How Can I Be Sure My Family Gets Their Required Servings of Vegetables and Fruit Per Day?

Yikes! What do the 7-13 servings of vegetables and fruit that we're supposed to get per day even look like? What if I'm so busy I don't have time to prepare healthy meals? How do I monitor my kid's diet when she's away from me during the day?

Well, here's how:

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  Spark your child's natural curiosity by letting him or her help out in the kitchen (no knives or dangerous tools, please) or even letting them grow their own little garden--even a small urban apartment has room for a small planter!
• Be Sneaky in a healthful way:  Blend and crush veggies and then sneak them in soups, sauces and other foods--wherever they can hide.
• We're all starving just before dinner, right? Use that to your advanage: A woman once told me that she was concerned about her 13-year-old daughter's weight--and rightly so, since we're now seeing kids with diabetes, high blood pressure, metabolic disease and the like. This woman had her daughter eat a big plate of veggies everynight before dinner so she wouldn't overeat at that meal. You can serve things before dinner like a big plate of raw veggies with a healthy dip, such as home-made hummus or salsa to keep them from reaching for the cookies, pretzels and other not-so-healthy items.
• Serve salad BEFORE the dinner entree, not AFTER (when people will already be satiated and probably won't feel like eating the salad)  Don't serve it DURING the meal, either; after all, if you had a choice between salad and pizza what would you choose?
• Take out an "insurance policy."  I like Juice Plus+ . It isn't a supplement; it's a whole food concentrate made up of 13 fruits and vegetables. No preservatives, no additives, just pure nutrition. Best of all, it comes in a chewable form, much like those "gummy bears" that appeal to very young kids. Actually, I had one of the super-busy days last spring when I went for over 13 hours without eating. I was starving and, while on the train, I realized I had a packet of the gummy bear-like Juice Plus+ chewables. So I wolfed it down; I got nutrition, but I'm sure anyone who saw thought I was eating candy.Want to know more about Juice Plus+? Please visit: www.irsharesjuiceplus.com