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Five Simple Steps to safeguard Your child's Health
By Rene Schooler   
Rated "G" by the Author.
Last edited: Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Posted: Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Five simple steps that will safegaurd your child's health and provide a future of vibrant health and happiness.

Today’s world is full of mystery and deception. We as parents subject our children to drugs and chemicals on a daily basis in the name of nutrition. We send them off to school in the morning with a hug and kiss and a brown bag loaded with manmade pseudo foods that we are confident carry proper nutrition for their young growing bodies. We are at a time in this worlds history and even more so at a time in this great nations history of having more obese, malnourished children then any other country out there and at any other time. It is estimated that 70% of Americans are over weight or severely obese and studies show that almost 9 million children under the age of six are considered overweight. With this one health issue appears so many others. Diabetes and coronary artery disease, which were once only adult diseases, are now running rampid in our children. More and more of our children are being diagnosed with cancer, autism, ADD, and gastrointestinal and orthopedic problems just to name a few. There are teenagers having the Lap-Band (gastric bypass) placed on their stomachs to prevent them from over eating in a pursuit to loose wait, a surgery that is highly dangerous for adults. Children as young as 12 have had this done. Our school cafeterias are serving meals designed in laboratories to our children with little to no nutritional value other that high fat, sodium and sugar. Most children drink soda instead of water and may eat a piece of fruit once or twice in the week. Fellow parents, its time that we implement a few quality of living standards into our children’s bill of health and nutrition. Below you will find five simple steps to safeguarding your child’s health. These are steps that I do with my very own children daily. I can tell you that a little bit of focus and effort can make all the difference in your child’s life today and for years to come. Not to mention if implemented into your own life not only will you then be setting a wonderful example but doing your own body a great favor.

Antioxidant Rich Foods: Antioxidants help fight free radical damage in the body. By fighting free radicals that are potentially harmful substances, you protect the body from cancers and diabetes, you have a stronger defense against cardiovascular disease, strengthen your eyesight, and have a more powerful immune system. These are a few of many good reasons to incorporate the below foods into your child’s daily diet.

Leafy Green Vegetables: All vegetables are loaded with phytonutrients such as flavonoids, carotenoids and other phytochemicals (“phyto” is Greek for plant.) The leafy dark green category though are charged with iron, calcium, vitamin K, lutein, folate, folic acid, Beta carotene and many other vitamins and minerals. Best sources are found in the powerhouse vegetables spinach, kale, swiss chard, bok choy, brussel sprouts and cabbage. For salads try adding the spring mix variety to your plate, its healthy and beautiful.
Broccoli: This vegetable stands alone. It is one of the best sources of calcium and vitamin C. A ½ cup serving of broccoli gives about 40 milligrams of calcium and as much vitamin C as an orange, but you will only have about 20 calories. With this you get a fantastic detoxifier. A veggie that cleans away carcinogenetic toxins that causes cancer.
All berries: Who doesn’t love berries? There are lots of types to choose from. Among the best choices are blueberries and strawberries. Blueberries are among the highest in antioxidants. Resveratrol, a flavonoid responsible for heart-strengthening benefits in wine and grapes, is even more dominant in blueberries. Strawberries on the other hand help to reduce inflammation throughout the body, even in the arteries, lowering the chances of heart disease. Both of these berries appear to have brain saving abilities and fight cell damage in general.
Tomatoes: Containing the phytonutrient lycopene as its most potent component. It strengthens the cardiovascular system, reduces the risks of cancers in the breast, cervix, prostate, pancreas, and lungs. The best thing about tomatoes is that in any form (other than ketchup) they are high in lycopene. Cooking only strengthens this foods health benefits.
Bell peppers: Containing high levels of vitamins A and C (both very strong antioxidants) which protect against heart diseases, reduces bad cholesterol, fights cancers, and strengthens vision. These peppers are also abundant with folic acid and B6. The strongest in their group, but other orange colored foods contain these health benefits. Carrots, pumpkins, cantaloupe, apricots, etc.

Other sources of good antioxidants are found in nuts and seeds, kiwi, kidney beans, grapes, grasses such as spiralina, wheat grass and blue green algae.

Water: I cannot say enough about this. Water is the life force that keeps our bodies moving. It hydrates us like no other liquid. Sports drinks and sodas, loaded with high fructose corn syrup do the direct opposite despite what the advertisements say. Your body needs lots ever day just to flush out toxins and keep the brain functioning properly. But if your water comes from a municipal source, you more then likely need to check into purifying it. Water coming out of your tap is not likely fit for drinking and cooking. Find out what really is in your water. What’s the lead content? How many chemicals are being added such as fluoride and chlorine. Check for bacteria’s and heavy metals. Once you get these questions answered or switch to a good water source of another sort, drink often.

Fiber: Studies have shown that as a culture we do not eat enough fiber. The average American adult gets less than 10 grams a day. Children if lucky get this. Fiber is responsible for cleaning out our intestinal lining and our colon. By doing this fiber also helps in the absorption of important nutrients that otherwise would just pass through our bodies being unused. In recent studies, it has been shown that fiber is also a benefit in reducing cancers and fighting fatty buildup in the bloodstream. Helping to keep the arteries clean. The best places to get fiber are found in vegetables, fruits and whole grains. I suggest not settling for less than 8 grams of fiber in a serving of cereal, or 3 grams in a slice of bread. The closer to 30 grams of fiber a day you get the better for your entire bodies health.

Sweeteners: Children love sweets and so do most of us adults. What is important to remember though is that sugar not only feeds our sweet tooth but also feeds diseases and cancers. Along with this sugar also causes hyperactivity, high and low blood sugar levels, and tooth decay. Most parents are aware of these problems so they switch to sugar-free products. Products containing aspartame, splenda, and other manmade sweeteners. The problem with these is simple. They are chemical based. They react in the body as an enemy, causing havoc everywhere. When you buy products with these fake sugars you are in fact giving your child aspartic acid (linked to causing lesions and tumors in the brain), phenylalanine, methanol (which converts to formaldehyde in the retina of the eye) causing numerous health issues. There are web sites to help you cleanse from the toxic effects of these sweeteners. Your best sweetener choices are natural and unrefined. Try evaporated cane juice or honey in place of the above group.

Candida/Antibiotics: Candida, more commonly known as yeast or a yeast infection finds its home on mucous membranes in the body. Yeasts are creatures unable to cause infection in a healthy individual, but do cause trouble in a body with weak defenses, which so many of our children and us have today. Yeast grows rapidly and feeds on sugars in the body. Some positive yeast in the digestive tract is beneficial for our over all health. Once the colony of yeast has turned bad though, you will find suffering from thrush, vaginal yeast infections, dandruff, athletes foot, acne, muscle pain, digestive disorders, urinary discomforts, fatigue, depression and respiratory problems among others. So how do you avoid or control your child’s yeast? Lay off the antibiotics. Let your child work through his/her everyday cold with natural remedies. Instead of running to the doctor because of a stuffy nose or cough, look to the health food store for immunity boosters. Try crushed garlic oil in warm olive oil to treat an ear infection instead of antibiotic drops. Garlic is the strongest natural antibiotic out there.

Do a candida cleanse. Focus on lower sugar levels in the foods and drinks you serve and add Lactobacillus acidophilus (found in yogurt and acidophilus milk) to your child’s diet daily. There are liquid supplements that you can buy at your local health food store to add to a nutritious milk shake in the mornings. Stay away from environmental molds, simple carbohydrates, toxins, and sugars.

By doing the above five things you will get your child off too a great start every day and for the rest of his/her life. Creating a healthy life style I believe is the greatest gift that we can give our most priceless treasures.