A Great Way To Start Off Your Day

   According to the Food Research and Action center in the US more than two thirds of school aged children overweight or obese.  Many people don't fully understand how being over weight not only affects your physical health but can take a huge toll on your mental mindset. While being healthy does require exercise among other things, it is mainly caused by eating healthy foods as regular diet. In today's society it seems to be harder and harder to find healthy, affordable food. Many children start the day off with no breakfast or an unhealthy cereal, muffin, doughnut, cinnamon roll, cereal bars etc. Most of the claimed to be healthy foods are packed with sodium, sugar, fats and artificial colorings. For example a common breakfast food is a pancake or perhaps two, although pancakes their selves do not contain any sugar it is the syrup and butter or margarine placed on it that makes it unhealthy. If one simply wakes up and eats a pancake with a serving of syrup and a serving of butter they will be lacking the necessary nutrients such as protein, and several vitamins. On the other hand you will have consumed nearly 32 grams of sugar and 52 carbohydrates (according to http://caloriecount.about.com/calories-pancakes-i21025). Children especially need to learn at a young age how to eat healthy and not only need to understand how to eat healthy but exercise the skill. 

   Many school breakfast options consist of muffins, pop tarts, cereal bars and chocolate milk. Some may argue about what is a healthy meal; however, many agree that schools don't supply healthy meals full of nutrients for children. Our children are the future of America and we need to teach them how to grow up being healthy and happy. In the morning the majority of children and teens either eat an unhealthy sugar packed breakfast or simply don't eat. According to the International Journal of Obesity, adolescents who ate a protein-rich breakfast had lower appetites and ate less during the day, where as a protein-neutral breakfast was no better than skipping breakfast. Some easy breakfast suggestions that I usually eat in the morning are yogurt with fruit, breakfast burritos, toast and an egg or a healthy cereal with lots of fiber and protein. But remember being healthy doesn't end at the dinner table; you also need to exercise regularly to truly be healthy.