"A healthy diet can help prevent cancer since up to 60% of cancer cases are diet-related."
--www.pcrm.org
I
was in Louisville, Kentucky recently visiting family. My mother and I spent a perfect Sunday
afternoon with my nephew, Robbie, his wife, Sara, and their two children, Ellie
(5 years old), Max (2-1/2 years old), and Stella the dog. While young Ellie and I watched the sky and the clouds from the hammock and dreamed about life, she agreed to be a Growing Healthy Kids ambassador and we ran into the house to
play with food.
Ellie and I headed to the kitchen. Her mother
was cutting up apples. We got out the nut
butter. We cut one apple into very
thin slices and organized them into pairs on the cutting board. We put a little nut butter on one slice of
each pair. Ellie was in charge of
putting the tops on each apple slice with the nut butter. Then we cut each “sandwich” in half, make
small little delicious and crunchy bites and went back outside with a plate of sandwiches for everyone to
taste, Stella in tow.
Apple sandwiches
are now a popular afternoon treat at Robbie and Sara's farm.
When
kids participate in the preparation of foods made with simple ingredients, they
become engaged and curious.
Our goal is for kids to connect with the world of healthy foods. Plan meals around fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes (beans, lentils).
Keep it simple. Follow Ellie's formula: one apple + fresh ground nut butter (with no
added sugars salt or fat) + one kid = one growing HEALTHY kid eating apple
sandwiches!
Please
pass the apples (buy organic apples whenever possible).
With
love and gratitude,
Nancy
L. Heinrich, MPH
Founder,
Growing Healthy Kids, Inc.
PS-September is Fruits & Vegetables - More Matters Month. For information about why eating fruits and vegetables are so important to health and for some great recipes, please click here.
