source (google.com.pk)
Serving healthy snacks to children is important to providing good nutrition, supporting lifelong healthy eating habits, and helping to prevent costly and potentially-disabling diseases, such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity.
Snacks play a major and growing role in children’s diets. Between 1977 and 1996, the number of calories that children consumed from snacks increased by 120 calories per day.
Below are ideas for teachers, caregivers, program directors, and parents for serving healthy snacks and beverages to children in the classroom, in after-school programs, at soccer games, and elsewhere. Some ideas may be practical for large groups of children, while other ideas may only work for small groups, depending on the work and cost involved.
Healthy Eating Tip: serve snacks with fun plates, napkins, cups, or straws or have a tasting party where children can vote for their favorite healthy snacks.
Fruits and Vegetables
Most of the snacks served to children should be fruits and vegetables, since most kids do not eat the recommended five to thirteen servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Eating fruits and vegetables lowers the risk of heart disease, cancer, and high blood pressure. Fruits and vegetables also contain important nutrients like vitamins A and C and fiber.
Carrot
Serving fresh fruits and vegetables can seem challenging. However, good planning and the growing number of shelf-stable fruits and vegetable products on the market make it easier. Though some think fruits and vegetables are costly snacks, they are actually less costly than many other less-healthful snacks on a per-serving basis. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the average cost of a serving of fruit or vegetable (all types – fresh, frozen, and canned) is 25 cents per serving. This is a good deal compared with a 69-cent single-serve bag of potato chips or an 80-cent candy bar. Try lots of different fruits and vegetables and prepare them in various ways to find out what your kids like best.
Fruit is naturally sweet, so most kids love it. Fruit can be served whole, sliced, cut in half, cubed, or in wedges. Canned, frozen, and dried fruits often need little preparation.
Apples (it can be helpful to use an apple corer)
Apricots
Bananas
Blackberries
Blueberries
Cantaloupe
Cherries
Grapefruit
Grapes (red, green, or purple)
Honeydew Melon
Kiwis (cut in half and give each child a spoon to eat it)
Mandarin Oranges
Mangoes
Nectarines
Oranges
Peaches
Pears
Pineapple
Plums
Raspberries
Strawberries
Tangerines
Watermelon
Applesauce (Unsweetened), Fruit Cups, and Canned Fruit
These have a long shelf life and are low-cost, easy, and healthy if canned in juice or light syrup. Examples of unsweetened applesauce include Mott’s Natural Style and Mott’s Healthy Harvest line. Dole and Del Monte offer a variety of single-serve fruit bowls.
Dried Fruit
Try raisins, apricots, apples, cranberries, pineapple, papaya, and others with little or no added sugars.
Frozen Fruit
Try freezing grapes or buy frozen blueberries, strawberries, peaches, mangoes, and melon.
Fruit Leathers
Some brands of fruit snacks are more like candy than fruit, and should be avoided due to their high content of added sugars and lack of fruit. Brands to avoid include Fruit Rollups, Farley’s Fruit Snacks, Sunkist Fruit Gems, Starburst Fruit Chews, Mamba Fruit Chews, Jolly Rancher Fruit Chews, Original Fruit Skittles, and Amazin’ Fruit Gummy Bears. Try Natural Value Fruit Leathers and Stretch Island Fruit Leathers, which come in a variety of flavors and don’t have added sugars.
Fruit Salad
Get kids to help make a fruit salad. Use a variety of colored fruits to add to the appeal.
Popsicles
Most so-called “fruit” popsicles have added sugars and should be reserved for an occasional treat. Look for popsicles made from 100% fruit juice with no added caloric sweeteners, such as Breyers or Dole “No Sugar Added” fruit bars.
Smoothies
Blend fruit with juice, yogurt or milk, and ice. Many store-made smoothies have added sugars and are not healthy choices.
Deliveries
Deliveries of fresh fruit or platters of cut-up fruit are a convenient option offered by some local grocery stores.
Healthy Snack For Kids Healthy Snacks For Kids for Work for School for Weight Loss Tumblr for Kids at Scool Recipes for Teenagers Photos
Healthy Snack For Kids Healthy Snacks For Kids for Work for School for Weight Loss Tumblr for Kids at Scool Recipes for Teenagers Photos
Healthy Snack For Kids Healthy Snacks For Kids for Work for School for Weight Loss Tumblr for Kids at Scool Recipes for Teenagers Photos
Healthy Snack For Kids Healthy Snacks For Kids for Work for School for Weight Loss Tumblr for Kids at Scool Recipes for Teenagers Photos
Healthy Snack For Kids Healthy Snacks For Kids for Work for School for Weight Loss Tumblr for Kids at Scool Recipes for Teenagers Photos
Healthy Snack For Kids Healthy Snacks For Kids for Work for School for Weight Loss Tumblr for Kids at Scool Recipes for Teenagers Photos
Healthy Snack For Kids Healthy Snacks For Kids for Work for School for Weight Loss Tumblr for Kids at Scool Recipes for Teenagers Photos
Healthy Snack For Kids Healthy Snacks For Kids for Work for School for Weight Loss Tumblr for Kids at Scool Recipes for Teenagers Photos
Healthy Snack For Kids Healthy Snacks For Kids for Work for School for Weight Loss Tumblr for Kids at Scool Recipes for Teenagers Photos
Healthy Snack For Kids Healthy Snacks For Kids for Work for School for Weight Loss Tumblr for Kids at Scool Recipes for Teenagers Photos
Healthy Snack For Kids Healthy Snacks For Kids for Work for School for Weight Loss Tumblr for Kids at Scool Recipes for Teenagers Photos
