What we Feed Our Kids

As we go about our mornings packing our kids lunches I dare you to stop and think about what goes into the snacks that we give your children to eat. What you will find, is that almost all modern preserved or packaged snacks have one of the following ingredients; refined sugar, high fructose corn syrup or aspartame.

Let us look at a few facts about these three ingredients to help us determine our future choices on what we feed our kids.

Refined Sugar

Ingesting 100 grams of simple sugar lowers white blood cell activity for up to five hours. Lowered white blood cell activity means your immune system and its ability to fight infection, is impaired.

When sugar is constantly in the diet, the pancreas must constantly produce insulin. When sugar is continually overused, the pancreas eventually wears out and is no longer able to clear sugar from the blood, and diabetes is often the result.

High Fructose Corn Syrup

High fructose corn syrup is a liver toxin. It is metabolized in the body the same way alcohol is metabolized. Drinking a can of soda does the same thing to your liver that drinking a can of beer does.

When the fructose breaks down in your body, it causes fatty liver disease which raises your cholesterol, and it actually deactivates a substance in your body that prevents high blood pressurre.

Aspartame

Aspartame is made up of three chemicals: Aspartic acid, phenylalanine, and methanol. This toxic poison changes into formaldehyde in the body and has been linked to migraines, seizures, vision loss and symptoms relating to lupus, Parkinson's Disease, Multiple Sclerosis and other health destroying conditions.

HEALTHY ALTERNATIVES

Though your kids may crave the sweet stuff it is your job to provide them with the proper nutrition. The following are some healthy alternatives to the popular snacks.

Whole Fruits
Eating whole fruits does not cause the same problem as high fructose corn syrup and table sugar, because the fruits contain vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants which help metabolize the fructose. Try making fruit kebabs, frozen fruit bites or fruit smoothies.

Peanut Butter
Peanut butter contains fairly high quantities of dietary fiber, amounting to about 8%, which again helps in regulating both blood cholesterol and blood sugar levels. Be sure to seek out brands that do not contain trans fat, hydrogenated oils, or preservatives. Try combinations such as peanut butter and celery with a topping of raisins or peanut butter oatmeal bites.

Yogurt
Try feeding your kids, natural or fruit yogurt that does not contain refined sugar, high fructose corn syrup or aspartame. The lactobacillus in yoghurt feeds the intestines maximizing the nutrients your body can absorb, insures the digestive system stays healthy, and stabilizes the immune system. Try making yoghurt lollipops, yogurt and granola or yogurt and fruits.

Humus
Chickpeas (channa) is the main ingredient in humus dip. Chickpeas, like most beans, are an excellent source of fibre that digests slowly and keeps blood sugar levels from rising too rapidly. Chickpeas also contain molybdenum, a trace mineral that helps the body detoxify sulphites, as well as iron and manganese, which are essential for healthy blood and high energy. Try combining humus dips with raw vegetables such as carrots, celery or cucumber.

Parents please keep in mind that just because a product is marketed for a child does not mean that your children’s best interest is at heart. Most companies focus on profit, not on what’s healthy. Your focus is to pay attention to what we give our kids to eat and make a variety of healthy choices available to them.

Knowledge is power. Teach your kids about nutrition and the effects of bad health choices, this will help them to make better decisions when you’re not around.

This article was consolidated by the non profit organization KIND (Kids In Need of Direction) using collective articles on food and nutrition.

For more info on how you can improve the lives of children in Trinidad and Tobago call 626-KIND or 626-NEED or visit us at http://www.kindkids.net/.

Then and Now

As a friend and I reminisced about our school days and memories of the school yard encounters, we reflected about what we remembered as kids back then and how different we were to the kids we see today.

Back then a fight consisted of a few, mostly empty threats and maybe a punch or two, but you were definitely in a world of trouble if you ever got caught. Nowadays kids are fighting over turf and pulling out knives and often even stabbing each other. Back then you feared your parents and your teachers and you held your head down low when you were being scolded. Today kids look at you straight in the eye and talk back to you without shame.

With this in mind, let’s look at what else has changed.

Back then our worst TV show was “The A Team” and the rebellious attitude of Mr. T. Our worst music was telling you to “Put your hands in the air if you just don’t care” and even then, parent’s t banned you from the TV show or took away your cassette. Today music is telling you to rape and kill and shoot at will. TV shows for any age talk about sex and scandal and encourage you to rebel just to get a reality show.

Are these enormous changes in society related? Do parents have a right to be concerned? To answer these ask yourself another question... “How many of your brothers went out and got a Mr. T hair cut?”

Gabriel Tarde (1912) in his book Penal Philosophy, claims, “All the important acts of social life are carried out under the domination of examples.”

Is it not obvious then that kids learn by what they see as acceptable?

If we allow the video games that reward you points for beating a prostitute and being the best gangster in the city, then we communicate that these things are acceptable examples. By saying the things that you watch, play and listen to are acceptable we teach that it is ok to do them. Kids get this message loud and clear.

So parents, I ask you to start paying attention. Find out what your girls are talking about, Miley Cyrus or Gossip Girl? Are your boys talking about Myth Busters or Grand Theft Auto? Find out what’s cool or popular with their age group. Watch TV with them. Listen to their music. Investigate their culture.

Decide if the messages given through these things are teaching the morals and values that you believe in, and if they’re not, do something about it. If you don’t filter the negative influences they will be imbedded in the morals and values of your children and the future.

Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see. ~Neil Postman, The Disappearance of Childhood (introduction), 1982

This blog is courtesy the non profit organization KIND (Kids In Need of Direction)
For more info on how you can help build a better future in Trinidad and Tobago call 626-KIND or 626-NEED or visit us at www.kindkids.net

Volunteering

Volunteering your time for others is an important part of what makes you a contributing member of society. The world is not a perfect place, and many people need help. Sometimes that person needing help may even be you.

There many organizations out there that do just that, “Help people”. But why do they do it? Looking into NGO’s and volunteerism you may find many reasons why people start these organizations or give of their time. Some reasons may vary but most of the time people feel the desire to give of themselves to help others.

If you are one of those people that feel that need, and are not sure how you can help here is a list of ways that you can help.

1) Collecting unused clothes and toys from people and bringing them to charitable organizations.
2) Spending one weekend a month visiting an old age home and reading or talking to the elderly.
3) Assisting with a charitable fundraising effort.
4) Starting big brother/sister groups at an orphanage in your area.
5) Collecting canned goods to donate to food drives for people in need.
6) Buying Christmas gifts for underprivileged children and dropping them off at the local church.
7) Offering to do deliveries for a charity.
8) Encouraging others to volunteer or financially support a charity.
9) Joining a non profit organization of your choice.
10) Asking a Charitable organization how you can help.

Becoming a volunteer not only benefits the ones you set out to help, but it helps you in many ways. The people you meet, the things that you learn, and the joy that you feel will amount to more that you can ever put a price tag on.

Think about which type of organization represents a cause that you believe in then go ahead and get involved. You will be pleasantly surprised at how easy it is for you to make a difference in someone else’s life.