Bringing kids into the kitchen to help prepare food is a
natural way to introduce a conversation about healthy food choices. With
1 in 3 American children overweight or obese, learning to eat healthier
is more important than ever. Being overweight or obese puts children at
risk for future diabetes, heart disease, and even cancer.
Teaching kids to eat healthfully starts with smart shopping.
Fortunately, supermarkets are recognizing Americans’ interest in healthy
eating, and there are plenty of healthy—and good-tasting—foods in
almost every aisle of your favorite market. Getting the kids involved in
navigating the store aisles to find the healthy stuff can not only be
fun, it will help them to develop healthy eating patterns for life.
Go for variety. Buying the fruit and vegetables your children like
assures that they’ll eat plenty of them but what about trying the ones
they’ve never even heard of? How about jicama, papaya, tomatillos, mango
or even artichokes?
It’s always a good idea to look for what’s in
season: it will be fresher and may even pack in some extra nutrients.
Prewashed and peeled veggies, such as mini carrots or celery sticks,
make great snacks.
Apples, pears, peaches, oranges and bananas are lunchbox-ready, but any
fruit is easy to pack—simply cut it up and put it into little
single-serving containers.
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