Keep Adding it up for Health!

Thank you for participating in the 90-day challenge, 95210: Adding it up for Health! We hope that this program has been informative, inspirational, and one that has raised your family's awareness of health habits and their importance to your future. Thank you for joining us!

The 95210 program does not end here. Continue to refer to the Family Wellness Resources Page for information about how you can instill the 95210 tenets into your daily life.

And of course, keep logging in to www.95210.org and track your numbers!

We would love to hear your feedback about this program; please leave a comment below or email us at info@workingwellonline.org.

Thank you!

Exercise for Kids: How Much and How to Keep It Safe

www.freedigitalphotos.com

The 95210 tenants advise one hour of physical activity for everyone, but how can you tell whether the stuff your kids do counts as exercise? The Center for Disease Control has a great resource to help you determine your physical activity needs, and the safe ranges for exercise. You can get the scoop here. 

Exercise doesn't have to mean organized sports. Just being outside goofing around, playing on a playground, or taking a family walk or bike ride can be a workout! When you do head out, heed these tips from www.FitTallahassee.com to make sure you stay safe. 
 
Play Hard! 

• Focus on activities that encourage large muscle group movement, like running and jumping, and building bone strength, like resistance training. A light-hearted soccer game following by climbing some ladders on the playground is a great combination!
• Encourage kids to cross- train, or play a variety of sports. They'll lower their chances of over- use injuries and burnout, and get a more well-rounded workout. 
• For kids that shy away from competitive games or sports, emphasize having fun and teamwork more then winning or achieving benchmarks. It's more important that a child enjoys being active than than they excel at any particular activity.

Play Safe! 

• If you kids play organized sports, make sure their coaches are properly trained and if coaching at an advanced level, certified for the sport they are coaching. An experienced trainer will be able to detect injuries early and ensure that you children are staying safe and functional during practices, and should be certified in CPR by the American Red Cross.
• If your child gets hurt and you suspect a muscle or tendon injury, remember "RICE": rest, ice, compression, and elevation. If discomfort doesn't subside, see your child's doctor to rule out broken bones or more serious injuries. 
• Hydrate, hydrate hydrate! It may not be blazing hot yet, but kids still lose water when they play hard! Water and a piece of fruit is more than adequate for replenishing lost fluids and electrolytes, so skip the sports drinks and added sugar they bring. Kids should take about 10 gulps before playing and chugging some more water every 15 to 20 minutes. Afterwards, drink another glass of water and eat some fruit. 
• Check and stick your first- aid kid. As a minimum, it should include triple antibiotic ointment, gauze, bandages, and pain medication. 

For Every Active, Growing Kid

• Offer your kids with calcium-rich foods and drinks, such as low-fat milk and cheese, plain yogurt with fruit, and green vegetables. These foods help bones harden and strengthen, which is critical for children. Bone mass typically peaks between the ages of 16 to 25 years, and remains relatively constant before a gradual decline throughout adulthood.
• Get a physical and become aware of any health conditions that could hurt your child's athletic performance. Discuss the sports your child plays with his or her doctor and follow their recommendations for ensuring proper nutrition and safety. 
• Get plenty of shut-eye. Kids need between 9-11 hours of sleep each night to perform at school and in sports. Turn off lights early enough to ensure a proper night's sleep before the next day begins. 

For more children, sports and outdoor play means just being a kid. But when emergencies occur, it's worth it to have considered these safety precautions in advance. Here's to a Spring that is full of fun, smiles, and a good sweat...safely!

FCAT Stress? Pint-size your yoga!

Students across Leon County are buckling down for FCAT testing this week, which can bring stress and anxiety into their busy school day. A good night of sleep and a healthy breakfast, lunch, and snacks go a long way towards helping them take these important days in stride. But, for those students who need a little deliberate down time, yoga may be just the thing!
 
Yoga has been found to help children reduce stress, calm down in stressful environments, improve self-esteem, develop body awareness and positive body image, foster cooperation, and build compassion for others. It can also enhance flexibility, strength, and coordination. Yoga allows children to slow down and get to know themselves, and develop a longer attention span. Who isn't on board for that?

Kid-friendly yoga classes should be taught by someone who understands the challenge of holding a child’s attention long enough for them to learn about stillness, balance, focus, health, and well-being. When you are looking for age-appropriate yoga, look for classes that are full of movement and open to interpretation; the idea is to foster a love for physical activity, not focus on doing everything correctly.

Kids can take yoga classes locally at Killearn Lakes TaeKwonDo and Lakulish Yoga, or ask your favorite yoga studio if they allow children. Many do, and welcome them.

Yoga is a journey that takes discipline, practice, and patience. When children are exposed to these elements in a caring, calm, and supportive environment…well, they may just teach us a few things about how to deal with stress! Practice yoga with your kids and embark on a journey together!

 

Yoga counts as exercise! Log in to www.95210.org today and track all of your numbers. While you're there, check out the new quiz feature and test your knowledge of healthy living.

Tallahassee Helps You Stop Smoking Now

Smoking - we know it's bad, we know it kills, and we know it makes the people around us sick. But, many Tallahassee residents still smoke either because they want to, they feel they are addicted to it, or because they don't know how to quit. Luckily, our community is full of resources to help you smoosh that cigarette into a tiny little speck and say goodbye to it forever.

Did you know FSU will become a smoke-free campus on January 1, 2014?  The Florida State University Quit Smoking NOW program is a 6-session smoking cessation program developed by former smokers to help others quit with the help of a tobacco treatment specialist in a group setting and access to the tools needed to become tobacco-free. QSN also offers access to nicotine replacement therapies (NRT) such as patches, gum and lozenges, to help manage withdrawal symptoms. You can get more information from Chenikka Usher, MSW, CTTS, Tobacco Program Manager at 850-645-9710 or find a Quit Smoking Now group near you by using their interactive calendar: Find a Quit Smoking Now class.

Tobacco Free Leon empowers youth and adults to create a tobacco-free community through youth prevention, cessation activities, promotion of a tobacco-free lifestyle, and reducing the tobacco industry’s influence. By holding meetings at local schools, they encourage students to live healthy by understanding and appreciating the risks of smoking. You can find their next meeting here: Tobacco Free Leon Calendar

For more information about these resources and more, contact Emily Kohler, RDH, TTS, Tobacco Training and Cessation Specialist at the Big Bend Area Health Education Center, Inc.

And, if you're thinking about quitting or know someone who should, Tobacco Free Leon makes it free and easy:

Abstaining from tobacco is one of the 95210 tenants, and also contributes to a healthier Tallahassee. Log your tobacco victories and other health achievements today at www.95210.org!

Portion Control Techniques for Kids (and new features on 95210.org)

The 95210 tenants encourage five servings of fruits and vegetables, but what is a serving? When you log in on www.95210.org, you are able to indicate how much of each fruit or veggie you ate, and what a serving is. You can also look this information up using this great interactive site that breaks it down by age: Nutrition for Everyone

Beyond fruits and veggies, it can sometimes be difficult to tell whether we are feeding our kids appropriate portion sizes. This video from the www.FitTallahassee.com Healthy Kids blog explains a few ways to measure portions for kids. Try a few of them today!

95210.org Update

www.95210.org now has a new Pedometer Steps tracking page, so now youmay click the top button for "Steps" (when logged in) to track your daily steps count. There is also information related to walking and why it's so good for you, as well as links to various other sites and blogs on walking and ways in which to increase your steps each day.

Members may earn 5 points for every 10,000 steps they walk daily with a maximum of 10 points per day for walking 20,000 steps or more. 

Log in every day to track your 95210 numbers and add it up for health!

Lights Out! Tips for Better Sleep

Of all the 95210 tenets, sleep is the one that gets the most reaction. Nine hours of sleep? Really? It seems almost laughable that anyone would be able to get that much rest. But, while the 9 hours of sleep recommendation is technically aimed at children (with the recommendation for adults being 7 hours), the more sleep we as adults can get, the better we perform.

Sleep not only gives us energy, it also helps regulate serotonin, which affects our mood and ability to focus during the day. Sleep is also a great fat burner. When we stay up too long, our body slows down processes like metabolism in order to conserve energy. A slower metabolism means...you guessed it...fewer calories burned and more calories stored. So, you could consider getting more sleep to be part of your workout goals for the day!

But, turning off the light and pulling up the covers is easier said than done. But it is possible to gradually put some new habits into practice that will inch you towards getting more rest overall. It takes deliberate action, but it can happen! 

These tips and more for how to get more sleep were included in this month's Consumer Reports, along with a review of different mattresses and advice for choosing the one that is best for you.

1. Keep a consistent schedule. Sticking to the same bedtime (and waking time) within an hour or so each day, yes even on the weekends, helps shift your internal body clock to one that is more predictable and less taxing on your body.

2. Watch alcohol consumption. The benefits of moderate and safe alcohol consumption are best absorbed well before bedtime, because alcohol metabolizes as a stimulant. In addition, alcohol could make conditions such as sleep apnea and snoring to be worsened. Studies have shown that while one glass of wine has health benefits, that second glass can impair sleep. Be responsible!

3. Don't sleep with a pet. Our cuddly friends may make for warm feet, but the nocturnal habits of animals can interfere with our own ability to get truly restorative sleep. Provide your pets with their own comfortable place to sleep, not on your pillow.

4. Journal. Sometimes, the stress of a busy day weighs on us far into the evening, keeping us awake or preventing us from falling asleep. Sometimes, writing those thoughts in a journal entry or simply a to-do list for the next day can help us free our mind from them and get closure for the day.

5. Reduce your screen time. Computer screens, televisions, and smart phones are great for downtime (within that two-hour limit of course), but they can trick our brains into think it is daytime. Relax by reading a paper-and-ink book, a magazine, or listening to calming music instead.

Sleep is becoming more recognized as a powerful ally in health. While some wear their lack of sleep as a badge of honor, it is actually harmful to our bodies and lives to go without adequate rest. Put some of these ideas into practice tonight and see if you can't get to bed a little earlier!

Easter Candy Overload: Healthy Celebration Tips

A walk down the Easter candy aisle this week offers a host of selections from fifteen types of jelly beans to peanut butter eggs and bunnies the size of our children themselves. A survey conducted by the National Health and Nutrition Examination shows that kids consume an average of 350 calories from added sugar each day – more than triple the recommended amount – and during holidays it can be even more! Why does it matter? Added sugar is a major contributor to childhood obesity, which can lead to heart disease and diabetes down the road. Luckily, managing sugar during holiday weekends is easier than you think. 

These tips are helpful for Easter and any holiday where sugar tends to take center stage.

Follow the 80/20 Rule 

Classroom parties, cookie-toting grandparents, and other obstacles to health are inevitable, but we don’t have to completely let go and give up all hope of managing them. Make sure that the meals you eat at home (and pack for school) are super-nutritious to compensate for those occasions when we eat less-than-healthy fare. That means getting our sweet fix from fresh fruit instead of fruit snacks, ordering out less and cooking at home more, and drinking more water and no sweetened beverages.

Skip the Juice Entirely 

Just toss out the juice. The American Academy of Pediatrics has determined that juice is not necessary in anyone’s diet and even compares it to drinking soda. Juice contains virtually no fiber and is simply liquid calories. Instead, make water fun by adding sliced fruit to it or freezing berries into ice cubes for fun and flavor!

Make Homemade Treats Instead of Candy

Baking cookies is often a time-honored tradition for many families, pulling out Great-Grandma’s recipe and then, of course, eating the fruits of the labor! Update those recipes by substituting whole-wheat flour for white, slashing the sugar, and making only half of the recipe and smaller portions. In many cases, you can reduce the sugar by half and not notice a dramatic change in flavor, and having fewer of them will help decrease the number that get eaten.

Set the Example and the Expectation. 

Children are just like us when it comes to something we can’t have: they just want it more! As they see their friends eating sugary snacks or fall victim to marketing messages created to encourage children to ask for junk food, the grumbling will surely begin.  Be firm in your decision to stock the house with healthy foods, but sit down to learn about food with your children. Educate yourself and your family about food, sugar, what’s good and bad to eat, and why. Give them choices – a dessert tonight or at this weekend’s party but not both – and let them set boundaries for themselves. Then, of course, set the example by modeling healthy habits at home!

There are so many delicious treats surrounding us during special holidays, and it is surely difficult to resist them. But, keeping your eye on the prize - a healthy body and a healthy family – can make it seem less like work and more like a gift. Set limits, make some healthy swaps, and reduce sugar where you can to ensure that the only sweets in your holiday are those happy, healthy kids! 

Click here healthy Easter basket ideas, and be sure to log in to www.95210.org to track your healthy habits all weekend long!

 

What to look for on Nutrition Facts labels

Many times, unhealthy habits don't come from a lack of interest, but rather a lack of knowledge and time to put knowledge to work. We're busy, and a week of school, work, and other activities can quickly pass by with another promise to do better "next time." Well, next time is here! The next time you head to the grocery store, keep this quick lesson in food package labels in mind so you can do better this time.

The Nutrition Facts label can be quite confusing. Its hard to determine what serving size is appropriate for our needs, the numbers don't always add up, and mixed messages make us unsure of what a healthy choice is. Here's how to make the most of your limited time in the store and ensure that what lands in your buggy is a good choice.

1. Total calories per serving. The number of calories listed on a package may not seem like a lot, until you realize that the package actually holds 2.5 servings! This is the case on many convenience-sized snacks such as chips, crackers, and mixed nuts. If figuring out how much of the package is a serving is too much trouble, ditch it and grab an apple instead!

2. Total fiber. Fiber is naturally found in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, but package labels will tell you how much fiber is in a food as well. Look for fiber especially in cereals, pasta, and other grain products. Fiber is important for digestive health and can go a long way in helping with weight loss because it helps you feel full longer. How much fiber do you need each day? Likely between 25-35 grams! Here's another vote for avoiding packaged foods...many of them are low in fiber.

3. Amounts and types of fat. Take a look at the numbers for saturated, polyunsaturated, monounsaturated, and trans fats and choose those that contain little saturated fat and trans fat. Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats are healthy for you, but even those pack a lot of calories. "Fat-free" doesn't equal "calorie-free." Many fat-free and low-fat foods have added sugar, which brings us to our last highlight...

4. Sugar. Now commonly attributed for our national obesity crisis, sugar is a big bad dude. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends just 3 to 4 teaspoons of sugar each day for children. Four grams of sugar are equal to roughly 1 teaspoon. Take a look at the nutrition facts label and do some quick math to determine whether that box goes into the buggy or back on the shelf!

Nutrition facts labels are supposed to be helpful, not confusing. Take time this weekend to go through your pantry with an app like Fooducate that has a barcode scanner. It will "grade" your food and suggest healthier alternatives. Or, click here to use an interactive nutrition facts label tool that can teach you even more.

And as always, remember to log in to www.95210.org every day to track your family's numbers! 

Tenant #5: Hidden Sources of Sugar

Its in what we drink, its in much of what we eat, and it’s hiding in many foods that we would never suspect. Its in pickle relish, ketchup, bread, crackers, and nuts. Its in our peanut butter, coffee creamer, and yogurt. Its even in lunch meat! What is it? Sugar. And, as sugar has been added to many of the foods we buy and eat, our nation has become fatter and unhealthier.

Doctors, health experts, and 95210 all advise us to eliminate added sugar from our diets. The American Heart Association recommends that women limit their added sugar to no more than 6 teaspoons (or 100 calories) while men shouldn’t consume more than 9 teaspoons (or 150 calories) each day. Many Americans consume an average of 475 calories of added sugar each day, sometimes by eating foods that they think are healthy!

The 95210 tenants recommend zero exposure to sugar for children. But that means more than just dumping our the candy jar and swapping soda for water. There are many places where sugar is hiding in our foods. Are these sugar-shocked foods in your pantry?

Reduced Fat Items

Reduced fat sounds good, but many times, sugar is added to replace the flavor lost when fat is removed. But, it's hiding behind the names of maltodextrin, corn syrup solids and molasses. Other names for sugar include:

• agave nectar,
• brown sugar, 
• cane crystals, 
• cane sugar, 
• corn sweetener, 
• corn syrup, 
• high fructose corn syrup, 
• crystalline fructose, 
• dextrose, 
• evaporated cane juice, 
• fructose, 
• fruit juice concentrates, 
• glucose, 
• honey, 
• invert sugar, 
• lactose, 
• maltose, 
• malt syrup, 
• molasses, 
• raw sugar, 
• sucrose, and 
• syrup

Sauces and Marinades
Barbecue sauce, ketchup, and marinades often add up to four teaspoons of sugar to our foods! Its easy to overdo it on these condiments, so use a teaspoon to measure out a portion for your meal, and calculate it when you are logging your calories. These seemingly minimal additions to our plate really add up in sugar and calories!

"Light" Salad Dressing
Just as in reduced fat items, foods that are promoted as "lite" or having fewer calories often have more sugar or are sweetened with artificial sweeteners, which have been linked to sugar cravings. Check the food label for the amount of sugar in your store-bought dressing or make your own with some of these recipes.

Cereal and Granola Bars
Cereal is a quick and easy go-to breakfast for busy mornings, and sometimes an even easier dinner for tired nights! But some bowls of cereal can add up to three teaspoons of added sugar per serving. Even cereals marketed to adults have more sugar than necessary, and in some granola bars sugar is one of the first ingredients. Check out these Worst Cereals for Kids and these Best Bets in the Cereal Aisle to make sure you are fueling with something good for you. 

Sugar is a necessary part of a balanced diet. Adequate carbohydrates are essential for brain functioning and sports performance, and there is a place for sugar in baking and other recipes. But, sweetness and sports fuel can be effectively found in fruits, vegetables, and wholesome foods. When you decrease the amount of added sugar in the foods you eat, your body benefits.

Read a few labels and take some extra time at the grocery store this week. You may find that sugar tenant is easier to reach than you thought!

Healthy Living on the Road

The 95210 tenants are all about healthy living at home, work, and school. But what happens when we hit the road? With Spring Break next week and summer vacation on the horizon, road trips offer an escape from the daily grind. But, they don't have to be an escape from your healthy habits. It is possible to be healthy on vacation, and this video is full of ideas for how to do it.

Healthy habits are portable! They come with us wherever we go. Pack yours up when you leave for vacation and return feeling healthy, vibrant, and energetic!

On the go or on the road, www.95210.org has a mobile site so you can access it on your smart phone. Log in each day and track your healthy 95210 habits no matter where you vacation takes you!

Tallahassee Hosts a Healthy Spring Break

The 95210 tenant of getting one hour of physical activity can be difficult to reach when you work full time and when kids spend much of their day inside. But, with Leon County Schools on Spring Break next week, its a great time to search out some active ways to spend your time. Many local camps offer active respite for classroom-weary kids, or if you are taking the week off as well, there are plenty of ways to stay active all week long. 

 

Check out these fun and action-packed opportunities for your kids to stay active during the upcoming break from school, as well as local exploring you can do as a family. This article is republished courtesy of www.FitTallahassee.com.

Day 1: Go Hiking!
Wakulla Springs, Forestmeadows Park, the Miccosukee Greenway, and Maclay Gardens all offer kid-friendly hikes that foster a greater appreciation of the beautiful natural resources of Tallahassee. Pack water bottles, granola bars, dried fruit, and wear sunscreen to make sure your hike is as safe as it is healthy and fun.

Day 2: ARTS After School
Karate, dance, conditioning, and playground games are balanced with art, music, sewing, and free play to provide a well-rounded day of healthy activity. Drop-in rates are just $37 per child, or you can attend for the week for $185. Bring a lunch and water to stay fueled for fun all day long.

Day 3: Lace up your skates!
Skate World is open for spring break from 12:00 pm – 3:00 pm, so head over for some fun, music-infused fitness. Skating not only improves cardiovascular fitness, muscle strength, and lung capacity, the American Council on Fitness reports that One hour on inline skates burns about as many calories as running while strengthening your leg muscles and connecting tissues.  It’s also really fun!

Day 4: Rock Out!
If a week at home watching television makes you feel like you’re about to climb the walls, try climbing the walls at the Tallahassee Rock Gym instead. They’re open at 3:00 pm each afternoon, and invite kids as young as five years old to come and try out their fun and unique workout. Kids will gain confidence as they learn a new skill, all while burning calories and gaining strength.

Day 5: Hit the Gym
International Gold Gymnastics has a spring break camp that offers full-day, half-day, all-week, or single-day options for kids looking for fun and fitness. $50 for a full-day and $35 for a half-day provides gymnastics, arts and crafts, snacks, and fun games. Gymnastics helps kids learn balance and coordination, and is a great way for them to just have fun being active!

Spring break is a great time to start thinking about how to spend summer vacation. These tastes of Tallahassee’s more active camp ideas might be inspiration for planning an active and healthy summer break, as well. Do you have a favorite active spot for kids? Share them in the comments below!

That Burned How Many Calories? Tenant #4: Physical Activity

www.freedigitalphotos.net

Getting an hour of exercise each day is a great goal, and one that we all would agree goes a long way towards promoting better health. After all, the more exercise we get, the more calories we burn! And, exercise is also a contributor to lower blood pressure, cholesterol, stress levels, and body weight. There is no shortage of reasons to exercise.

Time, however, is another hurdle. We're busy! Its hard to find time to get to the gym and work up a sweat for 60 minutes every day. Well, there is good news - you may not necessarily need to. Check out the calorie burns for these common activities, many of which you probably need to do around your house!

Raking Leaves:  Go ahead and let those leaves pile up…for now. An hour of working up a sweat by raking them will earn you 275 calories.  Put some muscle into it and get a great upper body workout!

Bagging Leaves or Pine Straw: Bagging those leaves and hauling to the curb will add 255 calories to your daily burn.  Keep your core muscles strong by remembering to bend at the knees and lift heavy loads carefully. Doing these multi-functional squats will work your lower body including hamstrings, quads, and glutes!

Planting Shrubs: Planting saplings or shrubs, including digging holes and hauling plants around the yard, will set you back almost 300 calories an hour. Be sure to drink plenty of water while you work; fall may be around the corner but Southern temperatures still reach almost 90 throughout September. Stay cool  and hydrated to prevent overheating!

Chopping and Splitting Wood: Mild winter nights are perfect for spending time outside around a festive bonfire! So, you’ll be glad that you took time now to chop and split the wood you’ll need to build it. To reward your work, deduct 380 calories from your day for every hour spent at the axe.

Sweeping the Garage or Driveway: Once your fall chores are done, its time to clean up! Sweeping might not seem like much work, but an hour’s work will reward you with 250 calories burned. At that rate, you may be motivated to volunteer sweeping services to your neighbors, too!

Now, does doing these chores mean you can skip the gym? Not so fast! Making exercise a regular part of your day in an intentional way is an important habit to create. It strengthens your body and immune system, burns calories, and gives you valuable time to do something positive for yourself each day. Instead these examples may provide inspiration for finding other ways to make your day more active overall.

Look around for opportunities to squeeze in exercise...they may be hiding right in front of you!

Log your exercise time and more at www.95210.org each day!

Mixed Messages: Food Marketing and Your Family

Our video message this week is a continuation of exploring the role of screen time and other marketing messages on our health. Many times, media messages affect the way we act and make decisions without our even knowing it. Here are some ways that you can identify when that is happening and then create new behaviors to stop it in its tracks!

 

Track your screen time (and rack up valuable points) and other 95210 numbers every day at www.95210.org. Members may now retroactively log 95210 numbers by clicking on the arrow next to each tenant to go to the previous day! Try it out today and keep logging!

Does TV Make Us Fat? Ways to reduce TV time (but still chill out together)

-->

Is this family on their way to increased weight?

Family Movie Night! Make the popcorn (did you know you can air-pop it in the microwave with a paper bag?), put on your comfy clothes, and settle in for something fun that will erase away the stress of a busy day. Ahhhhh..... But wait! If you also spent time updating your Facebook page today, let your kids use the iPad to play Angry Birds while you waited for that doctor appointment, or had the television on in the background during breakfast, that movie might need to be a 30-minute program rather than a full-length feature. 

Why? Well, more and more research is showing that too much screen time increases the risk of obesity. Sedentary activities like watching television, using computers and smart phones, and playing video games burn few calories and replace time that could be spent being active. And, TV can actually promote obesity by encouraging us to eat more junk food based on the advertisements we see.

That's why the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that children and teens limit TV/media time to no more than two hours per day. 

Did you know?

·      Studies that follow children over long periods of time consistently show that increases in television viewing lead to increases in weight.

·      Research reveals that children who have televisions in their bedrooms are more likely to gain weight than children who don’t.

·      Two studies that followed children from birth found that TV viewing in childhood is an accurate predictor of obesity in adulthood.

So how can you keep family movie night without contributing to poor health?  First, be choosy about what you watch on television and set a timer for video games.  Avoid commercials when you can, and fast-forward through them when possible to reduce their impression on our decisions. And, encourage your local television station to avoid placing advertisements for fast food products in programs designed for children.

Watching TV as a family is fun and can provide necessary downtime for everyone. But as in most things, too much of it can detract from the value it brings. Swap out one movie night for board games! Play charades and act out your favorite scenes from movies you love. Or, cuddle up with a great audio book and let your imaginations paint the scenes!  

Raise Awareness through Food Logging: 3 Easy Ways

You've heard the advice before - keep a food journal to lose weight. It's popular advice for a good reason. People who log their food lose more weight and keep it off longer than those who don't. That's why 95210: Adding it up for Health is important. The awareness gained from tracking our numbers helps keep health at the top of our minds and makes it easier to make even healthier choices.

But food logging doesn't have to be tedious or time consuming. Here are three easy ways to build your food awareness at different levels of effort.

Awareness comes at many levels. Choose the right level for you and see your health improve as you continue to invest in it!

Next week we will learn about the impact of screen time on our weight. Until then, keep logging in every day at www.95210.org to track your numbers! Happy tracking! -->

Help! I don't like vegetables!

-->

www.freedigitalphotos.net

So you don't like vegetables. I know, I know. You were probably forced to eat them as a kid and now you're worried that to catch up to your veggie-loving friends you either have to be a foodie with access to exotic ingredients or start drinking green smoothies with kale and radishes and who knows what else in them.

Relax. If you enjoy cooking and green smoothies get you going in the morning, that's great! But if you don't, that's okay. This week we're going to cover some ideas for eating more green, even if you still consider ketchup a vegetable (sorry, it's not).  

Fruits and vegetables are the most health-promoting foods on the planet. They help ward off disease, improve immunity, and keep us full when we are trying to lose weight. And, the more vegetables you eat, the better. While eating vegetables doesn't guarantee that you won't get cancer, a recent study shows that individuals who increased their veggie servings from two to five a day significantly decreased their cancer risk. Its enough to get me to open up and say spinach! 

Here's how you can start liking veggies a little more:

1. Eat the ones you can tolerate. Baby carrots, corn on the cob, green beans...these dinnertime staples might not be fancy or fashionable, but they have bona-fide health benefits that shouldn't be ignored. Start with the foods you like, and give your tastebuds a chance to get used to new flavors. Then, start branching out into one new veggie every week or so.

2. Use dips and spreads to add flavor. Dipping raw vegetables into a small amount of healthy salad dressing (*ahem* a small amount of healthy salad dressing) can add flavor to veggies and make them fun for kids to eat. Hummus and natural peanut butter are also great dips and spreads. Keep calories in check by limiting your dip to two tablespoons, and if you need help determining what a healthy salad dressing might be, try out Newman's Own Creamy Balsamic.

3. Add veggies to dishes you are already making. Top whole wheat pizza with green peppers, mushrooms, chopped tomatoes, and black olives. Toss some zucchini into your spaghetti sauce. Mix spinach into your hamburgers. Look for opportunities to blend vegetables into your day, and before you know it, the new flavors will become something you look forward to.

Get more ideas for incorporating vegetables into your day in this video. And, continue to login and track your numbers at www.95210.org. 

Now get going...eat a rainbow every day!