Keeping kids away from junk food in between meals is a constant battle for just about any parent. High calorie snacking is one reason childhood obesity is at epidemic proportions now. The kid favorite of a candy bar and can of soda has almost 500 calories and 20 teaspoons of sugar! That’s why Dr. Gourmet has some DIY Basics to help steer your kids in the direction of healthier snacks.
Healthy Tips:- Let’s start easy, with the classic ice cream float. Instead of using regular ice cream, use low fat ice cream or frozen yogurt that has less than 120 calories per serving. Trade the high sugar soda for diet root beer or cola. By simply changing ingredients, this sweet treat now has only about 120 calories
- For an afternoon snack, use fat-free pudding cups or sugar free gelatin. Let the kids have fun with these by making parfaits with lite whipped toppings, sprinkles or other fat free toppings. A typical serving of pudding with toppings is 120 calories and no fat...but the gelatin has only 10 calories.
- If your children are hooked on snack foods like chips, then switch them to baked chips. Fried chips have 10 grams of fat per serving while baked chips are fat free. Pretzels and peanuts are great options too. Pretzels are usually fat free while peanuts, even though higher in fat and calories, have been shown to lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease.
- An old fashioned PB and J on whole wheat can be a good snack. Switching from regular to reduced fat peanut butter saves four grams of fat. Look for the jam made with natural sugars that have less than 50 calories.
- It can be challenging to get kids to eat more vegetables. Tasty dipping options can help. Salsa is a great vegetable that has very few calories. It spices up any veggie and your kids will love to dip into it.
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