How to get your family to eat healthier

Fess up. Was one of your New Year's resolutions to improve your family's eating habits? If so, you're not alone. Many parents wish they could switch out the Pop-Tarts for something with a bit more nutrition. A new program offered at area Farm Fresh stores may be able to help.

Launched last month, the Nutrition IQ program strives to make it easier for busy shoppers to make healthier food choices. The program works like this: color coded tabs highlight choices that are high in fiber, calcium, and protein and low in sodium, calories and saturated fats. Foods that are made with whole grains are also color coded, for easier shopping. The tabs can be found on the shelf, next to the item's bar code identification.

For now, the Nutrition IQ program is limited to items located in the center of the store, but Farm Fresh intends to eventually expand the program to other parts of the store.

family time in the loop Child injured? Take care (of yourself!) 

According to research by The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) recently published in the Journal of Traumatic Stress, one month after their child was injured 37 percent of parents experienced acute stress disorder or significant traumatic stress symptoms, including re-experiencing the incident, avoiding reminders of the incident, and increased general anxiety or jumpiness. Of those parents 15 percent displayed longer-term symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) more than six months after the initial injury.

"Research consistently shows the important role that parents play in a child's recovery. So, in addition to all the things parents do to help their child recover, it's very important that they also take good care of themselves," says Nancy Kassam-Adams, Ph.D., the study's lead author and director of the behavioral science core at CHOP's Center for Injury Research and Prevention. family time in the loop

Source: Tidewater Parent Magazine