Super Foods!

Ever wonder what to feed your toddler to make him or her a brighter, healthier child? Here are 15 super foods that, according to Parenting.com, you need to put in your shopping cart this week!

Certain foods can boost your child's energy level, improve their concentration, help build brain tissue and keep their immune systems healthy. Sounds good to me!

Summer Snacking

It’s so easy when the kids are out of school and on summer vacation to become lax in eating healthy. Ready to get summer snacking back on track? Check out these delicious (and healthy) snack ideas that moms and kids alike can agree on.

- Cheese: The protein in this kid-friendly snack will help your kids stay on the go all day long! There are so many variations you can do with cheese, such as cheese and crackers, string cheese and cheese and fruit kabobs. The possibilities are endless!

- Peanut Butter: For a dose of protein and fiber, turn to peanut butter, a favorite food for so many kids. Peanut butter and crackers, as well as peanut butter and apples slices, will satisfy your children and give them a nutritious snack to tide them over until dinner.

- Yogurt: Low fat yogurt is a delicious and healthy snack for your kids, and also an excellent source of calcium. To amp up the nutritional value even more, pair the yogurt with fruit or granola.

- Sweet potatoes: Before you skip over this one, hear me out! Sweet potatoes are one of the most nutritious vegetables around. This vegetable is packed with vitamin A, and is also a good source of vitamin B6, vitamin C and folate. Whip up some yummy sweet potato chips in lieu of store-bought chips, and both kids and moms will be happy campers.

- Hummus: Kids love to dip their foods, and hummus is one of the healthiest (and most delicious) dips around! Serve hummus with low-fat pita chips, salt-free crackers or vegetables for a tasty treat. Not only will your kids enjoy it, but they will also get a dose of folate, vitamin B6 and iron.

For more snack ideas, check out this article from Parents.com, entitled, “The 20 Best Snack Ideas.” It will have you and your kids back on track in no time to eating healthier snacks this summer season.

Grocery Shopping Tips to Help Keep Your Family Healthy

My daughter has always been a healthy eater. Fruits and vegetables were always welcomed by her and never a problem. But as we get closer and closer to her three year old birthday, my banana loving, green bean-eating girl has become slightly more opinionated, and definitely more picky!

How to continue her good eating habits has been on my mind, so I did some research. I found a wonderful article on Just the Facts Baby that can help anyone who is trying to make the best shopping decisions for our families at their local grocery store.

Here are some helpful tips on how to decode shopping labels to help make the healthiest foods on store shelves from the Just the Facts Baby Web site.

--- The words “organically grown,” “organic,” “pesticide-free” and “no artificial ingredients” actually say very little about the nutritional value or safety of the product. Trust only those labels that say "certified organically grown."

--- Go to the ingredients list. This is where you find out what's actually in the food. Manufacturers list ingredients in order from most to least (so if "sugar" is the first ingredient, you're off to a bad start). Look for words you can't pronounce or terms that sound like something from your ninth-grade chemistry textbook, which is a clue that there are chemical additives that might be harmful to your health.

--- Made with wheat, rye, or multi-grains implies the food is a good source of whole grains, but doesn't actually tell you how much whole grain is really in it. Look for the word "whole" before the grain to ensure you're actually getting a 100% whole-grain product.

--- “Sugar-free,” “sugarless,” or “no added sugar” tell you nothing about sugar derivatives or sugar substitutes, which can yield just as many calories as table sugar and may be more harmful for you child than sugar itself. Check the ingredient list for sugar substitutes, such as aspartame, neotame, erythritol, acesulfame-potassium, sorbitol and lactitol.

To read the article in its entirety, click here. Happy food shopping from Pure and Honest Kids!