While you care about the health of your children, sometimes the lack of time is an obstacle. You might not be able to cut up pieces of fruit and vegetables and make healthy homemade snacks every day. But that doesn't mean you can't feed your children healthy snacks. There are many pre-packaged options at your local grocery store to help you meet the health goals you've set for your kids.
Fruit and Vegetables
Increase your children's intake of fruits and vegetables with the numerous available packaged snacks. Fruit leather, for instance, is made from blended whole fruit. However, it is important to read the label to avoid leather and similar fruit snacks with an abundance of sugar and not enough fruit. Choose ice pops that are made from 100 percent fruit juice with no added sugar or artificial sweeteners. Also, many supermarkets offer single-serve packages of fruits and vegetables -- like apple slices and baby carrots -- for a simple, healthy snack.
Grains
You will find an abundance of unhealthy refined grains in snack foods. Instead, look for whole-grain snacks. Offer your children dry whole-grain cereal with main ingredients such as whole-grain rice, corn, bran, oats or wheat. Read the label before you buy to see how much sugar is in each cereal. Buy whole-grain crackers, rice cakes and unbuttered popcorn as healthy, easy snacks for your kids. Granola bars are also filling -- look for those made with whole-grain oats.
Dairy
Dairy foods are important for your child's health, especially for his bones. Yogurt is a simple and healthy pre-packaged dairy snack for your kids. Many specialty children's yogurts have less sugar than the adult varieties. Greek yogurt has a minimum amount of sugar, no additives and the added benefit of being higher in protein than regular yogurt. Buy pre-packaged string cheese or cheese cubes, frozen yogurt or ice cream, bottled smoothies and single-serving puddings as quick and healthy snacks. Purchase low-fat or fat-free versions of these products to give your children the calcium, vitamin D and other nutrients found in dairy without the saturated fat and calories.
Nuts, Seeds and Bean Dip
Nuts are a simple and healthy snack, although your child should eat them in moderation since they are high in calories. Nuts will give your child longer-lasting energy than many other snacks. All nuts have health benefits, but almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts and pecans contain larger amounts of healthy omega-3 fats, fiber, vitamins and plant sterols that are important for heart health. Buy packaged trail mix that contains nuts, seeds, granola and dried fruit. Some seeds with substantial health benefits are sunflower, sesame, hemp, chia and pumpkin -- they're rich in fiber, protein, healthy fats and antioxidants. Choose a natural peanut butter to avoid hydrogenated oil and added sugars; put it on whole-grain crackers or use as a dip for fruit or vegetables. Hummus, made of crushed garbanzo beans, or pinto bean dip on whole-grain crackers or baked tortilla chips provides a high-protein, low-fat snack.
References
- Center for Science in the Public Interest: Healthy School Snacks
- Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences: The ABC's of Growing Healthy Kids --- Keep on Snacking
- U.S. Institute of Child Health & Human Development: Milk Matters: Ideas for Calcium-Rich Meals and Snacks
- MayoClinic.com: Nuts and Your Heart --- Eating Nuts for Heart Health
- Global Healing Center: The Top Five Healthiest Seeds
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