Best of health to you and your families…..Christy Lee Taylor
I am a Mommy on a Mission!
I have three little ones, a 3 ½ year old son and twin 7 month old daughters. I have always been interested in health and nutrition, but after I had my son I became even more vigilant about it. I wanted him to be as healthy as he possibly could. So I started doing a lot of reading and researching and have learned some great information. I now speak to groups about health and nutrition and love helping families get healthier! As a former collegiate All-American Volleyball player and collegiate coach I know the importance of nutrition for athletes also and enjoy speaking to them and their teams as well! I am not a registered nutritionist or dietician, so if you have any concerns or questions please see your doctor or nutritionist. These are just some suggestions I have from my many hours of learning….….again, I am a Mommy on a Mission to try and change the way we are feeding our kids…..hope you find some beneficial information in here!
TIPS FOR BABIES:
Nurse as long as possible. Great for baby and nursing for more than 12 months reduces the risk of breast cancer to the mother. I wonder if you can double that for nursing twins?
Avocado is a great food for babies just starting on food. After they turned 6 months old I just gave my twins girls Organic Rice Cereal mixed with breastmilk first and then Organic Avocado. It is full of healthy fats. Try to wait until baby is 6 months old to start them on any foods.
If possible buy organic baby food. Considering how many chemicals are sprayed on fruits and vegetables and how small babies are, they are consuming very high amounts of pesticides if not eating organic. A big part of their diet is fruits and veggies especially in the first year. If you can’t afford all organic, try to buy the fruits and veggies listed below in organic:
To see the full list of 43 fruits and veggies go to http://www.foodnews.org/
TIPS FOR CHILDREN
CUT BACK ON SUGAR
The average American child is eating about 5 lbs. of sugar a week! Sugar breaks down the immune system and makes you more susceptible to disease. A candy bar and a coke can suppress your immune system for 6 hours!! Try not to get into the “finish your dinner and you can have dessert” mentality. I would think this would make dessert seem more important than dinner. If you really want to serve dessert try some cut up fruit or fruit pops. (Take 100% fruit juice and freeze in popsicle molds or freeze bananas or cherries etc…) Try not to reward kids with candy, instead try toys or stickers instead. According to the Wall Street Journal in March of 2004 “Children are more harmed by poor diet than by alcohol, tobacco, and drugs combined.” Thankfully most parents know to tell their children to avoid alcohol, tobacco, and drugs; however they are unaware what constitutes a healthy diet.
CNN.com
Study: Toddlers eat too much junk food
• 1/3 consume no fruits or vegetables
• French fries - most common selection
• 20% -fries daily
• 25% -hot dogs, sausages, and bacon daily
• 70% -dessert or candy daily.
• 40% – sugar fruit drink a day
• 10% - soda daily
STAY AWAY FROM COLORS AND NUMBERS
Stay away from colors and numbers (Red #40, Blue #2, Yellow #5 & #6 etc…)
“Synthetic food dyes can bring about many behavior problems, even when children eat only a small amount…they can also cause respiratory problems. Here are some of the behaviors that have been attributed to eating food dyes: attention deficits, irritability, restlessness, sleep disturbance, aggression, and hyperactivity.
The American Academy of Pediatrics' Committee on Drugs
CUT BACK ON HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP
According to Elson Hass, MD in Staying Healthy With Nutrition it is the #1 cause of obesity.
SNACK IDEA AND EASY FRUITS AND VEGGIES
Dr. William Sears from askdrsears.com recommends doing a muffin tin snack tray. Fill up a muffin tin with lots of healthy choices (depending on the child’s age, be careful none are choking hazards), walnuts, almonds, blueberries, grapes, carrots, hummus, strawberries, etc… and keep on a low shelf in the fridge where the child can access it on their own. It is healthy for them to graze and snack throughout the day as opposed to eating just 3 meals a day. Remember ELMO “Eat Less More Often.” Dr. Sears also highly recommends a product called JUICE PLUS+, he recommends it to his patients and also recommends the shake they make for breakfast, he calls it the brainy breakfast. For more information about Juice Plus+ go to www.jpandme.com; there is currently a Children’s Research Study underway in which children between the ages of six and fifteen can get the product for free with an adult sponsor. Juice Plus+ is basically fruits, veggies, and grains in capsules, chewables, and gummies!! A great way to get your children to eat their spinach and kale! AND there are no pesticides! For babies you can simply open a capsule and mix it into their baby food.
EXERCISE
Make sure your children are getting regular activity. With television, video games, and the internet so popular children have stopped playing outside and have become very inactive. Encourage your children to play outside and engage in physical activities every day!!
TIPS FOR ATHELTES
DON’T EAT RED MEAT OR PORK WITHIN 24 HOURS OF COMPETING
These meats are hard to digest.
ELIMINATE CAFFEINE AND CARBONATED DRINKS (SODA)
Caffeine acts as a diuretic, which causes the body to lose excess water thus putting you at risk for dehydration. Soda contains phosphates that leach calcium from the bones. It also has excessive amounts of sugar, which may cause stomach cramping if consumed before exercise.
What about Sports Drinks?
Sports drinks can be helpful to athletes who are exercising at a high intensity for 60 minutes or more. Fluids supplying 60 to 100 calories per 8 ounces help to supply the needed calories required for continuous performance. It's really not necessary to replace losses of sodium, potassium and other electrolytes during exercise since you're unlikely to deplete your body's stores of these minerals during normal training. If, however, you find yourself exercising in extreme conditions over 3 or 5 hours (a marathon, Ironman or ultramarathon, for example) you may likely want to add a complex sports drink with electrolytes. http://sportsmedicine.about.com/od/hydrationandfluid/a/ProperHydration.htm
TRY TO EAT COMPLEX CARBOHYDRATES BEFORE COMPETITION
Examples include: Whole grain breads, whole wheat pasta, fruit etc….
EAT ENOUGH CALORIES
Be sure to eat enough calories. Food is fuel, without it you will run out of energy! Try eating 5 small meals per day instead of 3.
TIPS FOR EVERYONE INCLUDING THE KIDS
ELIMINATE TRANS FAT
“Trans Fat” AKA Partially or Fully Hydrogenated oil is not safe on any level. Look at your labels; if you see hydrogenated oil, don’t buy it. Look in the Greenwise section of Publix or try Whole Foods or Nutrition World for options without trans fats.
• “Probably the most toxic fats ever known.” Harvard School of Public Health
• “No level of trans-fat is safe.” National Academies of Science
STAY HYDRATED
Drink a minimum of ½ your body weight in ounces of water every day (more if you are physically active or live in warm climate) Ex: A 140 lb. person would drink at least 70 oz per day. A 50 lbs. child would drink at least 25 oz. per day. This is plain water, not flavored water, tea, juice etc…
SHOP THE PERIMETER:
At the grocery store try to shop the perimeter, stay on the outside, not in the middle. Let your young children come along and let them help you pick out fresh produce, it might take a little longer, but what a great way to teach them about eating healthy. There is a great website http://fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/ and a new link from there to http://www.foodchamps.org/ that has some GREAT games and ideas for making fruits and veggies fun!
GET ENOUGH SLEEP:
Try to get at least 8 hours of sleep a night. I have heard the hours before midnight can actually count as 2. I know as the mommy of 3 that sometimes this can be hard, but try to do it!
GET YOUR OMEGA 3’s
Omega 3 essential fatty acids are very important for your health and for your child’s developing brain. Good sources of Omega 3’s are walnuts (you can even tell your kids they look like little brains), flaxseeds (be sure to grind them first, coffee grinders work great), and cold water fatty fish, like salmon.
EAT YOUR FRUITS AND VEGGIES:
Fruits and veggies are essential to get in your diet each and every day. You want to get at least 9-13 servings of FRESH and RAW fruits and veggies every day. When you cook your food at temperatures over 118 degrees it kills most of the nutrients. God knew what He was doing when he made these powerhouse foods, they are full of disease fighting phytonutrients!
EAT ORGANIC WHEN YOU CAN:
The more you can afford organic the better, but if you are on a budget try to buy your meats, dairy, and your thinner skinned fruits and veggies (see list above) organic. When you can’t afford organic for your fruits and veggies fill up your kitchen sink with water and add a couple of tablespoons of Coarse Sea Salt or a tablespoon of white vinegar and let them soak for 5 minutes and then rinse them in water. It helps remove some of the pesticides.
EXERCISE
Try to get up and get moving as often as possible! Being stagnant all the time is not good for the insides, think about a pond with pond scum covering it, you don’t want your insides to look like that.
ELIMINATE THE USE OF ARTIFICIAL SWEETNERS
(Splenda, Sweet and Low, Equal etc…)are BAD for you….instead try Pure Stevia Extract (I personally use Kal Brand) to sweeten drinks like iced tea or lemonade.
Nurse as long as possible. Great for baby and nursing for more than 12 months reduces the risk of breast cancer to the mother. I wonder if you can double that for nursing twins?
TIPS FOR CHILDREN
CUT BACK ON SUGAR
SNACK IDEA AND EASY FRUITS AND VEGGIES
Dr. William Sears from askdrsears.com recommends doing a muffin tin snack tray. Fill up a muffin tin with lots of healthy choices (depending on the child’s age, be careful none are choking hazards), walnuts, almonds, blueberries, grapes, carrots, hummus, strawberries, etc… and keep on a low shelf in the fridge where the child can access it on their own. It is healthy for them to graze and snack throughout the day as opposed to eating just 3 meals a day. Remember ELMO “Eat Less More Often.” Dr. Sears also highly recommends a product called JUICE PLUS+, he recommends it to his patients and also recommends the shake they make for breakfast, he calls it the brainy breakfast. For more information about Juice Plus+ go to www.jpandme.com; there is currently a Children’s Research Study underway in which children between the ages of six and fifteen can get the product for free with an adult sponsor. Juice Plus+ is basically fruits, veggies, and grains in capsules, chewables, and gummies!! A great way to get your children to eat their spinach and kale! AND there are no pesticides! For babies you can simply open a capsule and mix it into their baby food.
Make sure your children are getting regular activity. With television, video games, and the internet so popular children have stopped playing outside and have become very inactive. Encourage your children to play outside and engage in physical activities every day!!
DON’T EAT RED MEAT OR PORK WITHIN 24 HOURS OF COMPETING
These meats are hard to digest.
Caffeine acts as a diuretic, which causes the body to lose excess water thus putting you at risk for dehydration. Soda contains phosphates that leach calcium from the bones. It also has excessive amounts of sugar, which may cause stomach cramping if consumed before exercise.
Sports drinks can be helpful to athletes who are exercising at a high intensity for 60 minutes or more. Fluids supplying 60 to 100 calories per 8 ounces help to supply the needed calories required for continuous performance. It's really not necessary to replace losses of sodium, potassium and other electrolytes during exercise since you're unlikely to deplete your body's stores of these minerals during normal training. If, however, you find yourself exercising in extreme conditions over 3 or 5 hours (a marathon, Ironman or ultramarathon, for example) you may likely want to add a complex sports drink with electrolytes. http://sportsmedicine.about.com/od/hydrationandfluid/a/ProperHydration.htm
Examples include: Whole grain breads, whole wheat pasta, fruit etc….
Be sure to eat enough calories. Food is fuel, without it you will run out of energy! Try eating 5 small meals per day instead of 3.
TIPS FOR EVERYONE INCLUDING THE KIDS
ELIMINATE TRANS FAT
“Trans Fat” AKA Partially or Fully Hydrogenated oil is not safe on any level. Look at your labels; if you see hydrogenated oil, don’t buy it. Look in the Greenwise section of Publix or try Whole Foods or Nutrition World for options without trans fats.
Drink a minimum of ½ your body weight in ounces of water every day (more if you are physically active or live in warm climate) Ex: A 140 lb. person would drink at least 70 oz per day. A 50 lbs. child would drink at least 25 oz. per day. This is plain water, not flavored water, tea, juice etc…
At the grocery store try to shop the perimeter, stay on the outside, not in the middle. Let your young children come along and let them help you pick out fresh produce, it might take a little longer, but what a great way to teach them about eating healthy. There is a great website http://fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/ and a new link from there to http://www.foodchamps.org/ that has some GREAT games and ideas for making fruits and veggies fun!
Try to get at least 8 hours of sleep a night. I have heard the hours before midnight can actually count as 2. I know as the mommy of 3 that sometimes this can be hard, but try to do it!
Omega 3 essential fatty acids are very important for your health and for your child’s developing brain. Good sources of Omega 3’s are walnuts (you can even tell your kids they look like little brains), flaxseeds (be sure to grind them first, coffee grinders work great), and cold water fatty fish, like salmon.
Fruits and veggies are essential to get in your diet each and every day. You want to get at least 9-13 servings of FRESH and RAW fruits and veggies every day. When you cook your food at temperatures over 118 degrees it kills most of the nutrients. God knew what He was doing when he made these powerhouse foods, they are full of disease fighting phytonutrients!
The more you can afford organic the better, but if you are on a budget try to buy your meats, dairy, and your thinner skinned fruits and veggies (see list above) organic. When you can’t afford organic for your fruits and veggies fill up your kitchen sink with water and add a couple of tablespoons of Coarse Sea Salt or a tablespoon of white vinegar and let them soak for 5 minutes and then rinse them in water. It helps remove some of the pesticides.
Try to get up and get moving as often as possible! Being stagnant all the time is not good for the insides, think about a pond with pond scum covering it, you don’t want your insides to look like that.
(Splenda, Sweet and Low, Equal etc…)are BAD for you….instead try Pure Stevia Extract (I personally use Kal Brand) to sweeten drinks like iced tea or lemonade.
