’ve helped prepare the meal. Be sure your child washes his hands before beginning.Preheat your oven to 475 degrees.

Older children can make these Oven-Fried Potatoes by themselves, younger children will need your assistance. Have your helper sit on a kitchen chair and move the trash can so he can comfortably hold a potato over it. With a potato peeler, let him get to work peeling 4 medium potatoes. Be sure to rinse them off when he’s finished.

1) Cut 4 pealed potatoes into ¼ strips. Then dry the strips with paper towels. (Even a younger child can help dry the ptoato strips.)

2) Place the potatoes on a cookie sheet; let your child toss them with about a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon each of pepper and garlic powder with her fingers.

3) Spread the potato strips in a single layer and place in a preheated 475 oven.

4) Turn potato strips after 10 minutes. Bake for another 10 minutes, until golden brown.

Remember to make cooking fun! Always tell your child how much you love him and how much you enjoy your his company. Remember to tell him what a good job he did helping you make dinner! Finally, take the taste test. These are outrageously yummy!

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Traveling with Kids

Nonna Joann — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 07:00:28 +0000

My husband packs everything, but the kitchen sink when we travel. I attempt the sink. If the truth be known, I’ve overdone it when packing food for a road trip.

Because our third daughter adversely reacted to the artificial ingredients in fast foods and other processed foods, I routinely packed too much foodstuff.

I over estimated what I would be able to accomplish on a vacation.

Over the years, I learned a few tricks for eating healthy while away from home without bringing the kitchen sink!

Pictured: Ally, Ben & Nicole on their beach vacation.

Prepare and pack items to be consumed on the first and second day, only. After that, it’s easier to find a local whole foods’ store or a small grocery store than, than to lug enough food for an entire week. The one exception I might make is to bring whole-grain bread to last for the duration of the trip. It’s nearly impossible to find whole grains at small mountain or beach grocers or at any restaurant for that matter. For less waste, purchase fruit, cheese, nuts, and other healthful items as they are needed.

We found it less complicated and cheaper to stay in a room with a kitchen, especially when traveling with kids. Even a tiny kitchen is helpful with the preparation of healthful breakfasts and lunches. Now, it’s just my husband and myself when we vacation; still we often stay in a room or a cabin with a kitchen. Sure, everyone enjoys a break from cooking, so we usually go out for dinner.

If you’re going to be away for a week or more and you’re traveling by car, you might want to bring a few more food items: hardboiled eggs, canned tuna or chicken for sandwiches, small unopened jars of mayonnaise, nut butter, and jelly.

If the jars are small, then any unused portions may be discarded before the trek home. Purchase a variety of microwave popcorn without any trans fats. At home, we use a hot air popper, but while on vacation, for convenience you might want to make a few exceptions.

If you have a sink and a counter, in your room accommodations, not to mention the luxury of a refrigerator, this makes preparing meals more pleasant. It’s not cheap to eat at fast food restaurants, especially when you’re purchasing meals for a family. And, the food you buy isn’t usually nutritious, because it contains sugar, salt, altered fats, and MSG.

Who wants to end a vacation with a compromised immune system, or worse, sick? I’d like to forget a trip home from the mountains when our kids were teens. We had a van-full of girls, our four, plus their friends. We ordered take-out pizza the night before our ride down the mountain. Our scenic drive was interrupted by passing the bucket, due to food poisoning. A memorable way to end the trip, for sure, but not one I’d like to repeat.

Nuts and seeds are really yummy for family vacations. They come in handy, especially while traveling. A small handful of nuts or seeds eaten between meals make a nutritious snack and are easy to take on a trip. Nuts and seeds, besides being delicious, are jam-packed with nutrition:

•Almonds, pecans, and pistachios are rich in protein.

•Walnuts contain omega-3 fatty acids.

•Sesame, sunflower, and pumpkin seeds are particularly good sources of plant sterols, which promote heart health.

•Peanuts are plant seeds that grow in underground pods and taste like a nut. They are high in protein and contain the hard-to-get vitamin D.

•Sesame seeds are rich in minerals, especially copper and magnesium. They’re also high in calcium. Reading is a good way to pass the time during a road trip. Take the book, A Thousand and One Nights, and read it to your kids while you’re on the road. If you remember, the famed phrase, “Open sesame,” magically opens the cave with the hidden treasure. This colorful command reflects the sesame pod, which bursts open when it reaches maturity. Of course, everyone should be eating sesame seeds while reading the story.

This year, plan ahead to have a happy and healthy holiday.

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Pumpkin Pudding

Nonna Joann — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 19:52:42 +0000

This blender pudding not only contains super-nutritious pumpkin, but it’s sweetened with natural sweeteners–NO white sugars!

2 cups pumpkin puree (one 15 ounce can)
1 teaspoon/two packets stevia (purchase in a whole foods store)
¼ cup pure maple syrup
1 cup whole milk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
Whipped cream (optional topping)

Method:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees

1) Dump all ingredients (except the whipped topping) into a blender. Pulse until thoroughly combined.

2) Pour mixture into buttered (or use coconut oil) individual ovenproof dishes or bowls.

3) Bake for 15 minutes at 425F. Reduce heat to 350F. Bake for another 45 minutes or until set. (Less time is needed for individual dishes.) Allow to cool for about an hour before serving.

4) Optional topping with whipped cream.

Baby Bites™ Tackles the Sugar Monster

Nonna Joann — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 21:08:22 +0000

The sugar monster lives in your house, because you let him! In fact, you regularly invite him in. Unless your children are driving and have an income, they’re eating the foods you purchase.I would love to slay that lying sugar monster, who’s convinced your kids that sugar is the only yummy flavor. I’d give him a swift kick in his large tush-right out of your kitchen. You can make the sugar monster disappear when you stop purchasing items with added sugars.

Let’s face it, many aren’t bold enough to go cold turkey. Today, we’ll be content to tackle the sugar monster by looking at ways to limit the intake of added sugars. That way when you eat sugar, it’ll be on purpose.

When foods loaded with added sugars aren’t readily available, you won’t be tempted to eat them and your kids won’t either. You can restrict impact the sugar monster has on your family when your pantry is stocked with nutritious foods, so you’ll have plenty of healthy snacking options. Get in the habit of reading labels, you’ll be amazed at how much sugar is in the processed foods you purchase.

Now for the good news! Taste buds have a type of thermostat. What you’ve eaten in the preceding week affects your taste buds. Your preferences today are affected by what you ate yesterday. So, when you and your children (especially picky eaters) stop eating sugar, your taste buds adjust and whole food will become more flavorful! You’ll be amazed at how sweet an orange or an apple can be, when your palette adjusts.

Soda pop

You can’t talk about the sugar monster without mentioning soda pop. One-third of consumed sugars conceal themselves in your kid’s favorite drink.

A report, by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, correctly labeled soft drinks as “liquid candy.” There’s no nutritional value whatsoever in soft drinks. A child who drinks one can of soda pop ingests ten to sixteen teaspoons of sugar – from only one can!

Twenty-five years ago, teenagers drank twice as much milk as soda pop. Today, that’s flipped, teenagers drink twice as much soda pop as milk and 56% of eight-year-olds down a can of soft drink every day!

Soda pop is worse than candy for children, as soft drinks replace nourishing drinks like milk, fruit juices, and water. Soft drinks further rob the body of vital nutrients as Phosphoric Acid increases the loss of magnesium and calcium in the urine, leading to weaker bones. This is a concern, because of the peak bone-building years in childhood and adolescence.

Also, beware of the sugar monster, who also hides in fruit drinks. The juice content of fruit drinks range between a measly high of 27 to 3%. Koolaide, of course has absolutely no juice.

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Try Rannosaurus^TM and Betty Baby Bites^TM tackle
the Sugar Monster by making whole foods fun!

Think Outside the Lunch Box

Nonna Joann — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 18:09:00 +0000

Ten-year-old Annie is extremely social. Even though she’s not a picky eater, she rarely finishes her school lunch, because she’s chatting with her friends After her mom noticed food returning in her lunchbox, she warned Annie to stop talking so much during the lunch break and “to eat her lunch!” Food did stop coming home.Regrettably, after their talk, in order to avoid a scolding, Annie began to throw away the uneaten portions of her lunch.

How do you convince your child to eat the lunch you send to school? Is your child a picky eater? This is a real dilemma for moms, who are concerned about developing healthy eating habits in their children.

The answer could be as simple as adjusting the amount of food you send with your child. A half a sandwich, with the other items in a lunch bag, might be all that a six-year-old can consume during the time allotted.

Since parents have no real control of what their kids eat at school, I suggested that Annie’s mom have another talk with her. She should once again explain the necessity of eating the lunch prepared for her. Her mom assured her that she wouldn’t be punished if she didn’t eat all of her lunch. Annie should do her best to eat during the lunch break and bring home what’s left over-that way mom will know exactly how much food was consumed.

For the child, who isn’t eating much of her lunch, control what you can at home. Pack fewer items, so that less food will be wasted. Send your child off to school with a stick-to-your-ribs breakfast full of protein and whole grains. Then, make sure your child’s after-school snack is a mini-meal.

Trading is also outside of parents’ control. Eight-year-old Joey trades parts of his nutritious lunch for the junk food his mom doesn’t purchase. Sometimes children won’t ‘fess-up to their trading food in order to avoid discipline.

Affirm how much you love your child and the benefits of the food you’re including in his lunch bag. Discuss with your child the reasons why junk food is unhealthy might help some. Providing nutritious yummy treats will help more. Again control what you can at home. After school snacks should be healthful.

Many times kids don’t eat their lunches out of plain boredom. PB&J can be tolerated only so many times. Adjust your thinking to nutrients, not sandwiches. Many times appealing lunches involve “planned-overs.” That’s making enough of something for dinner for a “planned-over” lunchbox item.

Exciting lunches happen when you “think outside the lunchbox!” Try something different than the traditional PB&J sandwich. For variety, make an almond butter and banana sandwich cut into a fun shape with a cookie cutter. Or draw a funny face on a hardboiled egg.

Plan for left-overs: A meatball sandwich with sauce or meatloaf on a whole-grain roll. Get creative with egg, chicken, and tuna salad sandwiches on whole-grain bread, add sprouts for texture and extra nutrition.

Healthy snacks can become yummy lunches. Here are a dozen alternatives to the sandwich, just to whet your appetite:

>Hardboiled egg and whole-grain muffin. For the younger child, practice cracking and peeling eggs at home.

>Tuna in a 3 ounce can and a small plastic container with Italian dressing. Show him at home how to take the tuna out of the small can and mix it in the container with the dressing. You may have to practice opening a pull-top can, using the plastic fork as leverage.

>Apple, carrot, and raisin salad

>Veggie sticks and a dip

>Brown rice salad with bite-sized chicken pieces

>Cold slice of pizza

>Small cheese ball with whole-grain crackers

>Chicken wings or a drumstick

>3-bean salad (if you purchase this ready-made, be sure sugar isn’t listed in the ingredients)

>Any green salad; pack dressing separately

>Sliced apples and peanut or almond butter. Send the nut butter in a separate container for dipping. Add whole-grain crackers or a whole-grain muffin.

>3-grain salad made with barley, brown rice, and corn.

Baby Bites: Transforming a Picky Eater into a Healthy Eater has more ideas for healthy lunches!

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