Wednesday, November 20, 2002

Kitchen makeover makes healthy eating hassle-free

Simply rethinking how you store groceries can help your family eat healthier, say nutritionists with Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.

"Snacks that usually get eaten are quick, easy-to-find and easy-to-eat," said Joan Carter, a dietitian with Baylor's USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center.

To help improve your family's diet, Carter offers these "kitchen makeover" tips:

§ Stock the refrigerator with "grab-and-go" bottles of low-fat milk, boxes of 100 percent calcium-fortified juice, "tubes" of yogurt, cubed cheese, and snack bags of mini carrots. Pack the pantry with mini boxes of raisins and plastic sandwich bags of whole-wheat crackers and trail mix.

§ Place a bowl of fruit on the kitchen counter. Snip washed grapes into snack-sized portions. Keep pre-cut fruits, ready-to-eat vegetables and low-fat dip on the most visible shelf in the refrigerator.

Nutrition doesn't have to suffer when families eat out

Eating out can strain the budget, but it doesn't have to take a toll on your family's nutritional health.

"When families eat out frequently, parents should develop strategies to keep everyone's diet on track," said Dr. Karen Cullen, nutritionist with the USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center and an assistant professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. Cullen offers these tips for nutritionally sound dining-out strategies:

§ Choose restaurants that offer healthy choices like grilled chicken breasts, regular-size burgers with lettuce and tomato, lean submarine sandwiches, small bags of fries, low-fat milk, real orange juice and vegetarian pizza.

§ If mealtime will be delayed, take along car-friendly snacks like bananas, apples, mini bags of carrots and low-fat dip, whole-wheat crackers and peanut butter, and boxes of 100 percent fruit juice.

§ Set a good example by avoiding super-size portions. Stop eating when satisfied.

Consider nutrition when choosing day-care center

Selecting the perfect preschool care is more than evaluating playtime activities. Although often overlooked, mealtime is equally important.

"Child-care centers have an impact on the nutritional quality of children's diets and can influence developing eating habits," said Dr. Theresa Nicklas, a research nutritionist with the USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center and a professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.

"When choosing a day-care facility, parents should consider the center's overall nutrition program, including the contents of meals and snacks, its nutrition education program and the mealtime environment," Nicklas said

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