You & Your Children Need Enough Food
Chapter One
You & Your Children Need Enough Food
BALANCE THE DIETS
Sounds crazy, but this is where it all starts! Food.
It just seems like rush, rush, rush every day. No ease up on the weekend even. When will this stop? Everyone talks about rushing to leave the house, to get the lunches packed. And if you decide to go on an outing for a break it is still a rush.
So let’s talk about what makes up the diets before we get to the best Bento boxes or lunch containers diet for you, Mom.
Preschooler children, kids in their teens and preteens all need to eat and they do eat a lot. They need a balanced diet each and every day. Food is the source of their energy. A hungry child, i.e. a child who is not getting the right mix of nutrients, cannot learn or play.
Happy, Healthy Moms know a balanced diet is the best way to ensure that a child has enough food for the day.
Really Successful Moms use a food journal. Start for a week and in no time you can do without it. Each day you write down what you want the child to eat for each meal including school lunch. Take a look at it at the end of each day. Then you will know exactly what might be missing and you want more of.
Balance means you have all the food groups covered. Some days will be better than others but by the end of the week you will have it balanced.
Once there is balance there is enough energy for each day.
In a recent study (2016) JAMA Paediatrics found that children who are overweight by age 10 are at a greater risk to develop type 2 diabetes. This is why veggie based diets really are the best. This other study, still talking about type 2 diabetes, which followed 200,000 health professionals across the USA, showed that you are 34% better off if you had a plant-based diet with lots of fruits, nuts and veggies. They even preferred home-cooking.
Remember, children get their energy from proteins and carbohydrates. Not just carbohydrates. So don’t be afraid to put different things in their lunch box like seaweed strips or fruit bars. They might stand out from the crowd, but the other children will soon envy them.
Key!! Key!! Lots of magnesium, calcium and REAL food, reduces their exposure to environmental toxins and keeps that immune system going at full blast.
Don’t forget to eat together at least once per day. Children will learn the social graces sitting at the table and practicing to say their grace before eating.
You will be addicted to this cooking
There is a lot of talk about children not liking vegetables. I do not agree. I see many children eating vegetables in all forms. The thing is to make vegetables the norm, not the unusual.
Why not try juices that are tasty, like mixing kale and apple juice or carrot juice (2 large carrots) with a little beet (one medium sized beet) in a juicer. If you have a juicer then it is easy to make sure there is no fibre. If not maybe a strainer would help as they don’t usually like the pulp or fibre. Both of these juices have a natural sweet taste.
You have to find something that keeps them through the mid- morning so no hunger pangs. Hunger pangs mean hangry kids. So, have a good breakfast with lots of protein, whether it is eggs, cereal, oatmeal or pancakes.
Oh, for the pancake, add seeds or fruits to the pancake. I find it is better to add fruits on top of the pancake once it is made, along with the syrup and or honey. It works. How about a fruit protein smoothie? This is great especially when you are running late. Just add some raw food protein or whey protein to milk or real fruit juice (not juice made from a concentrate). Whey protein comes in chocolate form also. Shake well.
There’s nothing wrong with boxed juices made from real fruit, especially when on sale!!
Someone has gluten allergies? Stay away from wheat. That means together with your fish and meat, include legumes, fruits, vegetables, rice, potatoes. All naturally gluten free.
Non-dairy diet? There are lots of alternate milks in addition to soya. Almond and Oat are very popular, sweetened and unsweetened, with or without vanilla flavoring.
For dinner sweet potatoes are great as a side dish. You get the Vitamin A for the eyes and the anti-oxidant for the body. I usually give them candied sweet potatoes. Check out any recipe. All you have to do is slice the sweet potatoes and put them in the oven (350 degrees) with brown sugar and cinnamon sprinkled lavishly on top. Line the pan with parchment paper, add some oil (not too much) and place the slices of sweet potatoes side by side close on the paper. Bake for about 15 mins or when soft and sugar melted.
For snacks. You know those toppings you use on ice cream and pizza etc.? Well, make a topping for your next pizza from blended kale leaves with salt and a little black pepper and a little thyme and add crushed tomatoes. Homemade pizza gives us a chance to be creative with toppings using chicken chunks, spinach melted in cheese or pesto sauce instead of tomato sauce!
How about sweet toppings from nuts and yogurt and honey. There you go. Instant success and the tweens and teens can do this themselves.
Oh there are so many ways!!
Now for You MOM!!
The Bento Box is all about packing on the Go. Carrying lunches around can get messy or unbalanced. These suggestions try to avoid that mistake. I have found you can use the traditional Japanese Bento box or there are some pretty cool little old time small canisters that work well as you are able to separate what you are eating. This comes in pretty handy on a quick overnight visit to the mountains with the neighbors.
What I notice also is that the children love the feel of something different from the ole school lunch box. This is really simple, 3 compartments. You can get as creative as you wish!! The important thing is balance so fruits, vegetables and protein must be there. If you have a high metabolic rate don’t forget the carbohydrates.
Here is a link which shows insulated food jars and bento type boxes
https://www.eatingwell.com/article/290416/the-best food-storage-containers-for-packing-kids-lunch-boxes/
Are you thinking about trying vegetarian options?
What does it mean to be vegetarian?
There are vegans who eat no animal products. So that includes no diary. But there are vegetarians who eat no dairy products or others that eat no meat or fish. Some vegetarians will eat fish but no animal products.
How do we get all the food types in our daily intake?
PROTEINS
You will need to replace animal protein with beans, nuts maybe nut-butters and grains and vegetables and legumes. If you eat eggs and dairy add these also.
P.S. Go further than peanut butter. What about those tasty nut butters. I find they go well with some honey on top. https://www.nutstoyou.ca/
IRON
Add the peas and the lentils as well as those great cereals with all the additives. Pastas especially brown rice and spinach pastas also. Humus made from chick peas is also great. Make sure you add Vitamin C from fruit for the absorption of iron from the cereals. Don’t forget water. Lots of water.
VITAMIN D AND VITAMIN B12
I always have to remember these 2 specially. The best thing to do is to use supplements. The sun is best for Vitamin D but there might be winter and short days. For Vitamin D for children aim at 1000 IU per day (buy liquid with a dropper and Vitamin D made from natural/food products, not synthetic). For adults, no less than 5000 IU per day as in winter it does not replenish itself.
CALCIUM
Don’t worry if you are not eating dairy products. Vegetables and fruit juices are great such as kale and dark green vegetables. Always make your vegetables a mix of colours and you will be eating right.
Beans, tortillas, rice, potatoes, barley and an egg base are good substitutes for pasta every day.
Again go for the supplements especially for the children. Liquid calcium is great as it is easily absorbed and helps them to get a peaceful rest at night.
Check out an agency called Sol cuisine in the USA and Canada for Non-GMO Project certified tofu, veggie burgers, veggie dogs, veggie ribs, falafel, veggie burger dry mix, veggie crumbles and more, including soy-free options. These are all great if you do not have the time for preparing from scratch. There also great vegetarian cook books around. I like “But I could never go Vegan” by Kristy Turner. It’s great.
This recipe below is for easy cooking chicken/vegetable curry.
Nowadays, life seems to be getting busier whether everyone is going out to work or staying at home. In places like Canada the days get shorter in the winter and in the warmer climates, days just don’t seem to be the same. We are always trying to find a quicker way to do things. But that quicker way needs to have the same dietary value as before. When we work more we need more energy, even the kids need more good, food-energy to get them through their busy days.
The meals need to be just as nourishing even if they take less time to cook. Remember, It cannot be soy products every day as that is no good for young children. And the meals must look good. Our children will never eat their meals willingly if the meal looks unappetizing.
When they are hungry and getting older you can include all types of vegetables as long as you make sure to cut them up in cubes so they stand out.
This curry is good served over rice or quinoa. You will need a 3-quart slow cooker or pot for this recipe. You can even use a casserole dish and bake in the oven at 350 degrees F for about 1 hour.
Ingredients
1 medium onion, cut into crescent moons 4 chicken breasts or thigh meat (boneless) or substitute veggie protein chunks
4 large carrots, cut into small cubes 2 Roma tomatoes, diced
1 can coconut milk with cilantro and seasonings stirred in
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon curry powder and turmeric 2 teaspoons Herbamare or sea salt 1 cup fresh or frozen green peas
Directions
1. Place the onions in the bottom of the slow cooker or pot on medium heat
2. Add coconut milk and seasonings for a minute
3. Add chicken or veggie chunks to the slow cooker/pot along with the remaining ingredients.
4. Gently stir, cover, and cook on medium heat for an hour or so
5. If you have frozen peas add them just before it is finished cooling
6. Serve
You might want to try out the world famous Range by the company Iceland. These are slow cooking gourmet combos you can rustle up at home. Another quick one is the Paneer wrap made of soft paneer with fresh veggies, rolled in a batter and dipped in a sauce made of ground/ crushed almonds and lemon juice. Uuuhmmm .
