As the problem of childhood obesity becomes increasingly serious, more parents are reading labels to choose the right foods for their kids. Now, a team from Nationwide Children's Hospital has developed a website that calculates a food's "health".

"Keeping track of all that information can be confusing, which is why http://www.snackwise.org was designed to do it for you. Dr. Robert Murray, Director of the Center for Health Weight and Nutrition at Nationwide Children's Hospital says it's information some parents have gone too long without."

A parent who wants to test snacks or other foods simply needs to go to the website and enter some information from the food's label. The website then puts the food in one of three categories: red - choose rarely, yellow - choose occasionally, and green - the best choice." Read more at MediLexicon.com.

Labels: calories, snacks, tools

"Mindless eating" is a phrase used to describe the idle snacking that many people do throughout the day. It is also the title of a book by Cornell professor Brian Wansink that explains the psychological cues behind mindless eating and offers suggestions for combating those cues.

"Hide the cookies; uncover the carrots. You eat what you see. If you have to look at soda every time you open your refrigerator, you will spend more time thinking about soda and, ultimately, will drink more of it. So keep the sweets tucked away, and move your carrots and celery from the vegetable crisper to the top shelf of the fridge, where they will be at eye level."

Other suggestions include making healthy snacks easier to eat by, for example, washing and cutting carrots and celery. The stomach isn't sensitive enough to register in "real time" what's been eaten, so using the other senses is important. Put food on smaller plates so that it looks like you're eating more. And put sweets or other unhealthy snack food in places where they can't be easily seen.

Labels: grazing, healthy_eating, snacks

Believe it or not, children gain more weight during the summer than they do during the school year. Though kids are outside playing more, they're also snacking more and eating fewer structured meals. Keeping healthy snacks in the house will help your kids not only eat well but avoid the customary summer weight gain.

"With simple substitutions, brown rice instead of white, wheat pasta with cheese instead of that orange and blue mac and cheese box, children will stay fit and healthy this summer."

Do your best to avoid enriched flour and use things made with whole wheat instead. Also consider mixing some dark green veggies into a standard iceberg lettuce salad. Read more at 9WSYR.com.

Summertime is great for getting outside to play and exercise. Get an Education in Fitness from the WeightLossHelpDirectory.com.

Labels: snacks, unhealthy_food_choices, weight_gain