(ARA) – Kids need more than new notebooks and pencils to thrive at school. Maintaining a healthy diet and exercise routine plays an important role in ensuring a successful school year, too.

Between running back and forth to soccer practice, dance class or after-work errands, sitting down for family dinners is quickly becoming a rarity. This fast-paced lifestyle makes it all too easy for kids to fall into unhealthy routines. After school, many kids grab junk food for a snack, and spend hours glued to the TV or video games. Therefore, it’s important to help your kids make the right choices by giving them tools and options that are fun and entertaining, yet still healthy.

We all know the importance of having three well-balanced meals a day; however, it is equally important to extend the same healthy practices to snacking. Snacks should be viewed as a fourth meal for kids, as they account for a substantial percentage of your kid’s daily energy and nutrient needs. Developing healthy snacking habits early may have more of an impact on your child’s overall health than you realize.

Here are some simple solutions to kick-off the new school year and improve your child’s well-being by planning an active and healthy after-school routine.

Get them involved

Kids who are involved in planning meals are more likely to eat them. Even if your kids don’t accompany you to the grocery store, getting them involved in the creation of the shopping list is a great way to help your child develop healthy meal planning skills for life.

Make it easy for kids to grab exactly what they should be eating:

* Engage your kids with a fun game or song for putting the groceries away. This interaction will make the process more appealing. Plus, as they help put items away, they will know exactly where they are when it comes time for a snack.

* Place the items you have designated as acceptable after-school snacks toward the front of the shelves, where shorter arms can easily reach.

Stock up on smart snacks

Compared to adults, children have tiny tummies; they generally cannot eat as much in one sitting. It is essential for growing kids to refuel between meals with healthy and nutritious snacks.

Stock-up on portioned, kid-friendly and easy-to-eat items in the fridge and freezer:

* As an alternative to a sugary snack, provide a healthier option that is still just as tasty such as a frozen sorbet treat like Del Monte Fruit Chillers Freeze & Eat Tubes. Each package of these kid-friendly tubes is made from 1 lb. of fruit, is a rich source of vitamin C and doesn’t contain any artificial flavors or corn syrup.

* Make eating veggies more fun by using colorful plastic containers with multiple compartments to store pre-cut veggies such as baby carrots, celery and cucumbers with dips such as light dressings and peanut butter. Kids can have fun mixing and matching their favorites.

* Don’t waste money on individual snack bags. Buy full size bags and boxes of healthy snacks like pretzels and low-sugar cereals and portion into zip-close snack baggies for easy snacking.

Keep active with after-school activities

As most of us know, regular physical activity helps to support healthy sleep patterns, improve bone and muscle development and encourage healthy social skills. Experts suggest that children should have 60 or more minutes of aerobic activity each day. This may sound like a lot, but don’t worry. There are plenty of opportunities for kids to meet the daily amount of recommended physical activity, especially after school.

Keep after school boredom at bay with these ideas:

* Keep an after-school activity basket in the garage or by the door. Include play items such as jump ropes, hula hoops, sidewalk chalk and bubbles that encourage movement. Have the kids decorate the basket with markers and puffy paint for another fun activity.

* If the kids are going to play video games, why not make it an interactive one that requires them to get up off the couch? Check out gaming consoles such as the WiiFit, WiiSports or Dance Dance Revolution all of which can be fun for the whole family.

As you prepare to send your children back-to-school, ask yourself, “what’s on the menu to fuel their active minds and bodies?” Developing an after-school plan keeping the kids involved will help them develop nutrition basics to keep on track for a healthy and happy school year.

For more healthy living and eating tips visit www.DelMonte.com/solutions.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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(ARA) – Over scheduling is a nationwide epidemic. From preschoolers to CEOs, we are constantly running from one activity to the next. This busy and sometimes frantic lifestyle affects all aspects of life and many people feel the strain caused by overloaded to-do lists.

According to the authors of “Yes, You Can… Find More Meaning in Your Life”, Jack Jonathan and Sheelagh Manheim, PhD, over scheduling can create a narrow focus that prevents you from experiencing meaning in your life. These two regular contributors to www.YesYouCanOnline.info offer ways to step off the treadmill of busyness and reaffirm what is good in your life.

Jonathan and Manheim suggest finding a balance in five fundamental areas of life: positive attitude, good physical health, personal relationships, financial well-being and a passion for knowledge.

“Anyone looking to streamline their schedule can use these essentials as guidelines to help balance the way they spend their time,” said Jonathan. “Paying attention to each basic area of life may help a person to feel more at peace.”

Jonathan and Manheim offer the following six ideas to help bring a feeling of meaning into a busy life.

* Foster a Positive Attitude. Begin your day with a sense of wonder. Ask yourself, “What is in store for me today?” Then set achievable goals for the day. Remain open to other possibilities so challenges that come up will not feel overwhelming. Do at least one thing each day that creates in you a sense of happiness, delight, accomplishment or wonder.

* Nurture Your Body. Sometimes basic physical needs are set aside because of busy schedules. It is ideal to schedule time for exercise and recreation. “But, you can also nurture your body by simply paying attention,” Jonathan advises. “Why not pause a minute between activities, look out of the window, take a deep breath and exhale slowly.” Manheim advises looking forward to your lunch break, choosing foods that really appeal to you, and then savoring your meal in the presence of friends.

* Honor Your Personal Relationships. Friendships often suffer from neglect when life gets too busy. Even if you can’t fit in a weekend getaway or a night out, you can still find time to foster meaningful relationships. Connect over lunch, make regular phone calls, keep in touch frequently with meaningful e-mails or better yet, send a note or a card. Whenever you are able to contact your friend be sure to truly relax and give your friend your whole attention. Let time stand still for those precious moments you do have together.

* Pay Regular Attention to Your Finances. The only person you can count on for your financial well-being is you. Set aside a regular time each month to pay bills and review your financial situation. Jim Stowers, founder of American Century Investments, recommends that when you review your spending, you ask yourself, “Am I getting my money’s worth?” Do you spend your money in a way that brings meaning to your life? You will find that careful financial planning will set you free to enjoy your life more.

* Cultivate Your Curiosity. Having a passion for knowledge is one of our greatest innate gifts. It does not require a great deal of time – only the curiosity to ask what? or why? and then spend a few minutes to search for an answer. Learning something new goes beyond book learning. It can involve simply paying attention to what is going on in your own neighborhood. The more we know about the little piece of turf we inhabit, the more meaningful our life becomes because we step outside ourselves.

* Value Your Time. Jim Stowers, co-author along with Jack Jonathan, of the soon-to-be published “Yes, You Can… Reach Your Goals and Achieve Your Dreams,” comments, “Time is often taken for granted. Yet, properly used, time becomes a key multiplier that can be leveraged by effort and determination to help you achieve your dreams.” When you set aside small amounts of time to be truly present to your attitude, physical well being, friendships, finances and curiosity, you can increase your joy in life.

For more ways to lead a meaningful life in the middle of a busy schedule, visit www.YesYouCanOnline.info.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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“I encourage people to switch to multi-nutritional snacks like good quality granola bars,” says registered dietitian Pierrette Buklis. “Snacks like Nature Valley’s new FibreSource bar are low in fat, 130 calories or less and contain Omega-3, an essential nutrient that most people don’t get enough of.”

Mary Stone, an administrator and mother of two, is also a fan of this kind of granola bar. “My kids seem to want to eat constantly,” she says, “and I’m very conscious of making healthy choices for their snacks. If I’m picking them up from school, taking them to music lessons or on a trip, I try to make sure that I have some fruit and granola bars on hand, something the whole family can enjoy. The bars are like a mini-meal away from home, and I like the fact that it’s made with 100% whole grains.”

Credit: www.newscanada.com

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Tips to Ensure Your Family Has a Happy, Healthy and More Energized New Year

(ARA) – Every new year brings New Year’s resolutions — most of which are abandoned just a few weeks, and sometimes even days, into January! In 2008, skip resolutions that call for drastic measures. Instead, make a simple pledge that will be a cinch to keep — empower your family to get healthier and happier with easy nutrition tips that work effortlessly with your lifestyle.

“Families are busy — and it can certainly be a challenge to ensure all are as healthy and active as they should be,” says Ellie Krieger, registered dietitian and Food Network Host. “However, there are several ways for families to become healthy and fit together — and it can be fun! From cooking with the children to fun, family trips that keep everyone moving — it’s easier than most think to improve your health and spend quality time with your loved ones.”

The following helpful tips will make it fun and simple for your entire family to stay on track all year long!

* Promise to become healthy as a family
Research shows families who adopt better nutrition and fitness habits together have higher success rates in achieving an overall healthier lifestyle. For example, a good place to start is participating in the Just One More for Healthy Living pledge. The program encourages families to take simple steps each day to yield significant results towards a healthy lifestyle. Families simply pledge online (www.EatJustOneMore.com) to add just one more serving of fruits and vegetables, including tomatoes daily, one more serving weekly of lean protein, such as tuna, and 30 more minutes of daily activity. Families can also track their progress online and learn additional easy tips to maintain a healthy, realistic lifestyle that works with even the busiest of family schedules.

* Little chefs
Research shows that when children have a role in meal planning, they are more inclined to eat it. Get them excited about the process. Try having the kids create their own menu of healthy snacks to enjoy. Additionally, keeping nutritious options on hand that your child is excited about means they may not be as inclined to reach for the salty or sugary snacks. A great sweet treat to keep stashed in the pantry is Del Monte Healthy Kids. Fortified with vitamins A and C as well as calcium, the peach and fruit cocktail varieties are the first fortified fruit cups on the market (DelMonte.com), and provide the essential vitamins kids need to live happier, healthier lives.

* Teach your kids to “Eat the Rainbow” every day
This is a fun way for kids — and adults — to get the balanced nutrition they need. Kids love to keep track of all the “colors” they eat during the day — even green! Add one additional serving of fruits and vegetables to your family’s diet each day to pump up energy levels. Research suggests that only 20 to 30 percent of Americans actually eat the recommended servings of fruits and veggies a day, which the FDA now advises is 9 to 13 servings for optimal health. Eating more fruits and vegetables daily will not only make you feel fuller and more energized, but the vitamins, minerals, and fiber found in them can help prevent heart disease, high blood pressure, certain cancers, type 2 diabetes, and obesity.

* Bring back the family dinner
Studies indicate that children who eat with their family develop healthier habits than those who don’t. This could decrease risk of obesity and obesity-related diseases in your child’s future.

* Family fun day
Get up and get moving — as a family. Whether it is an evening ice skating or an extra long walk with the family dog, incorporate more activities into your routine. Try making this a weekly event and choose a different game or sport to enjoy every week! Consider purchasing a family membership at the community recreation center, YMCA or health club and plan weekly visits. Another alternative is to adopt a family sport. Take tennis or golf lessons together and practice, practice, practice!

* Family vacation
While plenty of relaxation is certainly important during vacations, one of the best ways to relieve stress is to get up and get moving. Plan vacations that will offer your entire family several physical activities that are fun and challenging. Opt for the bicycle tour instead of hours in the car. Try hiking, canoeing, or cross-country skiing instead of going to the movies.

For more information on how to take the pledge, and for more quick and healthy recipes, visit www.EatJustOneMore.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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