Healthy School Meals Act Rewards Schools for Offering Low-Fat Options Doctors Say Fruits, Vegetables, and Plant-Based Meals Critical to Obesity Fight
WASHINGTON—School cafeterias across the country may soon serve more fruits, vegetables, and healthy plant-based meals. A new bill in Congress would reward school districts for offering plant-based vegetarian options and healthful nondairy beverages. Making healthier options available would help schools fight obesity, comply with federal nutrition standards, and meet all children’s dietary needs, say doctors and dietitians with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM).
The Healthy School Meals Act of 2010, H.R. 4870—which will be introduced this week by Rep. Jared Polis of Colorado—would reward school districts with additional food aid if they offer most students plant-based vegetarian food choices every day. The bill, which has already drawn support from Rep. John Conyers and 30 other co-sponsors, would create a pilot program to provide select schools with high-fiber, low-fat vegetarian protein products and nondairy milk options.
Marilu is testifying before a Congressional committee today in support of healthy school lunches for all children. You can do your part, too. Contact your US House Representative in support of H.R. 4870, The Healthy School Meals Act of 2010, being introduced this week.
We learned a great way to help improve our children’s school lunches yesterday – while we were in chat with Dr. Neal Barnard and Marilu. Here’s what Dr. Barnard said.
The most amazing thing is that Congress is now considering vegetarian and vegan options for children in school. It would make kids so much healthier.
Please call Congress at 202-224-3121, and tell them your city, and they’ll put you through to your representative’s office. Ask your representative to support the new bill calling for more vegetarian options in schools.
We’re glad to see Michele Obama joining the fight for children’s health. Check out Let’s Move, Mrs. Obama’s initiative for healthier eating and more moving for families and children. Some of the information does not align with Marilu’s Total Health Makeover® – that dairy lobby has a strong foothold in all the government recommendations. So read critically, as always.
One idea we like – become an activist for getting kids to move more. That’s your own children and all the children in your community. (It does take a village.)
Children 8-18 spend 7.5 hours a day (on average) as passive recipients of entertainment. That includes televsion, music, video games, cell phones, and movies. We need to work harder at giving our kids safe, supervised places to play, and then we need to make sure they use them.
Questions to ask yourself…
Is your child’s after-school/childcare program activity-based? Or do the kids watch videos?
Does your child’s school have recess? Physical education classes more than 30 minutes a week?
Does your community have children’s sports programs? Is financial assistance available so every child can participate?
Does the community have safe parks and playgrounds?
Are there safe walking and biking routes to all schools? Are kids encouraged to walk or bike to school?
Is your family time focused on the screen, or do you make the effort to get up and move as a family?
Despite objections from the chemical industry, most scientific studies show that Bisphenol-A (BPA) may pose major health risks, such as breast and prostate cancer, reproductive system abnormalities and a host of developmental problems in the womb and early childhood. Concerns about exposure early in a child’s life also extend to early onset of puberty in females and obesity.
BPA may pose major health risks because it mimics estrogen, affecting reproduction and neural development. Infants and toddlers have the highest risk because they have the highest level of exposure at a time when risks to reproduction and neural development are the greatest.
BPA is used in a wide range of products and consumables, despite scientific studies that demonstrate the harm to our health and the health of our nation’s children. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that 95 percent of Americans tested have BPA levels at or above levels that cause abnormalities in animals.
This is the same chemical used in the plastic reuseable water bottles we all replaced a year or so ago. So why is it still being used in baby bottles? It’s time that we stop exposing our children and ourselves to this toxic chemical.
On Sunday, Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand from New York introduced a new bill that would prohibit the manufacture and sale of food and beverage containers for infants and toddlers that are made of BPA. This bill could come to a vote before the holiday recess, so don’t delay.
Tell your senators to support the BPA-Free Kids Act, and stop the manufacture and sale of food and beverage containers for infants and toddlers that are made of BPA!
Most Americans don’t wash their hands often enough – or long enough – to prevent disease. There’s no excuse for not doing it right.
Use warm water. Use soap. Wash for a minimum of 20 seconds. That’s moving your hands against each other, the backs of your hands and the fronts, and even between your fingers. Wash like a surgeon.
What’s more, we tend to lie about how often we wash, suggesting that we know what we should be doing but don’t always do it. Studies have shown that people will say they wash after using the restroom, but video evidence shows that at least one-third of people using public restrooms skip the handwashing. Eeeeewwwwww.
Wash after you sneeze or cough (into your elbow, please, not into your hand). And of course, wash before you get anywhere near food, either to eat it or to prepare it.
We pick up the bugs that cause colds, flu, and other infectious diseases by contact with someone who is already infected or by touching surfaces that harbor germs. Good handwashing is the best defense against all those germs.
Avocados * A healthy plant-based fat source, rich in cholesterol-lowering phytosterols and high in the anti-oxidant glutathione. Use in place of butter or margarine, mash plain or with bananas for young children, and use as a base for dips and dressings.
Blueberries/Blackberries * Packed with tannins, anthocyanidins, flavonoids, polyphenols, and proanthcyanidins that have been linked to prevention and reversal of age-related mental decline, and powerful anti-cancer effects. Use frozen organic berries when fresh are not available.
Cantaloupes * Only 56 calories/cup, the cantaloupe is nutrient dense with huge amounts of vitamin C and beta-carotene, as well as folate, potassium, fiber, thiamin, niacin, pantothenic acid, and vitamin B6. Blend 1/2 melon with 1 cup ice for a cantaloupe slushie.
Carrots/Beets * High in fiber and in antioxidants like caratonoids and beta-cyanin (inhibits cell mutations – critical in reducing cancer risk). Shred raw and add to salads and wraps/sandwiches; steam or roast for side dishes; add to soups and other one-pot meals. Add juice to soups, and use as base in juice drinks.
Flax seeds * Rich in lignans and omega-3 fatty acids, they help lower cholesterol, relieve constipation, and help reduce the risk of cancer and heart disease. Use ground seeds in oatmeal, or add to whipped frozen bananas, stewed apples, and fruit/veggie smoothies. Scientifically documented benefits come from raw ground flax seed, not from flax seed oil.
Green lettuce * Low in calories, containing an abundance of phytonutrients, plant proteins, vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Eat salad with lettuce every day. Children often prefer plain, undressed leaves.
Kale * A high-nutrient, high-fiber green vegetable that’s great in soups and other main dishes. Just chop it up and give it plenty of cooking time with other food. Also a great side dish, sauteed with some onion, and then braised with some veggie stock. Dry roast it for kale chips.
Sesame seeds * Rich in minerals calcium, magnesium, copper, iron, manganese, and zinc, as well as vitamins and fiber. Also contain unique cancer-fighting lignans. Grind to a powder to sprinkle on foods, or “garnish” dishes with a teaspoon of sesame seeds per serving. Grind fresh to make tahini, and use it as a dip base.
Strawberries * High in folic acid, flavonoids, iron, and vitamin C, as well as dietary fiber and potassium – all for only 60 calories/cup. This is one place to spend the money and buy organic. Frozen berries are good in the off-season. Use in fruit/veggie smoothies, or on salads (dress with balsamic vinaigrette). Or just eat them – yum.
Tomatoes * Consumption of tomatoes (especially cooked tomatoes) has been linked to a dramatic reduction in common cancers. The phytochemical lycopene is protective against prostate cancer, breast cancer, endometrial cancer, lung cancer, and colorectal cancer. Tomato sauces are easily served with any grain and most animal protein, and are part of nearly every ethnic cuisine.
If you’re having company over the holidays – or really, anytime – muffins are a simple and easy breakfast. Serve them with fresh fruit and eggs for a healthy breakfast.
Muffins are also good to have around for a healthy and easy snack, or a treat in a brown-bag lunch. Bake them ahead of time, cool completely on a rack, and freeze in a freezer-weight zipper bag (remove as much air as possible).
We’re offering two different muffin recipes to satisfy everyone at the table.
1/3 cup chopped candied ginger or chopped pineapple, dates, or raisins
1/4 cup Earth Balance, melted or vegetable oil
1/3 cup molasses
1/2 cup Sucanat®
1 cup mashed cooked sweet potato or winter squash
2 eggs or equivalent egg replacer
1/2 cup “buttermilk” (In a 1/2 cup measuring cup pour 1 Tablespoon white vinegar. Fill with soy, rice, almond or oat milk. Let stand 10 minutes before using.)
1-3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Preheat oven to 375F. Oil or spray muffin tins. Mix the ginger and wet ingredients in a bowl until smooth; mix the dry ingredients in a second bowl. Combine the two, mixing gently until well blended. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins and bake on the middle shelf until lightly browned, about 25 minutes.
Blueberry Crunch Muffins Green * Makes 12 muffins
1/3 cup Sucanat®
1/4 cup Earth Balance margarine, softened
1 egg white, beaten
2 cups organic unbleached flour
3-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup soy milk (or rice, almond, or oat milk)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups frozen or fresh organic blueberries
Topping:
1/4 cup Earth Balance margarine
1/2 cup Sucanat®
1/3 cup organic unbleached flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Preheat oven to 375F. In a mixing bowl, cream Sucanat and margarine. Add egg white; mix well. In another bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture alternately with soy milk. Stir in vanilla. Fold in blueberries.
Fill 12 paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full with batter. In a small bowl, combine all topping ingredients and mix with a fork until crumbly. Sprinkle evenly over muffins. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until lightly browned.
Because it’s a logical choice today, don’t you think?
Bust a move with the Ghostbusters. If you have little ones in the house, it will help them release some of the pre-celebration energy. If you don’t – well, it’s just fun to dance.
Use warm water. Use soap. Wash for a minimum of 20 seconds. That’s moving your hands against each other, the backs of your hands and the fronts, and even between your fingers. Wash like a surgeon. 
