Category: childrens health
bookmark_borderGardening Resources
Whistle While You Work Gardening
Guide To Edible Plants
The United States Department of Agriculture is offering these interactive and exploratory lessons as a creative way to connect gardens with nutrition messages in the classroom, cafeteria or lunch room, and at home. Whether your garden is large or small and your growing season is long or short, these materials can help you:
- Change how children think and feel about fruits and vegetables.
- Foster an awareness of where foods come from.
- Get kids’ attention with colorful visuals, games, and activities that are age-appropriate and fun.
- Integrate gardening and nutrition into English Language Arts, Math, Science, and Health lessons.
- Provide nutrition messages that are consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010.
For Use with Preschoolers
For Use with Elementary School Age Children
- The Great Garden Detective Adventure (Grades 3-4)
- Dig In! (Grades 5-6)
bookmark_borderPopcorn
Popcorn is a highly healthy snack. It is also native to America. Many nutritionist believe eating local foods is a better diet.
Air-popped popcorn is naturally high in dietary fiber, low in calories and fat, and free of sugar and sodium.
| Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |
|---|---|
| Energy | 1,598 kJ (382 kcal) |
| Carbohydrates | 78 g |
| – Dietary fiber | 15 g |
| Fat | 4 g |
| Protein | 12 g |
| Thiamine (vit. B1) | 0.2 mg (17%) |
| Riboflavin (vit. B2) | 0.3 mg (25%) |
| Iron | 2.7 mg (21%) |
| One cup is 8 grams. Percentages are relative to US recommendations for adults. Source: USDA Nutrient Database |
|
bookmark_borderMonsanto’s Roundup-tolerant Genetically Modified Corn
Many people are concerned about Monsanto genetically engineering food crops; however, there is no evidence that genetically modified food is harmful to your health. That is to say, at least the plant is harmful to humans.
On the other hand, Monsanto developed Roundup — a commercially available herbicide (also known as Glyphosate.) Roundup has been proven to be harmful to humans. By developing a Roundup-tolerant crop, isn’t Monsanto promoting the use of the herbicide?
Also, the development of similar resistance in some weed species is emerging creating Monsanto-resistant plants.
bookmark_borderCarotenoids
“Carotenoids are a group of more than 700 compounds that produce the red, yellow, and orange colors found in many fruits and vegetables. Beta carotene (also called provitamin A) is the most widely studied carotenoid, but others are proving to be of great interest. Carotenoids are neither vitamins nor phytochemicals, but are proving to be very important for health. Currently there is no recommended daily allowance for carotenoids, including beta carotene. “