USDA MyPlate Nutrition Games and Activities Make Healthy Eating Fun and Easier

BY SUZIE WELLS

Healthy eating is important at every age. As the weather turns and farmers markets open, it seems to get easier, so let’s make this year the one in which we make a change toward healthier choices.

When we think of eating healthier, we sometimes feel overwhelmed by the wide variety of opinions and options out there. Healthier choices don’t have to be complicated or daunting, though, and thankfully today’s markets tend to have more options available to shoppers.

e main food groups (fruit, vegetable, grain, protein, dairy) remain constant as the ideal foods to comprise the bulk of human daily consumption. Generally, the closer to fresh we can keep those foods, the more nutrient-dense and thus healthier those foods are for us.

e area farmers unanimously agree: Eat local as much as you can and your family will be healthier (with less or no preservatives added to foods to keep them fresh from the farm to your table) AND you’ll help keep the local farmers and the adjacent economy going strong. e closer a product’s source, the fresher it should be and consequently the healthier it should be for you and your family.

Check out your local farmers markets for the week’s freshest produce, meats, and other agricultural products grown and made in your community.

Check out your county’s Cornell Cooperative Extension for more information as well. e Livingston County Cornell Cooperative Extension,forexample,supportsaBuyLocalCampaign,acommunitybased initiative to help sustain local agriculture and build a stronger local food system in Livingston and surrounding counties. ey also work to increase farm to restaurant connections, establish farm to institution connections, and provide access to fresh and nutritious food to low-income families. ey are de nitely a great resource for families across the area.

To make easy healthy choices, start simple. Infuse a new food or two in the week’s grocery shopping. Try a new fruit or veggie. Sample an alternative grain or protein. Just once a week, try something new. See who likes what and if something makes the cut, add it to the regular rotation. If not, try something else.

Keep ready-to-eat healthy choices in the pantry or fridge. If the apple or pear slices, the cheese sticks or yogurt cups, the carrot or celery sticks, the nuts, are readily available and need no cutting or other prep work, the kids (and let’s be honest, even the adults) will more likely to grab it to snack on instead of the bag of chips or other prepackaged, likely high preservatives-added food choices. So, prep the healthy choices when you have the energy and they’ll be ready when you need them.

To get children involved in healthy nutritional choices, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) suggests the MyPlate nutrition guide, and their website https://www.myplate.gov/life-stages/kids is rich with games and activities to help guide children on a healthy eating adventure, having fun while learning about healthy nutritional choices.

Parents and families can even use the MyPlate app to make healthy meal prep and shopping easier, whether for everyday meals or holiday celebrations. ey o er interactive downloadable and online games and apps so kids can have fun while learning about nutrition choices.

To be a MyPlate Champion, the USDA recommends children (and all of us): ink about what you drink – Choose water or milk when you’re thirsty. e USDA o ers ideas for creating MyPlate menus children can engage with at home and take an active role in planning (and hey, maybe then even the pickiest of eaters will eat those green beans or brussels sprouts!). e USDA even o ers suggestions for holidays and other celebrations. Try hosting a holiday brunch to spice up the traditional proteins or add fun and healthy options with a festive yogurt parfait bar instead of ice cream sundaes.

Eat more fruits and veggies – Make half your plate fruits and veggies every day.

Try whole grains - such as oatmeal, whole wheat breads, or brown rice .

Mix up your protein foods - including seafood, beans, lentils, nuts, eggs, meats, and poultry.

Get involved – Help put away groceries, stir ingredients, peel fruits, assemble salads, or set the table.

Be active your way – Find ways to be active and move your body for at least 1 hour a day.

Or take the Grocery Store Bingo board on your next shopping trip to keep the kiddos occupied and engaged with healthy food choices as you tackle the chore. ere are even MadLib-style word blanks, mazes, and word searches and scrambles. Maybe make a Food Group Friend out of food from each food group.

Use mealtimes to connect with those you love. Eat meals together whenever possible. Maybe work together to cook/make the meals. Turn o devices so you can “unplug” and focus on healthy foods and each other.

“ e bene ts of healthy eating add up over time, bite by bite.” – USDA MyPlate program

©JordanTesta2020

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