Gimme Five

I love my boys. They are the greatest gifts sent straight from heaven. They never fail to keep me on my toes and fill up my life with laughter and adventure. My oldest son is six and he is a health nut. He’s gone out for company lunches with my husband and the co-workers are shocked that a kid would order salad and water for lunch at Olive Garden. My youngest son who is two, on the other hand, keeps me on the phone with Poison Control as he loves to eat toothpaste, cough syrup and even Icy Hot. Recently he was banned from all refined sugar for a week when I discovered he was half way through a bag of mini-marshmallows his older brother got from a birthday party where the party favors were marshmallow guns and a bag of mini-marshmallows. I obviously have much more training to do with my two year old on what is considered healthy and nutritious.

Have you ever heard the difference between broccoli and boogers? Well, the difference (and punch-line) is that little kids will eat boogers. Gross yes – but mostly true.

It is recommended that we all get at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day. You may find this particularly hard when it comes to feeding your children. Unfortunately this doesn’t mean a glass of Sunny Delight for breakfast, a fruit cup from the school cafeteria at lunch (you know the diced pears in heavy syrup), and a leaf of Iceburg lettuce with extra ketchup on the burger for dinner. Ideally you should serve fresh and raw fruits and vegetables – if you go organic…even better! Serve them first at every meal for two reasons – they digest faster and you can fill them up on the good stuff from the start.

Raw fruits and vegetables are essential for vitamin, mineral, carbohydrate, protein, fatty acids, antioxidants water, and enzyme content – a complete array of nutrients every body needs. If you have trouble getting your children (or spouse) interested in raw fruits and veggies then purchase a juicer and begin making delicious and nutritious fruit and veggie combinations. We have juice mixer parties and make “special juice” every day. Getting your kids excited about eating healthy is all part of training them for a lifestyle of health, fitness and vitality.

Even if you absolutely must do a McDonalds run to get the Ninja Turtle or Idol iPod in the Happy Meal – you can still easily make sure your kids get their five or more fruits and veggies a day. Besides, the original fast food– was the apple!

Marlene has a heart for helping people reach their health, wellness and fitness goals. She enjoys sharing her knowledge of natural health and nutrition.