Healthy Living

Making Nutrition Fun
It's Easy Being Green
Get Out and Play!

Making Nutrition Fun

Sure, you have to get a little creative, but getting your kids excited about making healthy choices can be a lot of fun – and easy! Here are some ideas:

Plant a garden together. Choose veggies that are easy to grow. Kids will surely be excited about eating the fruits (or vegetables) of their own labor.
When grocery shopping, ask your kids to pick out a new food that they’ve never tried before – whether it’s a fruit, a vegetable, a whole grain, or other healthy option. Exposing them to new tastes is a way to encourage healthy eating.
Show them that adding veggies to everyday foods is easy and fun! Make-your-own pizzas with all veggie toppings, set up a potato bar with unique veggie toppings, or recreate a salad bar at home and let them pick-n-choose.
Create games around nutritious eating … a bingo game with foods from each food group or a “scavenger hunt” where the winner eats everything on the list at least once in a week are two simple ways to turn healthy eating into a fun exercise.
Help kids make wise choices by introducing them to Power Snacking. Help reinforce the differences between Power Foods (nutritious foods from the five food groups) and Extras (foods that contain calories from fat, sugar or both fat and sugar, with few or no nutrients). Guess the Power Snack:
     - cola or milk shake
     - beef jerky or corn chips
     - ice cream sandwich or whole grain waffle with ice cream & strawberries

It's Easy Being Green

Start Here

These are simple, everyday changes you and your kids can make around the house that will ultimately have a BIG impact on helping save our environment:

Turn off the water when you’re brushing your teeth
Don’t leave your TV, stereo or computer on when it’s not in use
Reuse the backside of school worksheets and papers
Wash the dishes instead of running the dishwasher – or at least cut down dishwasher use and only run when completely full (same goes for the washing machine!)
Ride the bus or carpool with other families in your neighborhood
Turn off your lights when you’re not home or in that room

Take The Next Steps

These ideas require slightly more effort, but will be well worth the payoff … clean air, clean water and a future for your kids’ kids!

Start a family recycling project to save energy and natural resources. Recycle glass jars, plastic bottles, soda cans and newspapers. Make it a part of your shared family chores.
Replace standard light bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs (a.k.a. CFL’s or “Energy Savers”)
Organize a neighborhood clean up day at a local creek or pond, or at your favorite park. Collect trash – remember to recycle!
Plant trees in your yard, throughout your neighborhood, or near your school. Not only is it fun, great exercise and a visual wonder, it’s a great way to reduce greenhouse gases since trees absorb carbon dioxide from the air.

Get Out and Play!

Did you know recent studies* have found that kids ages 8 to 18 are engaging in some form of “media play” – TV, computers, iPods, etc. – for an average of 6 hours and 20 minutes per day?! It’s enough of a reason to get your kids off the couch, away from the computer, and outside everyday!

Encourage them to play outdoor sports like basketball, soccer, baseball, or tennis (keeping the emphasis on fun and friendship!)
Send them on a scavenger hunt with a list of nature items (rock, dandelion, leaf, etc.)
Set up a Backyard Bowling Alley. Use easy-to-find household items like empty water bottles or soda cans from the recycling bin and a soccer ball.
Host a mini-Olympics in your yard. Have kids of all ages compete in running, wheelbarrow races, obstacle courses, water balloon tosses and jumping competitions. And don’t forget the awards ceremony, complete with medals!
Do it together! Make it a routine to take family walks in the evening after dinner, or visit your local park a couple times a week to play games.

*Source: Kaiser Family Foundation