At our recent September SMA, which kicked off our fourth SMArt kids series, we had many new SMArt Kids plus a great showing of recent graduates. The returning patients reported on their summer successes and did a stellar job showing our new participants the ropes. We reviewed our SMArt Kids objectives for 2013-14:
- Limit screen time to less than 2 hours per day (this includes computer time!)
- Participate in at least 1 hour of active play (ride your bike after school)
- Limit sugary drinks to 0-4 ounces per day (water and low fat milk are best)
- Eat at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables per day (try a smoothie with fruit, ice, low fat milk or yogurt)
- Limit fast food to less than once per week (drive by that Drive-Thru and make a homemade pizza instead)
- Make breakfast a priority (how about peanut butter on toast?)
- Choose healthy snacks (have pre-cut veggies and dip ready for after school)
- Plan for family meals (prepare a healthy meal on Sunday night so dinner so there are no excuses)
- Get enough restful sleep (take 20 minutes to unwind before bed)
- Know where your food comes from (try local organic food)
- Focus on mindful eating (think before you bite!)
Both kids and parents alike were engaged and actively participated in the ninety-minute shared medical appointment. Linda Germaine-Miller, our SMArt Kids nutritionist, and I were impressed with both parent and child involvement, especially given it was our first meeting as a group! We also look forward to working with Chip Wilder, LICSW, from our Burlington site. He will be joining us from time to time in the upcoming sessions to teach the SMArt Kids about food awareness, an essential component of eating healthy.
We are very excited to continue our SMArt Kids series, as it will fill a gap for many families struggling with healthy lifestyle choices. The shared medical appointment setting offers an added benefit of collaboration among families – something that is unique and hopefully productive for everyone in attendance. We welcome pediatric patients ages 8-12 years from all sites. To learn more about Shared Medical Appointments at Harvard Vanguard, click here. If you are interested in enrolling your child, call us at Burlington at 781-221-2800.