Make Food Shopping Fun!
Although my girls are now grown, I remember that taking them to the supermarket sometimes seemed more like a chore than a fun experience. However, the grocery store is a great place to get your children involved and start teaching basic nutrition concepts. Check out these get tips from Bridget Swinney, RD, author of Baby Bites, to make food shopping more fun and educational:
1. Focus on touch. Have your child hold a fuzzy kiwi or a smooth pepper. Ask her to describe how it feels and looks.
2. Make some noise. Give him a box of pasta to shake and point out the different shapes.
3. Play the numbers game. One your preschooler recognizes numbers up to ten, have her pick the cereal with the most fiber (show her where it is on the label). If your children are old enough, introduce them to the NuVal nutrition scoring system at Meijer and have them pick out the pasta with the higher score – the higher the number the more nutritious!
4. Take a tour. Point out the different food aisles and talk about the foods offered. “We should eat five servings of fruits and vegetables each day so help me find some yummy choices.” “Milk, cheese, and yogurt keep our bones strong as we grow up, what’s your favorite yogurt flavor.”
5. Play the color game. “Can you find 4 different colors of fruits and vegetables to put in our cart?” See how many purple produce items your child can find (grapes, eggplant, cabbage, etc.)
6. Use your nose. Take a whiff of garlic, onion, mint and ask your child what these items might taste good in.
Happy shopping!
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marandatv
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Crash the River Rascal
I always had an interest in food and nutrition and attended Central Michigan University to earn a Bachelors Degree in Dietetics. Several years later, I went back to college to obtain my Masters degree in Human Nutrition from Andrews University. I have been a Registered Dietitian for 27 years and have spent the last 20 years working with Supermarkets. I discovered years ago that grocery stores were a great place to reach consumers and help them obtain accurate nutrition information. I also realized that busy families are looking for quick, affordable, and healthy ideas for meals. In my position as Healthy Living Manager at Meijer I spend a lot of time working with food manufacturers and commodity groups to search out and create easy recipes that can become part of family-pleasing menus. Although my two daughters are now grown and married, my husband and I continue to enjoy cooking together and creating new recipes with nutritious ingredients. I hope my information provides you and your family with easy ideas to live a healthy life!