Healthy Living is a Family Affair

There are so many pressures in the world we live with today, which cause us to ignore or even eliminate the very behaviors that will help us and our families live a healthy, happier life. We don’t sit down for meals. When we eat we tend to do it in front of the TV or on the run in the car, not really paying attention to what we eat. When we do eat off a plate, it is a very large plate, and with no rim. Then we are so busy with work, children’s activities and the other action items on our to do list, we feel we don’t have time to add in exercise so instead we sit at our desk, sit watching our children in their activities or sit down for a little relaxation in front of the TV or on the weekends we may have some time to be with others to sit and have a meal or a few drinks at the bar. We even build in inactivity to our schedule as the fun in our lives. Compounding our lifestyle challenges is our lack of sleep. It is hard for any of us to go to bed early enough and get the 7-8 hours of sleep our bodies really need.

As parents, we have a tremendous influence on our children’s lives. Not only are we affecting our lives with the way we eat, our inactivity, and lack of sleep, but we are also role modeling these behaviors to our children. In order for our children to live a healthy lifestyle, we have to work to live a healthy lifestyle ourselves. They won’t be able to adopt healthier habits if we don’t help them not only by modeling these healthy behaviors but also by creating the necessary environment for our children to thrive and be healthy.

There are more and more studies that show the benefits of parents being involved in their children’s health and weight management, particularly when their child is challenged with obesity. The rate of successful outcomes dramatically increases when parent’s become involved in their child’s weight management program. It is not just a matter of children mirroring their parents’ healthy lifestyle behaviors, it is also about them having their parent’s support in making the long term changes they need in order to achieve and maintain a healthy weight. They are dependents, needing us to ensure they have the best possible environment to grow up healthy and happy. The truth is it does take a village to help raise healthy children.

The good news is that everybody wins when we talk about embracing a healthy lifestyle. It improves everyone’s quality of life. And the resources available to help us, and our children, have grown substantially. There are lifestyle programs, exercise choices and downright fun activities available through schools, local community centers, YWCAs, children’s hospitals and other nonprofits. It is super helpful to find a group that will support you and your children in the healthy habits you have chosen to integrate into your life and how you live everyday long term. It is hard enough as it is to make better choices to improve your health when it seems the rest of the world is not yet helping you get there… so finding others who get it, who are practicing those healthy habits AND want to support you in doing the same is essential for everyone’s ongoing success.

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Sammie & Sax: Fun, Food, & Fantastic Ideas

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Fathers As Cornerstones To Their Child’s Healthy Life

We know parents are key role models in their children’s lives. There are many studies that show us the power of the parent in influencing a child’s life, both positively and negatively. When it comes to a child growing up healthy, eating healthy and living a healthy lifestyle the behavior a parent exhibits is profound.

Some might think that when it comes to food and eating, it is the mom who is the source and guide. Physical activity from sports to summer fun is often on the mom to organize. Not any more. Roles have shifted and responsibilities are shared between parents. Being a father today is much different than it was just a couple of decades ago. Fathers are often equally engaged in their children’s lives from making meals to hauling kids to and from their extracurricular activities. There are no set rules any more.

My husband and I have shared responsibilities, pretty much equally, our entire marriage. In fact, our youngest when she was little had a name for us “momdad” or “dadmom” that she used indiscriminately. We were equal in her eyes and either of us could be looked to in order to help her with whatever need she had.

I remember when the first movies came out about stay-at-home dads like Mr Mom with Michael Keaton. It was such a big deal. My amazing husband took on that role himself for a few years. The kids learned a lot about how a role isn’t defined by your gender. Instead they see the importance of the responsibilities that need to be met in a family and how we all take on roles that are needed to support the health of the family and make it thrive. 

 

Living a healthy life is not just about the food served at the table. It is about how you live life every day. Especially in the volatile world we live in today, it is about how you meet personal challenges and face crisis. It is also about how you celebrate life and acknowledge the big moments. The choices we make are how our children learn to react to similar situations themselves. They are learning from us and watching how we behave.

Being present in your child’s life can only be possible if we choose to be present in our own life. In the stress-filled lives we all live it is really hard to do. We often would rather escape into our phones, the TV or mindless eating. The good news is life is a journey. None of us is perfect and we all have plenty to improve on to live the best and healthiest life we can. By being willing to change and including our kids in the process we are doing the best role modeling possible. 

My kids are very lucky. They have seen their dad face multiple personal challenges and as a result of them embrace change, however difficult, to make life better for him and his family. Two big changes their dad has made is first to stop smoking and then to stop drinking alcohol. They have also seen him wholly embrace living a healthy lifestyle from working out every morning at the YMCA to bike riding and kayaking to changing the amounts and types of foods he eats. What an incredible gift he has given his children. He hasn’t told his children how to live a healthy life, he has shown them, one change at a time. He is healthier and happier for it and so is our family.

Dads are so important as role models for their children. In this era of global volatility and escalating obesity, especially in our children, dads are cornerstones to their child’s healthy life. Real dads facing real challenges as part of life’s journey with the willingness to change will help their kids live healthier lives.

May we celebrate dads on Father’s Day and everyday. To their health! Live vibrant!

Download Our Free Kids’ Activity eBook!
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Healthy Lifestyle Habits Can Change The Future For Our Children

A recent analysis done by the American Heart Association found that a shocking 90% of all American children have poor diets. Their poor diets are setting them up for ongoing health problems, including heart disease at an early age. How could this happen in the richest nation in the world?

It seems the more fast paced our lives have become we as a society have looked for solutions that are easy, fast and affordable. In order to meet these needs our food has become more and more processed, refined and pre-packaged which has required foods with longer shelf lives (code for not fresh and filled with salt, sugar and salt). Sadly this has not improved our quality of life but instead diminished it. Our kids are living with the burden of a lifetime of disease.

We do see some solutions emerging in our schools, communities and homes. It does require changing our priorities. There needs to be a focus on fresh, whole foods and cooking more at home so we can control what we eat and the quantity we consume.

This can seem overwhelming and a burden. It doesn't have to be. It does require a mindset and some creativity. We have to demand change. Dr. Brian Wansink in his most recent book Slim by Design shows us how we can change our food environments for positive outcomes. He even offers specific resources and ways to become a health advocate for your kid's schools, in your community and workplace. Dr. Jim Hill and Dr. Holly Wyatt show us in their book State of Slim how others who have struggled with weight loss, adopted a healthy lifestyle, and made it possible and sustainable for themselves by sharing the common threads in their lives. And then there are the healthy lifestyle chefs like Jamie Oliver who have shown us how accessible home cooking can be and how kids can be involved in their own healthy eating and cooking.

There are now more and more healthy lifestyle products available to make it possible and enjoyable to adopt healthy eating habits. So many kitchen and gourmet retailers now have dedicated areas with kitchen gear just for kids to make it fun for them to learn how to cook. Kidliga is such a product. It is a product that is fun and engaging that teaches kids about what makes a balanced meal, what right sized portions look like and how to easily measure healthy foods. It includes a fun adventure book that includes recipes and more healthy lifestyle ideas.

What is clear is that to save our kids lives we have to change how we eat and what we eat. Today it is possible to make that change with the resources available. Let's make sure this story has a happy ending.

SEPTEMBER KIDLIGA SPECIAL PRICING TO HELP KIDS LIVE HEALTHY

During September, all month long, as part of raising awareness for National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month we are offering our Kidliga children’s dishware at a significant savings ($29.99 instead of $59.95/comes with an award winning book) and each time you buy a set of Kidliga we are donating a set to a child participating in a healthy lifestyle and nutrition program. This way each time you buy  you are doubling the number of kids you are helping live a healthy life.

Help Us Help Kids Live Healthy!

#NCOAM

#Kidliga

#CCHLN

#healthykids

#FunctionJunction

#childhoodobesityawareness
#Livliga 
#LiveVibrant 
#Kidfriendly
#SpecialPricing
#HelpUsHelpKidsLiveHealthy

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September is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month

"Help Us Help Kids Be Healthy!" is the title of our campaign this September to help build awareness around childhood obesity and helping kids live healthier lives. Livilga® has a children’s line Kidliga® that was developed for just this purpose. We believe kids can have fun learning about healthy eating and what it means to enjoy a balanced meal. Sammie and Sax are Kidliga kids in our books and on our dishware who know just how to show the way.

Livliga believes that the best way to help spread the word and help make a difference is through partnerships. That is why during September, which is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month we are partnering with the Center for Children’s Healthy Lifestyles & Nutrition (CCHLN).  We are all aware of the growing epidemic that affects approximately 12.5 million children in the United States. We all want to help and do something tangible to make a difference. Here at Livliga we want to raise money through our children’s brand, Kidliga®, in support of this cause, with 10% of all sales being donated to CCHLN throughout September. Through our special partnership with CCHLN, Livliga will also provide unique news and information surrounding healthy eating for families through an e-book, while providing recipes, games and giveaways, all in support of the fight against childhood obesity and helping children live healthier lives.

Kidliga® by Livliga® helping kids eat a right-sized balanced meal.

Through Kidliga, which features child-friendly plates, bowls and mugs, and an award-winning children’s book, entitled Sammie & Sax in the Land of Quinoa: The Search for a Balanced Meal, kids are introduced to the concept of healthy, balanced eating. The complete product line helps to educate and engage families in an interactive experience through visually intuitive dishware and the nutritionally-focused adventure book. Kidliga is a primary tool in Livliga’s overall mission to promote children’s health. Through our partnership with CCHLN, Livliga’s goal is to reach a wider audience, while educating families on just right portions and healthy eating habits.

Founder and CEO of Livliga, and former Executive Director of the American Heart Association in Denver, CO, Sheila Kemper Dietrich states, “We are thrilled at the opportunity to partner with the Center for Children’s Healthy Lifestyles & Nutrition to help America’s kids be healthier. We recognize that this is a continual effort – results won’t be achieved overnight. In joining forces with CCHLN we are able to make a meaningful impact in our joint effort to raise awareness and offer solutions.”

Director of The Center for Children’s Healthy Lifestyles & Nutrition, Dr. Ann Davis states, “Both The Center for Children’s Healthy Lifestyles & Nutrition and Livliga recognize the critical need to further research and focus the nation’s attention on childhood obesity, which is why we’ve partnered during National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month. The month of September is a great time for us to highlight children’s health and the proven ways we can help children live healthier lives.”

Additionally, in Kansas City, MO Function Junction™ is selling Kidliga products and offering special Kid Chefs Healthy Cooking Classes as part of a month long partnership with Livliga to introduce children to fun and healthy ways to cook at home while raising funds and attention on the importance of healthy eating and lifestyles for children in order to combat childhood obesity. For more information on these cooking classes CLICK here.

Let Us All Live Vibrant At All Ages!

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#CCHLN

#FunctionJunction
#childhoodobesityawareness
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#Kidfriendly

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Why Picky Eaters are at Risk

 

How many of us have dealt with a picky eater in our lives? We all know someone who fits the description. It may even be a child of ours. Whenever I think of a picky eater I remember the movie When Harry Met Sally. Sally personifies the picky eater perfectly. Picky eating makes us think of someone as quirky, idiosyncratic or worse, a nuisance. A recent study published in the Journal of Pediatrics unveils a far more serious side to picky eating, especially in our children.

Picky eating may be a sign a child is suffering from anxiety and depression. The study followed children from the ages of 2-6 for 3 years. They found that picky eating can be associated with separation anxiety and ADHD. To be clear, the study is not saying all children who are picky eaters are suffering from the same conditions. What it does show us is we should no longer view picky eating as a phase or quirky trait. It should not be trivialized or dismissed.

In fact, the study indicated that picky eating or “selective eating” might have long- term consequences on a child’s health. Some may be suffering with Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (AFRID), a recently recognized eating disorder. It is estimated that while most kids out grow their picky eating, at least 12% do not.

What are the ways we can help our children have a healthy relationship with food and enjoy eating a range of foods? Here are some ideas nutritionists have shared:

Make eating an exploration. Discovering new foods can be full of fun. It can start by touching a new food, smelling it and even licking it. The goal is not necessarily to eat it the first time it is introduced.

Do not make eating a certain food a “have to”. A sure way to have a child hate a food is to insist they eat it and eat it all. Instead make it about discovering tastes.

A child’s tastes change over time so re-trying a food should be encouraged. What a child did not like at two may now be something they like at four.

Avoid indulging picky eating. Instead of always feeding the picky eater the only foods they like, serve up a variety of appealing foods…just don’t force them to eat them but rather explore them.

Have the picky eater help pick out new foods to explore and help prepare them for your meal. Studies show if children are involved in choosing the food they eat and helping to prepare it they are more likely to try it.

Help your child learn about the importance of balanced meals and nutrition. Share with them how the foods we eat are important for being healthy, having energy and to do the things we want to do from thinking to playing sports. Learn together how different foods are good for you to eat and why. Read children’s books that teach children about what a balanced meal is, why food is important and how to cook. A fun book to enjoy together is Sammie & Sax in the Land of Quinoa: The Search for a Balanced Meal.

Above all a child’s experience with food should be enjoyable and even fun. Incorporate activities around learning about food. Go pick your own berries or other foods. Go to a farmer’s market. Visit a farm. Take a cooking class together. Bake muffins and cookies and share them with neighbors and family. Experiment in the kitchen and make up your own recipes. The fun can be endless and a great way to spend time with your child.

If you want more ideas or are concerned your child may have other issues beyond picky eating make sure to talk to your pediatrician. What we now know is picky eating is no longer something to be ignored or dismissed. Knowing this we can take positive steps to address the needs of our picky eaters so they can be healthy and enjoy eating all variety of foods.

Great Resource: For fun games, recipes and a special dish set that teaches children about right-sized eating and balanced meals got to www.LivligaHome.com and check out all things Kidliga.

SEPTEMBER KIDLIGA SPECIAL PRICING TO HELP KIDS LIVE HEALTHY

During September, all month long, as part of raising awareness for National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month we are offering our Kidliga children’s dishware at a significant savings ($29.99 instead of $59.95/comes with an award winning book) and each time you buy a set of Kidliga we are donating a set to a child participating in a healthy lifestyle and nutrition program. This way each time you buy  you are doubling the number of kids you are helping live a healthy life.

Help Us Help Kids Live Healthy!

#NCOAM

#Kidliga

#CCHLN

#healthykids

#childhoodobesityawareness
#Livliga 
#LiveVibrant 
#Kidfriendly
#SpecialPricing
#HelpUsHelpKidsLiveHealthy

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Fun Ways to Exercise with Your Kids

A fun and rewarding activity with your family is to sign up for a 5K Walk or Run

 

We all know our kids are not getting enough regular exercise. The truth is we aren’t either. The challenge becomes how do we all get moving?

Not long ago the Center for Disease Control made a profound statement. They proclaimed that we are now living in a generation where parents are going to out live their children because of obesity. When you think about it, this is a very frightening and scary statement. The good news is that as parents we are not powerless.

As parents we are powerful role models. Making a commitment to build more exercise into our lives can not only help us live healthier lives but it may just save our children’s lives. The key is that our children need to see us in action. In order to become healthier and live a healthy lifestyle we all have to change our habits.

A great way to get moving is to build exercise and fun activities into your family’s routine on a regular basis. This is possible even during the Pandemic. What you choose should be something you enjoy doing, is easily planned and remember, it doesn’t have to cost a lot of money or any money.

Here are some ideas of what has worked in our family:

Ask for the gift of exercise. Think of it as a “positive” bribe. On more than one Mother’s Day I have asked members of my family to commit to giving me the gift of working out with me for a period of time. It is a great way for each of us to be committed to exercising. For the kids it is a way for them to give you something you want without a whole lot of effort or money. With my daughter I even did exercises together with her. I really enjoyed it and she did too.

Plan a special activity over a vacation or holiday. A way to build in activities you have never tried before or that require a little more planning, think about making them a part of a holiday, this includes staycations. Where we live it is possible to go horseback riding. It is actually more work than you realize. Or you could sign up for Line Dancing or a Karate class--many of these are offered online these days.

Sign up for Run or Walk and include the family. Over the years our family has done a number of runs/walks together. The list has become long. It is a great way to raise awareness and funds for an important cause, spend time with your family and also practice fitness. Most communities have a ton of opportunities to sign up from The American Heart Association or March of Dimes to local hospitals or health oriented organizations as well as special needs associations. Most all of them have become virtual so you can do it where you live and in a safe environment. Pick one that means something to you and sign up to do it. Get it on the calendar early and then do it annually. It is a wonderful community to become a part of.

Fit in some weekend fun. We have come to look forward to the weekends. There are many activities, like cycling, kayaking or hiking that can take more time than you have available during the week. We love to get on our bikes, take our masks with us, and pick new places to explore on Saturdays. Or it could be taking your dogs to a new park and walking around it with them. Take a Frisbee too and you can add even more fun.

Think about an activity before or after dinner. Often we tend to lose a lot of time in front of the TV before and after dinner. This is a time we can often fit in a short walk around the neighborhood. My dad used to do this all the time we were growing up. It was a way for him to relax after work. We were always invited. Somehow I got out of the habit until recently. Now I love my evening walks with the dogs and any other family member who can join me.

We have found the more we do work in family exercise the easier it becomes to sustain it. The challenge is to make it the priority and work the other parts of our schedule around it. Regrettably, we tend to put exercise at the bottom of our list of priorities until we realize the health of our family and the quality of our lives depends on it. In reality, there is no better time than the present to get started moving. That is why we want to make it fun and enjoyable. Taking a walk or doing a “run” or trying out a new activity are all great ways to spend time with the ones we love. Not only are we moving, we are also bonding and sharing the important value of health. There is no way to beat that. Let’s commit to live vibrant! 

Help Us Help Kids Live Healthy!

#NCOAM

#Kidliga

#CCHLN

#healthykids

#childhoodobesityawareness
#Livliga 
#LiveVibrant 
#Kidfriendly
#HelpUsHelpKidsLiveHealthy

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Let's Celebrate and Get Vocal About Food Day

Including our kids and friends in meal preparation makes mealtime so much more fun and successful (photo by LivligaHome).

Today is National Food Day. There is nothing like a title that tells us we are all in this together. As I have learned and studied about healthy eating, weight management and our behavior related to changing our unhealthy habits it has become abundantly clear that it is nearly impossible to succeed in embracing a healthy lifestyle by doing it alone. The change has to be systemic. We have to involve everybody in our world from our family to our friends to our co-workers. We need to surround ourselves with a world that is supportive of good health and healthy habits. Good news is such a world is beneficial for everyone. As I have personally found, it is a world that is much more fun and joyful. I see a lot more smiles in the world I live in now.

The challenge is how do we get started. For me it was all about adopting small changes and sticking to them. For some it may work better to go for broke and make major changes all at once. It can be as easy as replacing sugary sodas with flavored waters. Or you may want to right size your food environment so you tackle your food portions altogether. The only way I know you can do this successfully is to right size your dishware-- which is why I created Livliga. I have now lost almost 60 pounds, and kept it off, just by right sizing my portions and going back to actual serving sizes.

Now that we have gotten started, how do we sustain the change? By making it an automatic habit. This means it has to be doable and repeatable. It also has to be enjoyable. Our attitude can make us or break us. As an example, my husband and I started eating oatmeal for breakfast about a year ago. It is just what we do. It makes preparing breakfast easy and fast. Either one of us can get it ready. It is healthy, tasty (we add dried cherries and nuts) and has helped lower our cholesterol significantly. We really enjoy this healthy habit.

One or two changes does not make a healthy lifestyle so how do we keep adding more healthy habits to how we go about living our lives? We have to take on the next challenge. Sometimes, literally taking on a challenge helps us with change. Think of how many people you know who are working on being healthy who start running 5Ks. Others may eliminate different foods in their diet to help them gain more control of their health. My husband and I recently agreed to not drink alcohol during the week and just savor it on the weekends to help us control calories. Instead we are exploring various hot teas. Totally fun. My current favorite is Moroccan mint. It has become a successful new change.

Being inclusive with our healthy habits and lifestyle is not only helpful to us but also to the others in our lives. Including our kids and friends in meal preparation makes mealtime so much more fun and successful. Recent studies show that by having our kids, for instance, choose which healthy food they want to try and then letting them participate in the preparation of the meal being made they are much more likely to try new foods and like them.

I came across a wonderful and informative YouTube video "Our super-sized kids" that shows how important it is to support our kids in adopting healthy habits. It also shows that successful change can only be achieved if everyone in the family gets involved. Embracing healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle is everyone's business.

Let's get up and get vocal about healthy eating wherever we live and eat. We deserve it!

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Healthy Eating: the Importance of Portion Control for Children

A balanced meal shown on a Kidliga dish designed specifically for children

 The statistics for childhood obesity are scary. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has stated that we are now living in a generation where parents are going to out live their children due to childhood obesity. According to the CDC, childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and tripled in adolescents in the past 30 years. The percentage of children aged 6–11 years in the United States who were obese increased from 7% in 1980 to nearly 18% in 2010.  In 2010, more than one third of children and adolescents were overweight or obese. We have to face it: we are killing our kids with food.

As parents we want to make sure our children have everything they need.  When our children love a certain kind of food we encourage them to eat more. A lot of our love is put into the food we provide our kids. It makes us happy to have our children eat food with enthusiasm.

Unfortunately, this may not be so good for their health. We are now learning that not all foods are made a like. Just eating anything is not necessarily better than not eating at all. In fact, it is really important to introduce our kids to a variety of foods and to eating a balanced meal.

This can seem overwhelming when the images our children see on TV, on billboards and the web are of foods that are high in calories, fat, sugar and salt.  We also live in a super-sized world with super-sized portions encouraging our children to eat big quantities of food. It is hard to know what the right amounts of food are, and what really makes up a balanced meal.

There are some easy steps we can take to help get control of our children’s serving sizes. Here are 6 tips to help:

1. Realize there is a difference between a portion and a serving size. When we are served a plate of food we tend to think of it as a serving but it can actually be made up of a number of servings. What we have been served is a portion. A serving is a specific measured amount recommended by the USDA for us to eat of a specific food. It is all about how many calories we burn during the day and what we need to eat to fuel our body and keep it healthy.

2. Kids do not need to eat as much as adults do. As parents we tend to think that because our children are growing they need to even eat more than we do. Not true. In fact, kids are burning less calories than they used too because they are not as physically active. They are also smaller than we are. They deserve plates and servings right-sized for them.

3. Cook more meals at home and include your kids in the process. When we cook at home we have much more control over the food we eat and how much is served. By including our kids in preparing a meal we are getting them to interact with the food they eat. This makes them more willing to try new things.

4. Be a role model. The biggest influence in how our children eat and the amounts they eat is what they see us as parents doing. Eating right-sized servings and the right variety of foods starts with us. Living a healthy lifestyle is a family affair and good for everyone.

5. Invest in some easy tools to help you with learning about and preparing balanced meals and serving up right-sized portions for your kids. Eating healthy is a journey that we want to become a way of life. We need to learn about healthy eating and practice living a healthy lifestyle everyday. Think about reading a book to your kids that teaches them about a balanced meal like Sammie and Sax in the Land of Quinoa: The Search for a Balanced Meal. Buy plates that are right-sized and have serving sizes built into them like those offered from Kidliga. Choose some fun activities for your kids that reinforce the learning like a Sammie and Sax Balanced Meal puzzle, or fun mazes and coloring pages that you can find for free online. Then think about choosing kid-friendly recipes that your children will enjoy helping to prepare as well as eat.  There are healthy children’s cookbooks you can get or you can find kid-friendly recipes for free online and make your own cookbook of family favorites.

6. Access Free Resources online and locally. There are more and more great websites to help parents with ideas, recipes and activities to help engage our kids in healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle.  Here are my favorites:

www.LivligaHome.com
www.eatright.org/kids
www.choosemyplate.gov
http://www.actionforhealthykids.org/

Supporting our kids in eating and living healthy is the greatest gift we can give them. Use these tips to help make the journey a little easier and more fun.


September is #NationalChildhoodObesityAwarenessMonth (NCOA). To get things started off right Livliga has a special Kidliga Sale all September long!  All Kidliga products are 30% OFF with FREE shipping! Use this discount code at checkout: HealthyKids30off. Our designated nonprofit to receive donations from each sale is Children With Diabetes. Please help us help kids live healthy!

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5 Tips To Avoid Over Snacking

5 Tips To Avoid Over Snacking (photo by LivligaHome).

Hot summer months are ripe for over eating. Our kids are out of school, often bored, and have constant access to snacky foods. With 17% of US children now living a life of obesity there are many ways to change unhealthy habits and encourage healthy eating.

Snacks can have a big impact on our children's health and weight. Taking steps to make it easier to provide healthier choices for our ourselves and our kids is key. Since parents are the role models for thier kids, we need to model healthy habits too. With a little planning and prepping we can make snacktime a fun and healthy experience.

Here are 5 Tips To Avoid Over Snacking:

1. Pre-plan and pre-organize your snacks. Make sure there are plenty of colorful cut up vegetables and healthy dips in the front of your refrigerator.

 2. Avoid buying packaged snacks. Instead package your own to grab-and-go with to the pool, sports activities, travel, picnics or a friend’s backyard barbecue.

 3. Think about when you want to eat snacks during the day and set a specific time when you and your children will enjoy them. This way you avoid grazing throughout the day.

 4. Be in control of your snacks or appetizers. When invited to a friend’s house or spending hours at an after school sports event, offer to bring the snack, that way you can be in control of what you eat. You can choose to provide a healthy alternative.

 5. Drink a lot of water. It is hot outside and we need to drink more water. Sometimes our feelings of hunger are actually because we are dehydrated. Before you choose to eat a snack…or any meal, always drink a glass or two of water. Encourage your children to do the same. Everyone will feel fuller and will avoid dehydration as well as over snacking.

Don't forget some healthy summer reading with Sammie & Sax! Buy our hardback in English or now enjoy our updated adventure book as an ebook in Spanish!


Help Kids Live Healthy!

#Sammie&Sax
#summerreading
#FREEebook

#Kidliga

#CCHLN

#healthykids

#childhoodobesityawareness
#Livliga 
#LiveVibrant 
#Kidfriendly
#HelpUsHelpKidsLiveHealthy

This article originally published on the EpochTimes.com

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Reflections on the YouTube Video: Rewind the Future—Stop the Cycle

Rewind the Future--Stop the Cycle

There has been much conversation in recent days about a YouTube video that has resurfaced: Rewind the Future—Stop the Cycle. It is pretty graphic. It shows all the ways we over feed ourselves with super-sized portions of food that is less than healthy for us. The video starts with a morbidly obese man on a gurney in the ER (we presume he is suffering from a heart attack). The video shows images of all the overeating and all the unhealthy choices that led up to the ER scene.

There is an obesity epidemic. Frightening statistics are thrown at us every day: 73 % of Americans are either over weight or obese; childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the past 30 years; and, it is now estimated that 1 out of every 3 people will have diabetes by 2050. These are the facts. It is easy for us to see with our own eyes when we look around us.

What has gotten people riled is that the video shows scenes with a mother over time encouraging unhealthy eating, starting with her feeding her baby French fries to keep him quiet. What mother hasn’t made choices like that? We are hardly perfect and we have a super-sized food culture that actually sets us up for failure. Moms are not the root of the problem but we can be a significant part of the solution.

No mom wakes up everyday and says “how can I kill my kid with food today?” In fact, this is the furthest from our mind. Our dream is to have our children grow up healthy and happy. The reality is we have not understood the consequences of the food we have served our children. It is all too easy to make unhealthy food choices because of the fast food world we live in. Portions are huge. Readily accessible, affordable food is packed full of calories and harmful ingredients we don’t need. And if that wasn’t bad enough, our culture and family traditions have us thinking it is a good idea to over feed our kids because food is the manifestation of our love.

Because we love our children, we have to lead the fight to change ourselves and our culture when it comes to our food habits. We have to because our current ways are killing us and our kids. It starts with us. Parents have an incredible influence on our kids. By learning about healthier foods and healthier lifestyle habits we can begin to make the change and bring everyone along with us.

There are more and more resources available to learn what is healthy and ways to make it easier to implement those changes in our households. There are programs to take advantage of through our employers and through our health insurance that are free. To find out the basics about healthy eating you can go to myplate.gov. There are many websites that offer healthy recipes like myrecipe.com and cookinglight.com. Then there are great resources for revving up your physical activity and exercise like myfitnesspal.com or you can just search on YouTube for great exercise videos—all for free. For kid specific information checkout kids eat right.

For fun tools to engage your kids think about books you can read together like Sammie and Sax in the Land of Quinoa: the Search for a Balanced Meal or give them their own right-sized dishware to support healthy eating. There are even healthy and kid-friendly recipes you can find and have your children participate in the preparation of the meal. Research shows the best way to get kids to try new foods and healthy foods is to have them help prepare them.

Rewind the Future—Stop the Cycle may be an exaggeration and unfair assessment of a mother’s role in her child’s obesity but it is most certainly a wake up call for all of us. We do have the ability to make a healthier world for our children and it starts in our own kitchen. Let’s stand up to the challenge.

#obesity

#prevention

#rewindthefuture

#momsuniteforhealth

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Where in the World are Sammie & Sax?... Headed for Israel, of course, with New Friend, Leon!

Sammie & Sax are Headed for Israel with New Friend, Leon! (photo by LivligaHome)

It has been a great adventure for us all in Boston this year at the 141st APHA Conference. We have met many amazing and accomplished people doing important work around the globe to improve our enviroment of health. One such person we met, Leon, is headed back to Israel....with Sammie and Sax! He loved the concept of Kidliga and the book Sammie & Sax in the Land of Quinoa: The Search for a Balanced Meal. He is excited to give the dishware to his grandson and read the book to him. How cool to know Sammie & Sax will now be in another country around the globe! We know they are ready for the adventure! As they would say "Spoon Zoom Away!"

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