healthy you
NUTRITION
Survive Your
Kid’s Diet
B u y t e e n -f r ie n d ly f o o d t h a t
w o n ’t in f la t e y o u r w a is t lin e .
BY GRETCHEN ROBERTS
f you have teens, you know
stocking your kitchen with
snacks is a parental job
requirement. Sadly, a recent
study confirms something
you likely also know: Adults with
children at home eat foods much
higher in fat than adults without
kids at home. But smart grocery
shopping can replace typical teen
snacks with healthier versions, says
Elisa Zied, spokesperson for the
American Dietetic Association and
author of
Feed Your Family Right!
IN STEAD O F Potato chips
TR Y TH IS Cereal snack mix
baked whole grain crackers
It seems you absorb calories even by
smelling potato chips. A serving of
Chex Mix, on the other hand, has
the crunch teens love with only
5
grams of fat, while the whole grain
in wheat crackers such as Wheat
Thins helps fill them up faster.
IN STEAD O F Bologna
sandwiches with mayonnaise
TR Y TH IS Low-fat turkey with
mustard or horseradish
There are
100
calories in each slice
of mystery meat. By comparison,
four slices of Hormel’s Natural
Choice oven-roasted deli turkey
have just
50
. Mayo has
100
calories
in a tablespoon, while mustard and
horseradish have almost none.
IN STEAD O F Ice cream
TR Y TH IS Frozen yogurt tubes
At about
300
calories per cup of ice
cream, it’s incredibly easy to eat
your way to being a chunky monkey.
Freeze a bunch ofYoplait GoGurts
or Horizon Organic Yogurt Tubes
and you’ll knock that down to
70
or
80
calories per tube.
INSTEAD OF Mac and cheese
TR Y TH IS Noodles with olive oil
and grated Parmesan
Boxed macaroni and cheese is quick
and filling, but it has a whopping
19
grams of fat per serving, mostly
saturated. Instead, boil spaghetti
noodles, separate into single-
serving baggies, and refrigerate.
Your teen can throw the noodles in
a bowl, add a tablespoon of extra
virgin olive oil, microwave until hot,
and sprinkle on Parmesan.
#
W h e re d o e s th e
p o ta to sta n d
n u tritio n a lly
th e se d a y s .
The poor potato: It has fed civilizations,
yet it can’t seem to shake its present-day
reputation as junk food. We probably
have Thomas Jefferson to thank for
that. It was Jefferson who introduced
the French fry to the United States.
Potato chips were soon to follow, and
the spud has never recovered from the
damage done by these cooking methods.
And cooking methods are the culprit,
says Elizabeth Grainger, research
dietitian at the Ohio State University
Medical Center. “The potato in its
natural form is a very good food,” she
says. One serving of potato (about the
size of a computer mouse) with the peel
left on has
4
grams of protein, up to
5
grams of fiber, as much potassium as
two bananas, almost half the daily
requirement of vitamin C, and no
fat—and all for only
100
calories. Bad
things don’t have to happen to a good
vegetable if you try this cooking
method: Scrub but do not peel potatoes
(any variety will do), chop them up, toss
with a little olive oil, and sprinkle with
your choice of herbs, salt, and pepper.
Roast at
425
°F until potatoes are
crunchy on the outside and creamy on
the inside (about
40
minutes). You’ll
never miss your French fries.
218
APRIL2009 BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS
PHOTOS: JUPITER IMAGES
