Simple Changes - Health & Wellness
More and more Americans are gaining an unhealthy amount of weight. Children who gain too much weight are more likely to have health problems when they get older and are also more likely to be overweight adults. Simple changes can make a big difference for the whole family. For overweight children the goal is simple – slow down the rate of weight gain in order to give their bodies a chance to catch up with their weight as they grow taller.
A recent scientific study showed that families can slow the rate of weight gain in overweight children just by making 2 simple changes:
- Cut 100 calories from the daily diet
- Add 2,000 extra steps a day
How can I cut 100 calories per day?
Using SPLENDA® Sweetener Products instead of sugar is an easy way to reduce the added sugar and extra calories in your family’s diet.
How can I encourage my family to make healthier choices all day long?
For younger children:
- Give little ones healthy options and let them choose what they want
- Try making vegetables different ways (raw, steamed, sautéed) until you find one your child likes
- Finely chop vegetables and add them to things like spaghetti sauce, pizza, burgers, or macaroni and cheese
- Make fruit fun: cut it into shapes, dip it in yogurt, sprinkle it with SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener
- Take teens grocery shopping and allow them to choose healthy snacks to keep at home
- Stress the short-term benefits of eating healthy foods—more energy, healthy skin, healthier weight with less effort spent “dieting”
- Add fruits into low-fat pancakes, muffins, smoothies, and puddings
Packing A Healthy Lunchbox
Trimming empty calories from lunches is a snap. Try introducing these healthy foods into your child’s lunchtime routine:
- water, a can of vegetable juice, or 1% milk
- whole wheat bread, bagels, pita pockets, or tortilla wraps
- individual servings of fresh fruit, unsweetened applesauce, or canned fruit in a light syrup or its own juice
- low-fat yogurt, calcium-fortified orange juice, or low-fat cheese
- baked chips, pretzels, breadsticks, popcorn, rice crackers, or other low-fat crackers
- low-fat or fat-free turkey breast, bologna, chicken breast, ham, or roast beef
- graham crackers, dried fruit, trail mix, granola bars, fig bars
- hummus, mustard, or bean dip
- a high-fiber breakfast bar
Some simple ways to cut 100 calories
|A pitcher of KOOL-AID® sweetened with a cup of sugar||A pitcher of KOOL-AID® sweetened with a cup of SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated||678|
|Cereal with 2 teaspoons sugar sprinkled on top||Cereal with one packet of SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener sprinkled on top||28|
|Fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt (6 oz.)||Yogurt made with a no calorie sweetener such as SPLENDA® Brand Sweetener||90|
|8 fluid ounces fresh-squeezed lemonade sweetened with sugar||8 fluid ounces fresh-squeezed lemonade sweetened with SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener||84|
|12 fluid ounces regular cola||12 fluid ounces no-calorie cola sweetened with SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener||140|
|1 chocolate chip cookie||1 chocolate chip cookie baked with SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener||23|
Adding 2,000 Extra Steps A Day Is Easier Than You Think
Two thousand steps equals about 1 mile, or about 15-20 minutes of walking. But nobody is saying you have to take those extra 2,000 steps all at once. They can be easily spread out throughout the day. And secondly, if you have kids, you KNOW how active they can be; there are a lot of ways to include these extra “steps” that have nothing to do with walking. Here are some fun ways you can encourage your children to get their 2,000 extra steps—and you can join in too!
|Instead of having children...||Try having them...|
|Sit while watching TV||Move during every commercial. Do jumping jacks, use a hula hoop, or make up a dance|
|Play computer games after school||Shoot hoops or ride bikes or scooters with other kids in the neighborhood; help out around the house|
|Watch a regular video||Do a jazzercise or hip-hop video or DVD with friends or family|
|Ask to be driven everywhere||When possible, walk, bike, rollerblade or skateboard to where they want to go|
|Spend time with friends just "sitting around"||Go hiking. Play active games you can find at the dollar store; try big bubble wands, jump ropes, hopscotch or Frisbee disc**|
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