Tag Archives: childhood nutrition

9 Great Ideas for Kids’ School Lunches

Dealing with kids’ food, especially pre-schoolers, can be overwhelming. Whatever you think is healthy is not necessarily what their taste buds want. As a stay at home dad, I have lots of questions about parenting. So I started my own blog! Parental Questions is a great resource for parents. But my biggest worry is whether […]

Eating Dairy: Do or Don’t?

What should you consider when it comes to your dairy intake? These days, it seems there’s lot of confusion around dairy. On the one hand, the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP) recommends consuming dairy as part of a healthy eating pattern. On the other hand, independent health experts and those who support […]

Are Peanuts About to Make a Comeback?

Peanuts have been on the list of food bad guys for some time now. With the severe (even life-threatening) allergies that so many kids deal with every moment of their lives, it’s no wonder schools have cracked down. These days, in some schools the once ubiquitous peanut butter and jelly sandwich can’t even make it […]

How to Cure Picky Eaters, Part One

Few things are more discouraging than planning a nutritious meal, gathering healthy ingredients, and cooking the wholesome dish for your family—only to be met with a chorus of complaints: “This looks gross!” “What’s that green stuff?” “I hate tomatoes!” And the ultimate, “I’m not eating that.” Your heart sinks. Your temperature rises a little (or […]

Did You Just Buy a Yam or a Sweet Potato?

Oddly enough, I’ve both been a part of and witness to several debates about yams and sweet potatoes over the past couple of weeks. The first conversation was instigated by me, when I asked a produce manager to explain the difference. The second happened when a cashier at a different store insisted there was no […]

Have Your Cake and Eat It Too: The Healthiest Alternatives to Refined Sugar

One of the hottest health topics today is the demonization of refined sugar—and for good reason. It’s fatally destructive to your body, and it’s even more addictive than cocaine. (In this article I want to focus on healthy alternatives to refined sugar, but if you want to learn how this modern curse has disabled and […]

Kick Up Your Apple Preservation

Have you taken a whiff outside lately? The fragrant, sweet aroma of apple season has arrived. It’s the time of year that makes a person think of bushels and baking. While noshing on a fresh apple is always a great choice, it’s worth taking a look at other ways of kicking up the nutrient profile […]

How to Introduce Kids to the Kitchen

Whether they’re tugging at your trousers, sweetly asking to “help,” or demanding to know what’s for dinner, kids in the kitchen can make us nervous. There are sharp knives, hot stoves and ovens, pots full of scalding liquid, and overflowing mixing bowls to worry about. But once you learn to navigate the risks, cooking together […]

Little Addicts

candy

Dad and I were standing next to the cake and candy table at my cousin Leah’s wedding, watching the couple’s first dance. Two little boys about 5 and 8 came up and frantically scanned the glass candy bowls. But all of the candy was gone. The 5-year-old spun around and stared up at us. “Where […]

How to Combat Lunchbox Envy

We decided to send our kids to school with packed lunches long ago, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. But there’s a sticky little problem that goes along with it—around our house, we call it “lunchbox envy.” And this far into the school year, we know it will make an appearance any time […]

Start Your Day Like a Champion

We all know the old saying touting breakfast as the most important meal of the day—and there’s a ton of truth to support this philosophy. Making breakfast a priority sets the stage for balanced blood sugars and reduced food cravings throughout the rest of the day. But not all breakfasts are created equal, right? The […]

Brown Bag or Plastic Tray?

Around these parts, a new school year is about to begin, and with it comes the discussion of what to do about lunches. I can count on both hands the number of times our boys have gone through the lunch line for their midday sustenance, but that doesn’t stop them from being completely fascinated by […]

Just Need a Little Somethin’

I’ve always been a snacker by nature. I don’t trust anyone who doesn’t need a little something by 4:00 in the afternoon. It’s just not right. My boys are much the same way, only they’re constantly in search of a bite to eat. When it comes to snacks, they’re bottomless pits. What goes into those […]

Keep Up With the 3 Rs: Cook With Your Kids

Every teacher I talk to stresses the importance of kids keeping up with the school basics over the summer. When kids take a total break from learning for more than two months, they often lose ground by the time the new school year starts. Students need several weeks of refreshers before moving on to new, […]

5 Dinnertime Survival Tips for Your Busy Family

I find summer to be a really relaxing time with the kids at home—nowhere in particular to be for the majority of the day until…dinnertime. This can cause some real problems and complaints from hungry kids in the backseat on the way home from a ball game (or whatever the activity was that night). The […]

What’s In Your Baby’s Food?

Sacajawea was a Shoshone Native American who lived between the years of 1788–1812. She was married at the age of 13 and became a mother at the age of 17. Less than two months after the birth of her son, she set off in 1805 to guide the Lewis and Clark expedition, trekking over 3,700 […]

Children’s Taste Buds Are Our Future

I have hope for the future of food because I have hope for a new generation of taste buds. Yep, taste buds. They’re going to move the food industry away from the synthetic and processed nastiness that started taking over our grocery shelves way back in the 1950s—when Dr. Royal Lee fired several warning shots […]

Can Probiotics Console the Inconsolable?

The inconsolable crying of a colicky baby. How are parents supposed to cope? They try everything, but nothing helps. Back in January, NPR reported some new research published by JAMA Pediatrics. Colicky babies in Europe were given a form of the probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri with the idea that friendly bacteria could help them develop their digestive […]

Family Wellness: Preconception Through Early Childhood

pregnant mom with child

Attention, Northern Colorado! There is a wonderful seminar after the new year to add to your calendar. Selene River Press and Standard Process West are sponsoring a seminar on preconception through early childhood, presented by Dr. Carol Adams and Lynn Mayer, CNC. Adams and Mayer will cover topics for this very critical time frame that […]

How to Handle the Horrors of Halloween Candy

Halloween has never been my favorite holiday. I don’t enjoy being scared, and I definitely don’t enjoy the movies and stories of the season. Growing up on the farm, we never went to town to trick-or-treat—we hopped in the car and drove around to our neighbors’ houses instead. I was always so envious of my […]