Heathy Families: One Meal At A time
One thing that we all can agree on is that healthy families start in the kitchen. Meals that have less fat, less oil, sugar, and salt can still garner applause and praise from your family. When we decide to choose a healthy lifestyle, it doesn't mean a life of deprivation. We can still provide satisfying meals that your family will love. With healthy meals we can provide good nutrition with the added bonus that the food tastes delicious. We are all busy, so having a few nutritional tips can assist you when preparing meals that your whole family will enjoy.
Nutrition 101
1. Pick one day per week and try a new meatless dish.
2. Switch from canned fruits and veggies to fresh or frozen.
3. Switch to whole grains.
4. Trying picking foods you've never tried before, like bok choy, kale, collard greens. They are rich in vitamins and minerals.
5. Limit your intake of fat, sugar, oil, and salt.
6. Make one healthy change at a time. For example reduce the amount of juice and soda your family drinks in a week.
Small changes like these can make a difference in the health of your family.
Food for Thought
When preparing meals, consider limiting processed foods, and incorporate more plant-based food sources. When making tacos, use butter lettuce as cups for your filling. In our home we call them Buttercup Tacos.
By adding colored veggies to your salad, you can be confident that your family is getting a rich variety of healthy food, with the added benefit of improving their health.
A healthy diet is all about variety. Try making your meals as colorful as possible
Kylee Fournier - Nutritionist
Quinoa is a good source of protein, and can be substituted for a meat dish. Limiting animal based protein, has been proven to be a positive step toward our health.
In today's life, all of us are busy, and food preparation can be challenging. Taking care of family, working, and all the other demands we have can be daunting. It's important to remember that reaching for packaged process food maybe easier and quicker, but we must consider the long-term impact of that decision.
Studies have indicated that children are developing risk factors for chronic diseases earlier in life. Making small steps toward better health of our families does start with what we provide them at mealtimes.
And So Our Journey Continues…
I invite you to promote health in your family, starting with yourself. We are the best example for our family. Mindful meal planning does not have to be time consuming. Just adding more plant-based nutrition to your menu, is a great start. It's important to make sure that we work to improve our health, one meal at a time. With chronic disease on the rise, it is important to contemplate the following quote:
The doctor of the future will no longer treat the human frame with drugs, but rather will cure and prevent disease with nutrition - Thomas Edison-
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