Family Food Experts - Kid Kritics » Fruit Juices

How much Soda does it take to overdose on sugar in a day?

ellenbriggs — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 22:25:26 +0000

It doesn’t take much soda to overdose on sugar in a day. On average, four ounces will do it. There about 6 teaspoons of sugar in an 8 oz. soda. A half cup has about 3 teaspoons. Kids should have about 2 teaspoons of sugar a day. Adults don’t need much more. When was the last time you saw a small 8 ounce container of soda? Kids, teens and adults drinks a lot more, a recipe for obesity, diabetes and depression. Drink ice cold water or diluted 100% fruit juice instead.

… for the health of your family,
ellen and sally

Radio Gem: Chef Lynn’s Lunch Staples List

ellenbriggs — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 22:19:45 +0000

Chef Lynn imparted lots of lunch solutions on our Oct. 2nd radio show. You may want to listen to the archived version (www.BetterFoodChoicesRadio.com). Have a pen and paper ready to take notes.

Here is Lynn’s Lunch Staples List – must have in kitchen at all times for quick and easy lunches.
1. Raw Veggies (carrots, celery, bell peppers, cukes, etc.)
2. Fresh Fruit – in season – as many different colors as possible
3. Dips: hummus, salsa, spinach, etc.
4. Nut butters, except when have allergies
5. Dried fruit: banana chips, raisins, dried berries, fruit leather (low sugar), etc.
6. Fruit sauces: apple, apricot, fruit combos, etc.
7. Cheese sticks
8. Tortillas – for quick and easy wraps using leftovers
9. Nuts and seeds, except when have allergies
10. Olives – lots of kids like to put these on their fingers and eat them!
11. Turkey slices or leftover chunks
12. Dried beans (edamame)
13. 100% fruit juices or fruit/veggie juice combinations – go for lowest sugar version
14. ALWAYS: Water – small bottles for lunch boxes

Any combination complex carbs and protein from the above work. Leftovers from dinner make easy lunch solutions – hot or cold. Sandwiches are great but not necessary. Buy little containers for little portions of a variety of food. Kids love this presentation.

… for the health of your family,
ellen

Twelve Worst Foods

ellenbriggs — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 17:05:00 +0000

Sally and I have put together our official Family Food Experts 12 Worst Foods to feed your family, listed alphabetically:

Twelve Worst Foods
1. Candy artificially dyed, sweetened and flavored
(Examples: M&Ms, Smarties)
2. Candy Cereal
(Examples: Fruit Loops, Lucky Charms)
3. Doughnuts
4. Drinks: Artificially sweetened, artificially dyed, artificially flavored drinks
(Examples: Kool-Aid, Crystal Light, Gatorade, Powerade)
5. French Fries (all deep fried food)
6. Lunchables
7. Margarine
8. Pizza with extra cheese and pepperoni
9. Pop Tarts
10. Pork products (bacon, chops, tenderloin, hotdogs)
11. Soda – ALL
12. Sugars: Refined sugars and sugar substitutes
(Examples: high fructose corn syrup, Splenda, Nutri-Sweet)

Honorable Mentions … couldn’t help ourselves as these should be part of the twelve.
A. Bleached and bromated flours
(Examples: white flour, white breads/rolls, white pasta, cakes and pastries)
B. Lunch meats with nitrates
C. Milk, non-organic

For the health of your family, AVOID these foods.
ellen

Fries are #1 “Vegetable” Kids Eat

ellenbriggs — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 23:40:36 +0000

Nothing has changed here. *A new study reveals that french fries make up 25% of a child’s daily vegetable serving. Since they eat, on average, only 2 cups of fruits and vegetables combined, that means they are may be eating a few carrots along with the fries. It gets worse, 40% of their fruit intake is from juice. So a banana, a few carrots, fries and fruit juice is an example of the daily intake if fruits and vegetables for kids. No wonder they are increasingly becoming sick.

We do not count fries or juice in the needed consumption of fruits and vegetables equation. Thus, we say kids are eating little to no nutrient-filled produce. The Kid Kritics Approved seal product and recipe program is all about changing these statistics. Let us help you.

… for the health of your kids,
ellen

* Nanci Hellmich, ‘Eat your vegetables’: For kids it means fries, USA Today, Monday, 3/2/09, p. 7D

Mercury Found in High Fructose Corn Syrup

ellenbriggs — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 19:09:53 +0000

Another reason children and adults should not eat foods made with High Fructose Corn Syrup – MERCURY! On average Americans eats 12 teaspoons of this lab-made sweetener a day. None should be consumed. Everyone freaks over the issue of mercury in vaccinations and its unhealthy side effects. Now you can freak over mercury in your food. Reports say that mercury was found in about 50 percent of the high fructose corn syrup sampled. Another study found mercury in about 33 percent of the products tested with high fructose corn syrup listed as the first or second ingredient – meaning there is a significant amount in the product. We are talking about food and beverages made by well-known name brands such as Kraft, Smucker’s, Quaker and Hershey. In addition, it was reported that dairy products, dressings and condiments made with high fructose corn syrup had the greatest detection of mercury. Yet another research study found mercury in nine of 20 samples.* Bottom line: there is enough evidence already that raises serious concern about the amount of mercury kids and adults are ingesting, daily. High fructose corn syrup is in thousands of products sold in grocery stores. Watch for it as a sweetener in sodas, fruit drinks, bread, cereal, bars, lunch meats, soups … in any product that has a sweet taste. Bet you did not realize that bread and lunch meats are sweetened. Read your labels and do NOT buy, serve or eat any containing high fructose corn syrup.

… for the health of your family,
ellen

Jane Bryant, www.foodnavigator-usa.com, Jan, 28, 2009

Radio Gems: Apple and Eve’s NEW Products

ellenbriggs — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:01:49 +0000

We interviewed Ken Gootkind, head of the natural and organic product lines for Apple and Eve. Boy, have they got some great new products for kids! The first to bring to your attention is FIZZ ED. This is a genius answer to replacing soda. It is 8.4 fluid ounces of 70% juice and 30% carbonated water. That’s it. No bad chemicals added. No added sugar. Only fruit juice and sparkling water. A bonus is that Apple and Eve uses the better sources for both their natural and organic juices. This product is first being introduced into vending machines at schools. Yeah – a far better beverage choice than the junk sodas. You will also see it in stores soon. The four flavors are: Pomegranate Cherry, Orange Mango, Green Apple and Red Raspberry – Yum Here’s your answer for drink treats, especially for parties!

And there is more …. FRUITABLES. This is a great new vegetable/fruit juice drink for kids. You will find a nice flavor and nutrient balance that includes carrot (yellow, purple, orange), beet, pumpkin, tomato, and butternut squash Juices. When was the last time you kids drank beta-caroteen-filled pumpkin and butternut squash juice? The three flavors are: Strawberry Kiwi, Tropical Orange, and Berry Berry. Again, no added sugar, bad chemicals and unwanted ingredients. Perfect for school lunches!!!!! Fruitables will be showing up in your stores soon.

Apple and Eve, known for quality, are ahead of the curve when it comes to creating healthier products for kids. These new products are example of this truth.

For more about Apple and Eve, listen to Ken on our archived show by clicking on to www.BetterFoodChoices.com/BetterFoodChoices.

… for the health of your family,

ellen

Vending Machines in Schools Report

ellenbriggs — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 23:27:15 +0000

The School Beverage Guidelines set in 2006 says the “beverage industry is to provide lower-calorie and smaller portion options in schools, including the removal of full-calorie soft drinks, all by the 2009-2010 school year.” How are they doing? Since 2004 the schools show that beverage calories shipped to them have decreased by 58 percent and 79 percent of schools with beverage contracts are in compliance. This is a step in the right direction but there are two major flaws. Lower calories from companies such as Coca Cola usually means sugar-free artificially added sweeteners, not good. Plus, smaller prices usually do not follow smaller portions. In addition to sodas, juices are a target for reduced drinks, and rightfully so. The sugar-added ones can have over 300 calories in a container fitting vending machines. These sugar added juices comprise 39 percent of vending machine beverages sold. The number one sold snack is chips - no surpise there.

Pssst. Want to know who is connected to the School Beverage Guidelines? The Alliance for a Healthier Generation, American Beverage Association, The Coca Cola Company, Dr. Pepper Snapple Group and Pepsico. Lots of independent thinking there.

We have a long way to go to change the vending machine culture. All of those reading this blog should know that there are vending machine companies offering natural healthier drinks and snacks. Tell your schools to write contracts with them.

Source: Sarah Hills, “Pressure to cut calaories from school vending machines”, www.foodnavigator-usa.com, 10/6/2008.

Ellen Briggs: Is Juice Healthy for Your Baby?

criss — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 02:47:51 +0000