Simple ways 4 better nutrition for the whole family, youngest is 7.?

Question

what does your family eat, cook, preparation methods that you do to increase the nutrition in your family? I'm trying to move away from processed foods (boxed, frozen meals etc) and towards more fresh stuff, higher in nutrients....???

Answer 1

-Add a serving of vegetables and fruits to each meal
-Take all the soft-drinks (like soda) out of the fridge and toss them
-Stock up on waters or flavored waters
-Always have fresh fruit and vegetables on hand
-Switch all white bread and pasta to whole grain
-For cooking vegetables, steam them, it keeps the most nutrients this way
-Don't add unneccisary calories and fats to your meals (butter, oil, salt, etc.)
-If your willing to make the switch, go organic. Organic food has no chemicals or pesticides
-Drink soymilk. Its good and full of nutrients, and comes in a large variety of flavors.
-Take away all sugary empty calorie snacks: chips,chocolate, cookies, etc.
-For dessert, have fruit or make a fruit based dessert
- And lastly, DO NOT EAT FAST FOOD!

Hope that helps (:

Answer 2

I bake or stove top cook my food. I use the microwave only to heat up things but not for making a meal (cause I heard it loses flavor in there). I pour juice over the veggies and meat but when I put food in the baking pan I make sure it doesn't sit in the juice, fat or grease. When I boil vegetables I don't boil them too long. I heard steaming them is better. Boiling too long loses nutrients. For little children you might have to peel everything or de-string things like beans, or they might not like spinach or certain kinds of fish because they can't eat around the bones or they might balk at certain things like asparagus or cauliflower..

I have Carnation Instant Breakfast dark chocolate with milk. There's lots of vitamins and minerals in both. Plus I know that these days there isn't as much vitamins and minerals in the food we eat as there used to be so I supplement with a vitamin with minerals each day (one-a-day).

Answer 3

The best way is to use fresh veggies and fruits as snacks and side dishes. Have the kids help you make salads and season vegetables/fruits. You don't have to cook most fruits and vegetables and this makes them faster and easier to serve. Just make sure you wash them well. For example, you can serve baby carrots fresh out of the bag for snacks or for a dinner/lunchbox side dish.

Answer 4

1. Large bowl of varying kinds of fruit left on table for picking and snacks (grapes, plums, cherries, bananas, apples, oranges, blueberries, lichee, quenepas, guava, passionfruit, mango)

2. No soda in fridge! Only organic milk, organic 100% fruit juice or V8 Fusion, fresh brewed tea (I prefer green tea sweetened with agave nectar - a completely NATURAL sweetener alternative to sugar) in fridge.

3. On table next to fruit bowl a filled pretty water jug with matching cup (believe it or not, an eye pleasing/eye catching container can make all the difference in the world!)

3. In pantry, wheat germ for sprinkling over ice cream. Peanut Butter or even better Almond Butter for spreading on whole grain crackers, apple slices or carrots (NOT BABY CARROTS***).

4. In freezer, for no cooking days, kashi frozen meals.

It's human nature to reach for the first thing in front of you.

***keep in mind the most common baby carrots (not french or belgian carrots) are just carrots that have been peeled and cut into uniform cylinders for convenience sake.

Fresh vegetables are very healthy with all of the vitamins, minerals and fiber they provide. Precut and peeled vegetables are convenient, however, they will begin to lose their nutritional value. Fresh produce will lose half or more of some of its vitamins within one to two weeks. You should buy smaller amounts of fresh vegetables more often to get the most nutritional benefit. Just purchase enough to last a few days, or buy frozen vegetables when you need to keep them for a long time.

Answer 5

use whole grain rice, pasta, and wheat products (bread, flour, etc.)

More fresh or frozen fruits/veggies, fewer canned

lowfat dairy products (2% cheese, 1% milk, lowfat yogurt)

lean meats and poultry

fish at least twice a week

cut back on sugar and sugared drinks; consume more water or Crystal Light or Splenda-sweetened Kool-Aid

eat what's fresh and in-season, eat a wide variety of foods, not the same 5 over and over.

Answer 6

If your kids are picky eaters, serve yummy veggies + fruits. For example, I bake zuchinni bread and pumpkin bread, which is actually good for you (don't have too much though, it has a lot of calories). Serve veggies with lunch and dinner, and nothing gross like cauliflower. Try fun recipes like broccoli 'trees' and baby carrots. I like grilled chicken with rice and broccoli with skim milk as a quick, simple, nutritious dinner. Don't buy unhealthy foods (chips, ice cream, etc) and there won't be a temptation to eat unhealthily.

Answer 7

I agree as far as keeping a bowl of fruit on the table. Also I notice something that helps me personally, is I buy the already cut fruit from the store such as watermelon, because I'm t10 times more likely to eat it if I don't have to cut it up.

Also as far as that one person saying to eat fish at least twice a week, you actually want to have it maybe once a week because all fish have mercury in them, and they will have more mercury in them depending on where they are caught. If you eat too much fish you can get mercury poisoning, and that sucks.