Now that school, sports and activities are in full swing, a healthy breakfast is more important than ever.
At this month’s SMArt kids shared medical appointment, we highlighted the need for a daily, healthy breakfast. The general consensus in the medical community is that children should eat breakfast every day. The old adage does hold true: breakfast really is the most important meal of the day. Studies have shown that children who eat breakfast actually perform better in school.
Additionally, studies have demonstrated that it can reduce weight gain. A 2008 study of teenagers revealed that those who ate breakfast had a leaner BMI than those who skipped the morning meal. SMArt kids also learned that kids who eat a healthy breakfast better spread their caloric intake over the course of the day and as a result, eat less total calories.
Breakfast doesn’t have to be blah or boring. We experienced this firsthand at this month’s SMA by kicking off the session with a delicious breakfast burrito. Linda Germaine-Miller, our SMArt Kids’ nutritionist, showed our SMArt Kids an easy yet nutritious way to have breakfast. Try this for a change:
- Ask a grown up to scramble an egg for you
- Using a fork, mash up ½ cup rinsed black beans
- Place the whole wheat tortilla on a plate
- Top it with the scrambled eggs and black beans
- Place chopped cherry tomatoes and orange or green pepper on top of the beans
- Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of grated cheddar cheese on the veggies
- Top this with lettuce
- Roll up the tortilla
- Cook in the microwave for 1 minute
- Serve with salsa. Enjoy!
The SMArt kids enjoyed making this burrito as well as eating it. The act of choosing the toppings, smelling the ingredients, and tasting the final product made it an overall enjoyable experience for the kids. They were “aware” of their meal.
Although breakfast was our main topic, Chip Wilder, LICSW from the Burlington Behavioral Health Department, walked us through an activity on food awareness. He provided some tips on how the SMArt Kids should experience eating rather than just eating. They should be aware of their senses, their mood, their thoughts as well as the food itself. This in turn will enable them to be aware of some of the external factors that may prompt them to eat when not hungry or to overeat. The kids learned some valuable tools that they will try at home with their families.
In our efforts to choose a healthy breakfast, we discussed the results of a report from the Environmental Working Group, a public health nonprofit organization, that reviewed nutrition labels for 84 popular brands of breakfast cereals marketed toward children. Clearly, many of the popular Big Brand children’s cereal have too much sugar. The biggest offenders? Kellogg’s Honey Smacks, Post Golden Crisp, Kellogg’s Froot Loops and Marshmallow, Quaker Oats Cap’n Crunch, All Berries and Crunch Berries, Quaker Oats Oh!s, Kellogg’s Apple Jacks and Kellogg’s Smorz. If you have any of these on your breakfast table, think about getting rid of them!
Instead, look for cereals that are low in sugar, high in fiber (try 3 grams per serving), have a short ingredient list, and are fortified with iron, vitamin D, and calcium. Try plain Cheerios or Kix instead of those sugar-laden options.
The SMArt Kids had great ideas for healthy breakfast options. One of these mornings, try:
- A fruit smoothie
- Peanut butter on whole wheat toast or an English muffin
- Steel Cut oatmeal
- An egg white omelet
- Greek yogurt with nuts and fruit
- Too busy for breakfast? Try making scrambled eggs and lean bacon the night before (reheat in the microwave), grab a banana and a slice of cheese, or fix a PBJ on wheat bread.
Lastly, Halloween is right around the corner. Don’t forget that Halloween can be a scary time when it comes to too much sugar! Remember these tips as Halloween approaches:
- Buy candy late
- Buy candy you don’t like
- Hide the candy until Halloween night
- On Halloween, stay hydrated and eat a regular meal at dinnertime
- Choose only your favorite to eat and get rid of the rest
- Consider donating the candy to your local dentist’s office (many will collect it)
- If you keep the Halloween candy, keep it out of sight!
I look forward to hearing how the SMArt kids do this next month on their goals.
For more resources to stay healthy this Fall, check out these sites:
www.mass.gov/massinmotion
www.state.ma.us/dph
www.mypyramid.gov
www.planet-health.org
www.actionforhealthykids.org
Keep up the SMArt work!
Brittanny Boulanger, MD