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Healthy Food Options Biography

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Don't Battle Over Food

It's easy for food to become a source of conflict. Well-intentioned parents might find themselves bargaining or bribing kids so they eat the healthy food in front of them. A better strategy is to give kids some control, but to also limit the kind of foods available at home.

Kids should decide if they're hungry, what they will eat from the foods served, and when they're full. Parents control which foods are available to their kids, both at mealtime and between meals. Here are some guidelines to follow:

Establish a predictable schedule of meals and snacks. It's OK to choose not to eat when both parents and kids know when to expect the next meal or snack.

Don't force kids to clean their plates. Doing so teaches kids to override feelings of fullness.

Don't bribe or reward kids with food. Avoid using dessert as the prize for eating the meal.

Don't use food as a way of showing love. When you want to show love, give kids a hug, some of your time, or praise.

Get Kids Involved

Most kids will enjoy deciding what to make for dinner. Talk to them about making choices and planning a balanced meal. Some might even want to help shop for ingredients and prepare the meal. At the store, teach kids to check out food labels to begin understanding what to look for.

In the kitchen, select age-appropriate tasks so kids can play a part without getting injured or feeling overwhelmed. And at the end of the meal, don't forget to praise the chef.

School lunches can be another learning lesson for kids. More important, if you can get them thinking about what they eat for lunch, you might be able to help them make positive changes. Brainstorm about what kinds of foods they'd like for lunch or go to the grocery store to shop together for healthy, packable foods.

There's another important reason why kids should be involved: It can help prepare them to make good decisions on their own about the foods they want to eat. That's not to say they'll suddenly want a salad instead of french fries, but the mealtime habits you help create now can lead to a lifetime of healthier choices.

Why is healthy eating important?

When combined with exercise, a healthy diet can help you lose weight, lower your cholesterol level, and improve the way your body functions on a daily basis.

People of diferent ages and activity levels have different calorie needs. How much you eat of a certain type of food, such as fruits and vegetables, should depend on your individual calorie needs. For example, a person who needs 1,000 calories per day will have food serving requirements that are different from somone who needs 1,600 calories per day. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's website ChooseMyPlate.gov offers good information about nutrition for children and adults.

Following are some ways to make healthier food choices.

Grains

Whole-grain breads are low in fat; they're also high in fiber and complex carbohydrates, which help you feel fuller longer and prevent overeating. Choose breads whose first ingredient says “whole” in front of the grain, for example, “whole wheat flour” or “whole white flour”; enriched or other types of flour have the important fiber and nutrients removed. Choose whole grain breads for sandwiches and as additions to meals.

Avoid rich bakery foods such as donuts, sweet rolls and muffins. These foods can contain more than 50% fat calories. Snacks such as angel food cake and gingersnap cookies can satisfy your sweet tooth without adding fat to your diet.

Hot and cold cereals are usually low in fat. But instant cereals with cream may contain high-fat oils or butterfat. Granola cereals may also contain high-fat oils and extra sugars. Look for low-sugar options for both instant and granola cereals.

Avoid fried snacks such as potato chips and tortilla chips. Try the low-fat or baked versions instead.

Instead of this: Try this:

Croissants, biscuits, white breads and rolls Low-fat whole grain breads and rolls (wheat, rye and pumpernickel)

Doughnuts, pastries and scones English muffins and small whole grain bagels

Fried tortillas Soft tortillas (corn or whole wheat)

Sugar cereals and regular granola Oatmeal, low-fat granola and whole-grain cereal

Snack crackers Crackers (animal, graham, rye, soda, saltine, oyster)

Potato or corn chips and buttered popcorn Pretzels (unsalted) and popcorn (unbuttered)

White pasta Whole-wheat pasta

White rice Brown rice

Fried rice, or pasta and rice mixes that contain high-fat sauces Rice or pasta (without egg yolk) with vegetable sauces

All-purpose white flour 100% whole-wheat flour

Fruits and Vegetables

Fruits and vegetables are naturally low in fat. They add flavor and variety to your diet. They also contain fiber, vitamins and minerals.

Margarine, butter, mayonnaise and sour cream add fat to vegetables and fruits. Try using nonfat or low-fat versions of these foods. You can also use nonfat or low-fat yogurt or herbs as seasonings instead.

Instead of this: Try this:

Fried vegetables or vegetables served with cream, cheese or butter sauces All vegetables raw, steamed, broiled, baked or tossed with a very small amount of olive oil and salt and pepper

Coconut Fruit (fresh)

French fries, hash browns and potato chips Baked white or sweet potatoes

Meat, Poultry and Fish

Beef, Pork, Veal and Lamb

Baking, broiling and roasting are the healthiest ways to prepare meat. Lean cuts can be pan-broiled or stir-fried. Use either a nonstick pan or nonstick spray coating instead of butter or margarine.

Trim outside fat before cooking. Trim any inside, separable fat before eating. Select low-fat, lean cuts of meat. Lean beef and veal cuts have the word "loin" or "round" in their names. Lean pork cuts have the word "loin" or "leg" in their names.

Use herbs, spices, fresh vegetables and nonfat marinades to season meat. Avoid high-fat sauces and gravies.

Poultry

Baking, broiling and roasting are the healthiest ways to prepare poultry. Skinless poultry can be pan-broiled or stir-fried. Use either a nonstick pan or nonstick spray coating instead of butter or margarine.

Remove skin and visible fat before cooking. Chicken breasts are a good choice because they are low in fat and high in protein. Use domestic goose and duck only once in a while because both are high in fat.

Fish

Poaching, steaming, baking and broiling are the healthiest ways to prepare fish. Fresh fish should have a clear color, a moist look, a clean smell and firm, springy flesh. If good-quality fresh fish isn't available, buy frozen fish.

Most seafood is high in healthy polyunsaturated fat. Omega-3 fatty acids are also found in some fatty fish, such as salmon and cold-water trout. They may help lower the risk of heart disease in some people.

Cross-over Foods

Dry beans, peas and lentils offer protein and fiber without the cholesterol and fat of meats. Once in a while, try substituting beans for meat in a favorite recipe, such as lasagna or chili.

TVP, or textured vegetable protein, is widely available in many foods. Vegetarian "hot dogs," "hamburger" and "chicken nuggets" are low-fat, cholesterol-free alternatives to meat.

Instead of this: Try this:

Regular or breaded fish sticks or cakes, fish canned in oil, seafood prepared with butter or served in high-fat sauce Fish (fresh, frozen, canned in water), low-fat fish sticks or cakes and shellfish (such as shrimp)

Prime and marbled cuts Select-grade lean beef (round, sirloin and loin)

Pork spare ribs and bacon Lean pork (tenderloin and loin chop) and turkey bacon

Regular ground beef Lean or extra-lean ground beef, ground chicken and turkey breast

Lunch meats such as pepperoni, salami, bologna and liverwurst Lean lunch meats such as turkey, chicken and ham

Regular hot dogs or sausage Fat-free hot dogs and turkey dogs

Dairy

Choose skim milk or low-fat buttermilk. Substitute evaporated skim milk for cream in recipes for soups, sauces and coffee.

Try low-fat cheeses. Skim ricotta can replace cream cheese on a bagel or in a vegetable dip. Use part-skim cheeses in recipes. Use 1% cottage cheese for salads and cooking. String cheese is a low-fat, high-calcium snack option.

Plain nonfat yogurt can replace sour cream in many recipes. (To maintain texture, stir 1 tablespoon of cornstarch into each cup of yogurt that you use in cooking.) Try mixing frozen nonfat or low-fat yogurt with fruit for dessert.

Skim sherbet is an alternative to ice cream. Soft-serve and regular ice creams are also lower in fat than premium styles.

Instead of this: Try this:

Whole or 2% milk Non-fat or 1% milk

Evaporated milk Evaporated non-fat milk

Regular buttermilk Buttermilk made from non-fat (or 1%) milk

Yogurt made with whole milk Nonfat or low-fat yogurt

Regular cheese (examples: American, blue, Brie, cheddar, Colby and Parmesan) Low-fat cheese with less than 3 grams of fat per serving (example: natural cheese, processed cheese and nondairy cheese such as soy cheese)

Regular cottage cheese Low-fat, nonfat, and dry-curd cottage cheese with less than 2% fat

Regular cream cheese Low-fat cream cheese (no more than 3 grams of fat per ounce)

Regular ice cream Sorbet, sherbet and nonfat or low-fat ice cream (no more than 3 grams of fat per 1/2 cup serving)

Fats, Oils and Sweets

Eating too many high-fat foods not only adds excess calories (which can lead to obesity and weight gain), but can increase your risk factor for several diseases. Heart disease, diabetes, certain types of cancer and osteoarthritis have all been linked to diets too high in fat. If you consume too much saturated and trans fats, you are more likely to develop high cholesterol and coronary artery disease.

Sugar-sweetened drinks, such as fruit juice, fruit drinks, regular soft drinks, sports drinks, energy drinks, sweetened or flavored milk and sweetened iced tea can add lots of sugar and calories to your diet. But staying hydrated is important for good health. Substitute water, zero-calorie flavored water, non-fat or reduced-fat milk, unsweetened tea or diet soda for sweetened drinks. Talk with your family doctor or a dietitian if you have questions about your diet or healthy eating for your family.

Instead of this: Try this:

Cookies Fig bars, gingersnaps and molasses cookies

Shortening, butter or margarine Olive, soybean and canola oils

Regular mayonnaise Nonfat or light mayonnaise

Regular salad dressing Nonfat or light salad dressing

Using fat (including butter) to grease pan Nonstick cookin