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Making the Grade
With Brain-Healthy Foods
You bought new school clothes, a
new backpack, squeaky clean shoes and school supplies. But did
you remember to shop for foods and supplements to support brain
health? Parents can help their child make the grade by coupling
brain healthy supplements with a good multi-vitamin and healthy
foods so their child has what they need to perform at their best
this school year.
Brain-nourishing supplements are an important back-to-school
supply that will ultimately set your child up for success in the
classroom by improving focus and concentration, managing
behavioral problems and keeping them healthy.
Most of you already know the benefits of the Attend line of
Attention Deficit products. Attend encourages attention and
focus. Extress calms hyperactivity, stress and emotional
outbursts. Memorin aids memory retention and recall. These 100%
guaranteed supplements are a must-have school "supply."
Supplements are important to a strong brain, body and immune
system. The daily diet is also important to the school success
equation. However, the typical school lunch offers poor quality
foods like fast food, greasy pizzas and french fries. Often
parent-packed "cold lunches" also fail the grade. Statistics
show that only 25 percent of school lunches packed by parents
meet minimum dietary standards and most parent-packed lunches
are filled with foods high in saturated fat, sugar and salt.
Nutritious lunches and snacks keep children properly fueled
throughout the school day. Here are a number of healthy lunch
tips and parent-packed lunch ideas to keep your child's mind
sharp and ready to learn through the afternoon.
Visit the ADHD Help Center's
recipe section for a number of
healthy recipes to add to the diet for the child with ADHD. The
"Diet for the ADHD Kid" article also contains links to specific
recipes.
Diet for the ADHD Kid - Small Changes, Big Results:
- Instead of white bread, use whole wheat bread,
multi-grain bread or Omega-3 or flax bread. These varieties
offer a rich source of fiber, vitamins and antioxidants.
- Trade in the processed luncheon meat by using leftover
meat from the pervious night's dinner. You can chop up
leftover chicken, for instance, to make a chicken salad
sandwich. Proteins are an important aspect of diet for the
child with ADHD.
- Diced or julienned produce with a small container of
dipping sauce always makes for a fun lunch. Healthy dip
choices include low-fat yogurt, sour cream and hummus.
- Yogurt provides a good source of protein and calcium. To
maximize the health benefits, choose yogurts with active
live bacterial cultures (probiotics). Again, proteins are an
important aspect of diet for the ADHD kid.
- Canned fruit (packed in water instead of sugar or syrup)
and dried fruit are suitable alternatives to sugary
desserts.
Water and milk are the recommended beverage choice over fruit
drinks, fruit punch and soft drinks. If you do choose to pack a
juice box on occasion, make sure it is 100 percent fruit juice.
A 100% fruit juice that is calcium fortified is a bonus.
With these quick tips in mind, use the following mix and match
food list to pack a complete lunch diet for the child with ADHD.
Ideally you will choose one fruit, one vegetable, one snack, a
sandwich or non-sandwich food and a beverage.
Vegetables: Baby carrots, carrot sticks, celery sticks,
cherry tomatoes, sliced cucumber, green salad.
Fruits: (whole, sliced, diced, fresh or dried): Apples,
apricots, bananas, blueberries, cherries, cranberries (dried),
grapes, kiwi, melon, nectarines, orange sections, peaches,
pears, pineapple, plums, raspberries, strawberries.
Spreads: (for fruits, vegetables, sandwiches and
crackers): Almond butter, apple butter, mashed avocado, mashed
banana, brie cheese, low-fat cream cheese, honey,
hummus,
homemade ranch dip, spread-able fruit jam, peanut
butter, pumpkin butter.
Snacks: Almonds mixed with dried cranberries, black beans
with salsa and corn chips, cheese slices or sticks, cottage
cheese with fruit, hard-boiled egg, dried fruit,
granola, homemade
granola bars, low-fat muesli,
popcorn, pretzels,
trail mix, wheat crackers,
vanilla
yogurt with fruit. For variety,
make fruit, vegetables or cheese kabobs - cut the food in chunks
and skewer on a stick.
Beverages: Bottled water, skim or 1% milk,
Smoothies (homemade, using
healthy ingredients and packed in a thermos or drink bottle). If
you do choose to pack a juice box on occasion, make sure the
juice is 100 percent fruit juice.
Sandwich Fillings: Chicken, chicken salad, egg salad,
organic peanut butter and all-fruit jelly, roast beef, shrimp
salad, smoked salmon, tofu, chunk light tuna fish, tuna salad,
turkey, turkey salad.
Sandwich Add-ons: Sliced apples, sliced avocado, shredded
carrots, cheese, sliced cucumber, lettuce, spinach leaves,
sprouts.
Healthy Sandwich Combos:
- Roll-up with low-fat salad dressing, sliced turkey,
romaine lettuce and shredded carrots.
- Turkey, Chicken or Roast beef with Romaine in a pita.
- Omega-3 enriched peanut butter with 100% fruit jam.
- Grilled cheese with cucumber or sprouts.
- Grilled vegetables with sliced cheese and pesto sauce.
- Cheddar or mozzarella cheese with apple slices.
- Brie cheese with mustard and sprouts.
- Cheese, tomato, sprouts and pesto sauce.
- Leftover meatloaf with tomatoes and lettuce or sprouts.
- Sliced chicken or turkey with cranberry sauce and
lettuce.
- Sliced chicken or turkey with honey mustard, tomatoes
and lettuce.
- Sliced beef with mayonnaise, sliced tomato and
cucumbers.
- Chicken salad made with celery, lettuce, and tomato.
- Tuna salad with cucumber, green pepper and tomato.
- Salmon salad with lettuce or sprouts.
- Shrimp salad with lettuce or sprouts.
- Grated carrot and raisins moistened in orange juice.
- Cheese, lettuce and carrot.
Non-Sandwich Alternatives: Baked beans, bean and
cheese burritos, healthy left-overs from dinner, quesadillas
(using melted cheese and shredded vegetables on a whole-wheat
tortilla), homemade
soups,
stews or chili packed in a wide-mouthed thermos,
whole-wheat fruit pancakes.
Diet for the Child with ADHD - While focusing on lunch,
don't forget breakfast! A study by Harvard University and
another by Massachusetts General Hospital showed that children
who regularly ate breakfast perform better on standardized test
scores, have better behavior, and are less hyperactive than
children who skip breakfast. Clearly, a solid breakfast diet for
the ADHD kid is important.
Eggs, whole grain toast with nut butter and a piece of fruit is
one example of a healthy breakfast diet for the child with ADHD.
This type of breakfast supports the physical needs of children
while also supporting brain function. The protein in the egg and
nut butter and lower-starch foods like whole grain bread and
fruit will keep your child satisfied until lunch time. Remember
that sugary breakfast cereals, white-flour pancakes and syrup
will leave your child hungry and tired half way through the
morning. Highly refined carbohydrates should be avoided in the
diet of an ADHD kid.
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