julie kendrick for mn parent -- blissful breakfasts
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Article on surviving breakfasts on schooldays.TRANSCRIPT
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16 September 2012
Blissful breakfast time? Yes, it’s possible!
wo years ago, Mya Bitney’s three children (ages 10, 7 and 5) collected 17 tardies at school, all a result of last-minute morning madness. Last year, she decided that something had to change. She told her kids that the goal for the upcoming school year was “zero tardies,” and she asked for everyone’s
help in meeting it. Results so far? “On time, every morning!” she reports, as she quickly searches for some wood to knock on.
TBy Julie Kendrick
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September 2012 17
What has been the secret of her
success? Bitney, who works full time as a
marketing manager at Medtronic, says
that one secret was creating a “morning
song,” a ditty she sang every morning at
6:30 a.m. Sung to the tune of Hot Time in
the Old Town Tonight, its lyrics urged the
kids to “Wake up now, and then get out of
bed…” listing each task to complete
before breakfast (including a line for “take
a pee,” since one of the kids had been
chronically forgetting to use the toilet
until the moment they were ready to walk
out the door).
The other reason that mornings are so
much smoother, she says, has to do with
breakfast. “I acquiesced on allowing some
packaged foods,” she reports, “and things
have been a lot easier.” With three bodies
to hustle out the door by 7:15 a.m. (their
school, Armatage Montessori in Minneap-
olis, starts the school day at 7:30 a.m.),
she arrived at a system that allowed each
child to choose one or two packaged foods
they’d be willing be eat. She drew the line
at super-sugary cereal, and her kids have
now settled on staples like instant
oatmeal, Raisin Bran, Cheerios and Greek
yogurt. She insists that they include milk
and fresh fruit, and has found that
breakfast time has settled down consider-
ably since those frequently tardy days of
the previous year.
The battle of breakfast While there has been considerable
attention recently directed toward school
lunches, many parents find that their
most stressful meal of the day is break-
fast. It poses a double problem for those
struggling to get kids fed and out the door.
First, time is of the essence—the school
bus driver won’t wait while your darling
finishes that last mouthful of toast. And
secondly, a nutritious meal can make a
huge difference in a child’s school
performance. Numerous studies have
shown that children who eat healthful
breakfasts have higher energy levels and
better learning ability than students who
don’t eat breakfast.
So what’s a struggling parent to do? It
might help to take at look at how Bitney
helped her family improve their on-time
performance. She addressed the issue
with the family members and stated her
goal for the school year ahead. She
created a fun way, a song, for everyone to
remember what needed to happen next.
And she let her kids have a say in what
they chose to eat.
Ingredients for successAllowing kids a choice is important, says
Susan Moores, R.D., a registered dietician
and Twin Cities-based nutrition consul-
tant. She says that there are a few key
elements in a good breakfast:
Good-quality carbohydrates, a preferred
source of energy for the brain. “The first
ingredient on the package needs to be
whole wheat, rolled oats, or whole grain,”
she says, adding, “Don’t be fooled by fiber
claims, because that’s not an indicator of
a whole grain. The more claims they make
on the front of the box, the more you
should turn it over and read the ingre-
dient list for the full story.”
Protein, which Moores says, “helps make
the energy you’re getting from your food
last a little bit longer, because it’s the
slowest to leave the stomach.” Yogurt is a
good source, but she cautions to be aware
of sugar (aim for 30 grams or less) and
artificial colors, which some studies have
linked to behavior issues in some chil-
dren. Other good protein sources include
milk, peanut or almond butter, and string
cheese.
Liquids, but limit fruit juice to six ounces
(2/3 cup) a day. “If you drink your
breakfast, you’ll be hungry in an hour or
two,” says Moores.
Fruit or vegetable. “They have fiber,
which helps kids feel full longer,” Moores
says. “Plus, missing them at breakfast
causes a need to ‘make up’ servings later
in the day.”
Skip the table, not breakfastWhile some families do sit down to
breakfast together every morning, that’s
not always a reality for many
Quick snacks for on the goOversleep? Dawdling? Sometimes there’s no getting around the fact that kids will not always have time for the most important meal of the day. That’s when take-along foods for on the bus or the walk to school are the only way to get a bit of nutrition in. When there isn’t opportunity to slap bread with peanut butter, these snacks will help fill that gnawing, empty feeling.
It’s not just for babiesKids of every age love squeeze pouch convenience, so throw out the notion that only babies and toddlers want to eat “purple roots and fruit” and “berry banana beet.” With BPA-free pouches, no artificial ingredients, and certified organic products, your child will suck up Plum Organic goodness quickly and with no mess. Other pouch-style foods include HappyBaby, a Dr. Sears- recommended product with the same BPA-free and 100% natural guarantee; and the organic super smoothie, HappySqueeze, a larger portioned size for bigger kids. Pouches usually cost under $2 each, some can be found for closer to a dollar. There’s also Earth’s Best Organic (Lund’s/Byerly’s, $1.69), Sprout Organic Baby Food (Lund’s, Target, about $1.60), and now even Gerber is getting into the act.
Beyond baby foodConsider the mainstay of granola bars, now in all kinds of flavors and nutrition values; the venerable Naked juices with tags like “protein zone” and “berry veggie” (between $3 and $4 depending upon where you acquire them); Cuties, an all natural fruit smoothie (about $2) with no added sugar; and a personal favorite, Greek yogurt, which usually has about 12 grams of protein — not bad at all, and again, under $2. Finally, consider the nutritional value of nuts such as almonds. One ounce of almonds has 12 percent of the daily allowance of protein and as much calcium as a quarter cup of milk. They are also loaded with Vitamin E.
— Kathleen Stoehr
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homes, but Moores has some on-the-go
suggestions. “A lot of kids aren’t hungry
an hour into their day, but you can offer
take-along foods like trail mix, string
cheese, or individual packages of cottage
cheese or yogurt. Apple wedges can be
dipped in vanilla yogurt that’s sprinkled
with cinnamon. And there’s no reason a
child can’t have a peanut butter and jelly
sandwich or cheese and turkey sandwich
for breakfast,” she says.
School steps inIf breakfast at home or on the go just isn’t
feasible, your child’s school may be
stepping in to fi ll that gap. Janeen
Peterson, president of the Minnesota
School Nutrition Association, says that
school breakfast programs have been
around since 1975. “We’ve tried to make
breakfast more convenient for students,
and the number of breakfasts eaten at
school is on the rise,” she says. Many
schools have added concepts such as a
grab-and-go breakfasts that can be eaten
in classrooms, along with mobile break-
fast carts located in different areas of the
school building. Peterson encourages
parents to check out their children’s
school breakfast options, saying, “Like
school lunch, it’s one of the best deals
around, and provides nutrients that help
children learn better than they would
without having breakfast.” And, Peterson
says, “We hear from many parents that
they appreciate having one less thing to
do before getting kids off to school.”
Teen troubleIf cheery grade-school breakfasts are the
subject of nostalgia at your house, then
“There’s no reason a child can’t have a
peanut butter and jelly sandwich or cheese
and turkey sandwich for breakfast.”
—Susan Moores, R.D.
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September 2012 19
you must be the parent of a teen. Since
they often want to sleep until the last
possible moment in the morning, most
teens don’t leave time for a nutritious
breakfast. Moores suggests fast options
such as beef sticks (“Read the labels and
make sure you can pronounce the
ingredients,” she cautions) or pita
pockets stuffed with nut butter and
bananas, or with cottage cheese,
broccoli slaw, and dressing.
One big no-no for teen breakfasts is
energy drinks. “They have a signifi cant
amount of sugar, and destructive
substances for teeth, which is a worry
since the teens will be away from a
toothbrush until afternoon. The big rush of
caffeine and sugar wears off in a couple
hours, and then they feel so bad they often
reach for another drink,” she says, adding,
“It’s hard to learn when you feel so cruddy
because of those ups and downs.”
She tells parents that nagging about
long-term health consequences like tooth
decay, heart disease, or osteoporosis will
be ignored by most teens. “Instead, say
that you need to choose the best foods to
charge up your brain so you can do better
on that test today, or to help you run
during the game.”
Even with a system in place to make
breakfast run more smoothly, Mya Bitney
has found there is always room for
improvement. “My husband was letting
the little ones pour their own hot water
for instant oatmeal,” she said. “It was
taking forever and causing spills. Now we
have a ‘parents pour’ policy,” she says, and
notes that it’s saved some time and kept
their on-time record intact.
And what’s her goal for the coming school
year? “Everyone will brush their teeth
before we leave the house,” she vows. •
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