When I was a young parent and saw the words apple, fruit, or juice in a product name, I thought to myself, "Great. Must be a good snack for the kids." And cereal boxes that screamed about all the minerals and vitamins contained within were quickly tossed into the grocery cart, especially the ones with the brightly-colored pitch animals.

However, my wife gave me a crash course in her School of Nutrition and I learned what I should and should not feed our kids. In general if it tasted good, it was out the door! Well, not quite, but sometimes it felt that way. Sugar seemed to be a big culprit to her and I found the same info recently on the website Active Kids.

My wife classified many of the cereals I grew up with as candy due to a heavy sugar content. Marshmallows tend to do that. Active Kids also cites, "simple, processed carbs with very little protein" as a problem for the most popular cereals.

Apple sauce sure sounds like a good option, but again, the sugar content compared to the actual apple content makes it a poor choice. Yogurt is another item that sounds positive on the surface, but watch what you are buying. Active Kids states, "Most brands are full of added sugar." They encourage parents to try Greek yogurt and add honey or fruit to spice it up for kids (and adults, I say).

Fruit snacks are tasty, chewy and come in some many fun colors and shapes. Due to the calorie count, it's like feeding your kids candy they say. It's suggested you use actual fruit as a snack.

Fruit juices have some benefits like vitamins, but watch out for the sugar content, "Some contain the same number of calories as soft drinks," states the posting. We watered due the juices for our kids at times and encouraged water too.

All of this is not to say you can't ever give your kids some treats for the sake of a treat. After all, the Steele County Fair is just around the corner and you have to have a little fun and enjoy the everything-on-a-stick options there. But when it comes to healthful eating learn the basics. My wife is accepting applications for her School of Nutrition.

 

 

 

 

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