BACK TO SCHOOL NUTRITION
by Natasha Villeneuve R.N.C.P.

Another school year is just around the corner. It's time to prepare your kids lunches with foods that provide essential nutrients, and are still tasty and enjoyable. Packing a healthy lunch requires some planning. There should be a variety of choices that are visually appealing, but not full of empty calories. The biggest mistake most parents make is giving in too easily when it comes to offering more nutritious foods. Many parents don't even give some foods a chance, thinking their child won't like them. Remember that your child is an individual with unique likes and dislikes. Just because you may not be attracted to a certain food, doesn't mean that they won't be.

For optimal performance, concentration and energy, your child's lunch should contain some wholesome natural foods containing a balance of protein, carbohydrates and fats. Some great foods that aid with concentration and provide a steady source of energy are legumes (beans, peas, lentils, chickpeas), whole grains (brown rice, oats, etc.), nuts (other than peanuts of courseŠwalnuts and almonds top the list), fish, chicken, eggs, avocados, root vegetables (squash, carrots, yams) and seeds. Nutritious snacks are just as important as lunch itself since children shouldn't go for more than 2-3 hours without eating. If they don't, they will experience blood sugar fluctuations, affecting their ability to do work at school.

Some healthy lunch and snack ideas for
children and adults alike are:

• whole grain wraps with assorted ingredients:
• almond butter and apple butter or grated and diced vegetables (carrots, beets, lettuce, cucumber, peppers, tomato, avocado, beans, etc.) or leftover diced chicken, or fish
  (tuna or salmon), or egg salad
• mini whole grain pita pizzas: tomato sauce with pureed or chopped vegetables and cheese
• homemade thermos soups, stews, pastas, stir-fry's, chili, burritos, tacos and casseroles
• -homemade vegetable salads, potato, pasta, bean or whole grain salads
• fruit salad or fruit kabobs
• veggie sticks with hummus or bean dips
• baked corn tortillas with salsa, guacamole or bean dip
• homemade muffins, granola bars, seed bars or trail mixes (without peanuts)
• sugar free organic yogurt with fruit
• rice cakes or whole grain crackers with almond butter
• Diluted organic, juice or clean, water to drink

Try to avoid foods high in sugar, harmful fat (hydrogenated oils, trans fats) chemicals and sodium. Be sure to read labels carefully when selecting prepared foods. Be cautious of foods containing sugars (ingredients ending in "ose" like dextrose or glucose), hydrogenated oils (vegetable oil, lard, shortening, palm oil, mono & dyglycerides), white flour (known as simply "flour"), salt (sodium, MSG-monosodium glutamate), and chemical additives (aspartame, food coloring, artificial flavors, sweeteners, nitrates, nitrites, sulfites, sulfates, caffeine, BHA, BHT). It comes as a surprise to some parents that many snack type foods such as granola bars, muffins, yogurts and cereals contain large amounts of these harmful ingredients. Homemade is always best and brown bagged lunches offer much more nutrition than commercially prepared lunches.

Tips for getting your child to eat more nutritiously:

• Children need to be exposed to new foods frequently in order to accept them. Parents with babies should provide a whole variety of foods and tastes early on to prevent fussy eaters.
  
• But for those who do have fussier kids, try pureed vegetables in pasta sauce, blended fruit smoothies and smoothie popsicles. If you are having trouble converting from white rice, bread or pasta to brown, try mixing half and half.
  
• Involve your child in meal planning, shopping and food preparation. Give them choices: "would you like grapes, melon or berries for a snack today?"
  
• Set a good example. Be sure to eat a variety of foods regularly and try some new foods yourself. Fussy kids tend to come from fussy parents.
  
• Keep junk out of the home. Save it for special occasions only.
  
• Keep it colorful! Deeper colored fruits and veggies have more nutrients and health promoting benefits.
  
• Educate yourself and your child. Kids want to feel healthy and energized too. Pick one new food weekly such as a fruit or vegetable, look up its nutritional value and its health benefits together with your child. Then find some fun recipes that use that particular ingredient and incorporate that food throughout the week.
  
• Keep TV watching to a minimum. Not only does it promote inactivity, but most commercials promote "junk food" which can spark cravings and brainwash children.
  
• Supplement your child with Children's fish oil, Greens+ for kids and children's Probiotics witch will help promote optimal health and immunity. (These supplements can easily be added to smoothies, applesauce or yogurt).
  
• Grow an organic garden with the kids in the summertime.

GO ORGANIC!

Sixty years ago, organic wasn't an issue. It was the way most food was
produced. But the post-war demand for high volumes of cheap food set us on a new course. It seemed there was a chemical solution for everything. Nitrate fertilizers produced quick-growing, high-yielding crops. Antibiotic growth promoters did the same for animals. Pesticides kept pests at bay while herbicides kept weeds from spreading. There was a new emphasis on growing food and breeding animals that would grow big, very fast and in the case of diary cows, give high milk yields. Pushed beyond their natural limits and living in cramped conditions, animals needed a daily dose of antibiotics to keep disease in control. Three generations down the line, there is clear evidence that the environment, farm animals and human health are all paying a high price for cheap food!

Today, U.S. Farmers use more than nine hundred million pounds of pesticides yearly! Some scientists argue that the chemical residues are within safe limits but little is known about the long-term health effects of absorbing small amounts of a multitude of different chemicals from the food, water and atmosphere. We ourselves and our children are the experiment, the guinea pigs. Research is now showing that the combined effect of several different chemicals is far greater than the sum of their parts. Many pesticides have been linked with cancer, immune deficiencies, nerve damage and fertility problems. Seventy-one known carcinogens are sprayed on food crops regularly! There is no doubt that eating organic food reduces your exposure to these toxic, harmful chemicals. Plus, a study at Rutgers University comparing organically and conventionally grown food found that many essential trace elements were very low in the conventional produce, and several times higher in the organically grown counterparts. Most research shows that organically grown produce is higher in antioxidants like vitamins C and E.

Did you know?

• the skins of citrus fruits, apples and pears are routinely waxed with petroleum based substances or shellac (beetle extract) which effectively seals in any surface pesticides
  
• after harvest, most apples are dipped in fungicide (carbendazim and/or matalaxyl)
  
• sprout suppressants are used on potatoes (chlorprpham, tecnazene and thiabendazole)
  
• organic farms have twice as many birds, three times more butterflies and five times more wild plants
  
• pesticides don't wash off! Scrubbing or peeling fresh fruit and vegetable removes some of the pesticide residues, but not all. Commercial sprays and washes designed to remove pesticides are also helpful but there is no way to completely remove systemic pesticides which are absorbed into the flesh of the plant.

There are some things that you can do to limit your
exposure to these harmful chemicals:

• Try to buy some certified organic produce (start with the ones you eat the most of or the ones that don't have any protective barrier such as broccoli, grapes and berries)
  
• Buy free range, hormone and antibiotic free meats, eggs, and dairy as well as wild caught fish
  
• Find a supplier near you. Local is always best.
  
• Grow your own organic garden.
  
• Read labels on packaged food and avoid unnatural ingredients.

Learn to shop wisely, with nutrition in mind and you and your loved ones
will benefitgreatly. By your example, your children will understand the reasons why whole foods , raised in ways sustainable for our planet is necessary for continue life on Earth.