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Mar 29

4-H food, nutrition programs use MyPlate test to lead to healthier you – Wooster Daily Record

Exercise Programs Comments Off on 4-H food, nutrition programs use MyPlate test to lead to healthier you – Wooster Daily Record

Laurie Sidle| Wayne County Extension

Make good choices.

Its a favorite piece of advice teachers give their students. It also works well for deciding what foods we eat and how much exercise we fit into our schedule.

National Nutrition Month, celebrated in March, stresses the importance of a balanced diet and exercise. In its 50th year, the campaign created by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, helps families focus on healthy eating by encouraging them to try new fruits and vegetables and explore new ways to enhance flavors in food with herbs and spices or citrus fruit like lemon or lime.

Other recommendations by the academy include:

In the 4-H program, a variety of food and nutrition projects empower youth to be healthy mind and body with skills to make healthy decisions and lead healthy lifestyles. The projects help members develop knowledge, skills and understanding of nutrition, menu planning, safe food handling, fitness, meal & time management, and food & nutrition-related careers.

All 4-H food and nutrition projects use MyPlate, the U.S. Department of Agricultures official symbol of the five food groups. The colorful divided plate includes sections for vegetables, fruits, grains, and protein foods.

Vegetables and fruits should take up half the plate and grains and protein foods each take up a quarter of the plate. A side helping of dairy is a reminder to include milk or another dairy food like cheese or yogurt in your daily meal plan.

Choose MyPlate for A Healthier You is an opening activity in the Everyday Food and Fitness 4-H project. Members are asked to take a closer look at their food choices based on MyPlate by recording what they eat throughout the day. Are they eating a variety of foods from each food group? Do they choose foods and beverages that are low in fat, sodium, and added sugars?

The project follows MyPlate advice to start simple. The benefits of healthy eating add up over time, bite by bite. Small changes matter. A healthy eating routine is important at every stage of life. It can have positive effects that add up over time.

Also, choose options that are full of nutrients. Eating foods that are packed with nutrients instead of empty calories makes you feel full and satisfied after meals.

In the Everyday Food and Fitness project, the member becomes a grain detective to figure out which foods fall in the grain group and what the label says about the content of whole grain. The project also asks the 4-Her to:

Other projects focus on different aspects of nutrition. Snack Attack! features activities and related recipes for healthful snacks; Take a Break for Breakfast focuses on starting the day with a nutritious breakfast; Sports Nutrition: Ready, Set, Go deals with eating well and exercising; and Racing the Clock to Awesome Meals focuses on the knowledge and skills needed to prepare quick, nutritious, low-cost meals.

4-Hers have a wealth of opportunities to explore nutrition and fitness. Lets join them in creating our own healthy habits. If you are interested in joining 4-H, contact our office before the April 1 deadline at 330-264-8722.

Laurie Sidle is an OSU Extension Family & Consumer Sciences program assistant and may be reached at 330-264-8722 or sidle.31@osu.edu.

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4-H food, nutrition programs use MyPlate test to lead to healthier you - Wooster Daily Record

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