Q: Why is it important to teach nutrition? There are so many other subjects to teach?

A: Nutrition is an important life skill - as important as reading or math. What your students eat or don't eat can affect their health, growth and ability to learn. We realize there's a lot to squeeze in, but nutrition education helps students learn a skill they will use the rest of their lives - making healthy food choices.

Related Links:
Nutrition Lessons

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Q: How is MyPyramid different than the old Food Guide Pyramid?

A: MyPyramid, released in April, 2005, replaces the Food Guide Pyramid. It's designed to help consumers make positive diet and lifestyle choices recommended by the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. It depicts the nutrient-dense, super-foods Americans should consume each day:

• 3 servings of fat free and lowfat milk, cheese or yogurt
• 3 servings of whole grains
• 4 1/2 cups of fruits and vegetables
• 5 1/2 ounces of lean meat or beans

It also stresses physical activity. Unlike the Food Guide Pyramid, MyPyramid, includes a online tool that consumers can use to personalize the Dietary Guidelines to their individual tastes and nutrition goals.

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Q: What concepts can I teach with the MyPyramid?

A: As a general guideline, teach primary children MyPyramid's Five Food Groups, the foods in each group, a health benefit for each food group and how to plan a nutritious meal. Teach the same concepts at the upper elementary level, but add key nutrients for each food group, recommended amount from each goup, and Combination Foods. Dairy Council's® Little D's Nutrition Expeditions™ for 2nd grade and Arianna's Nutrition Expedition™ for 4th grade teachers, which support MyPyramid, teach these concepts.

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Q: A lot of my students don't eat breakfast and are starving by 10 a.m. What can I do?

A: Studies show that children who eat breakfast are better able to focus and learn and have fewer classroom behavior problems than students who don't. Try these approaches for turning breakfast skippers into breakfast eaters:

• Discuss the importance of eating breakfast every day, not just on test days. Identify barriers to eating breakfast and brainstorm strategies for eating it every day.
• Help students identify some easy-to-make or easy-to-carry breakfasts.
• Encourage students to participate in the school's breakfast program.
• Let students eat a mid-morning snack. A late breakfast is better than no breakfast at all.
• Send a letter home pointing out the benefits of breakfast. Encourage parents to make sure children eat breakfast every day. Let them know that school breakfast is a great option for busy mornings.

Related Links:
Breakfast First

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Q: Why is drinking milk important?

A: Students need the calcium and other essential nutrients in milk to help their bones grow in length and density. Children ages 4 to 8 need 800 mg of calcium a day and children ages 9 to 18 need 1,300 mg a day. Unfortunately, the majority of children fail to meet these recommendations. It's unnecessary, because it's so easy for students to get the calcium they need. Encourage your students to get at least 3 servings a day of milk, yogurt and cheese for the calcium they need to build strong bones and teeth.

Related Links:
School Milk Makes a Difference

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Q: My students prefer chocolate milk with lunch. Isn't white milk better for them?

A: Flavored milk tastes so good, many adults and children don't realize it's good for them too. Both white and chocolate milk are excellent sources of calcium, riboflavin, phosphorous and vitamin D and a good source of protein. So are strawberry, banana and other flavors. Active children can easily use the 60 or so extra calories in a cup of flavored milk.

• A recent study shows that children who drink flavored milk consume more milk overall, and it adds to their nutrient intake without increasing their overall intake of calories, fat or sugar.
• A nationwide study of 100,000 children found that when ice-cold milk was offered in a variety of flavors and kid-friendly packaging, children chose 15 percent more milk and the amount they drank increased by 35 percent.

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Q: Chips! Candy! Soft Drinks! How can I convince my students to eat less?

A: These foods belong in the "Others" category, which includes:

• fats, oils and spreads
• sweets
• salty snacks
• condiments

"Others" add flavor to foods and make meals more enjoyable. However, they provide proportionately more calories than nutrients and should be eaten in moderation. Active, elementary-age children can afford the calories from two or three "Others" a day. Many people are concerned about individual foods. But all foods, if consumed in moderation, can fit into a healthy diet.

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Q: What exactly is healthy diet?

A: A healthy diet provides all the nutrients we need in a day. The amount a child needs from each food group depends on age, gender and daily physical activity. Children who are very physically active, for example, need more than children who get little or no physical activity. For students who get 30 to 60 minutes of daily physical activity it that means consuming at least 6-5-3-3-2:
• 6 Grain Group servings (6 ounces)
• 5 Vegetable Group servings (2 1/2 cups)
• 3 Fruit Group servings (1 1/2 cups)
• 3 Milk Group servings (3 cups)
• 2 Meat Group servings(5 ounces)

Related Links:
Eat the Five Food Group Way!™ Chart (PDF)

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Q: My students eat some foods I've never seen or tasted. I have no ideas what food group they belong to. Help!

A: Here's how some popular multicultural favorites fit into the Pyramid. If a food is not listed, look it up in a dictionary, on the Web or in a cookbook. Or ask a student to describe the food, what it's made from, or how it's eaten.

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Q: Should I encourage snacking?

A: Children need snacks to prevent hunger and provide them with nutrients throughout the day. In fact, without snacks it's difficult for children to meet many of their nutrient needs. Unfortunately, children often choose high-calorie, low-nutrient snacks instead of more nutritious foods. Try these ideas to teach students how to choose healthy snacks:

• Teach the concept that nutritious snacks have at least one of the Five Food Groups.
• Brainstorm a list of Five Food Group snack ideas.
• Ask the foodservice staff to sponsor a Five Food Group snack tasting.
• Send a letter home with a list of simple, nutrient-rich snacks.

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Q: Which is better for my students - school lunch or a sack lunch from home?

A: It depends on the bag lunch. However, research shows that in general, school meals provide more nutrients than meals brought from home. With school lunch, children get a variety of foods from at least 3 to 5 of the Five Food Groups. The meals must also meet stringent guidelines for fat, calories and nutrients that tend to be low in children's diets such as vitamin A, iron and calcium. Promote school lunch as a nutritious choice:

• Send the weekly lunch menu home.
• Suggest to the cafeteria manager that your class act as "taste testers" for new menu items.
• Have students design special menu boards for the day's lunch menu.

Related Links:
School Nutrition Programs
Nutrition at School

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Q: Everything my students eat is so high in fat. How can I teach them the importance of a lowfat diet?

A: The National Academy of Sciences recommends that children between ages 4 and 18 consume between 25 - 30 percent of their calories fat. Most children aren't far off that mark, consuming an average of 33%. Children are still growing so they need some fat in their diet. In fact, an overly restrictive diet can actually interfere with their growth and development. Children put on lowfat diets tend to have lower calcium, iron and protein intakes than other children. Encourage your students to choose meals, and especially snacks, from the Five Food Groups. It's often high-fat foods from the tip of the Pyramid that tend add fat to kids diets.

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Q: Don't physical activity and good nutrition go hand-in-hand?

A: Absolutely! Healthy children are both well-nourished and physically fit. As well as a wide variety of foods from the Five Food Groups, children need at least 60 minutes of physical activity a day. This includes spontaneous play like bike riding or tag, organized sports, and physical education. How can you encourage your students to become more active?

• Role-model an active lifestyle and share examples of how you are physically active.
• Schedule recess every day - make sure it's not lost to other subjects or withdrawn as punishment.
• Encourage active games like jump rope, kick-ball and tag during recess.
• Urge your school to offer physical education every day if it doesn't already.
• Announce opportunities for physical activity like school sports teams or local park and recreation programs.
• Urge parents to set limits on TV watching, video and computer games. The American Academy of Pediatrics suggest no more than 2 hours a day for these activities.

Related Link
Improving Children's Nutrition and Fitness
Creating a Healthy School Environment

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Q: Are tomatoes a fruit or vegetable?

A: Both. Tomatoes are a fruit of the tomato plant. Green peppers and cucumbers are also fruits of their plants. However, the U.S. Department of Agriculture places all of these "fruits" in the vegetable group.

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Q: What about pizza? Is it good for you?

A: Pizza is a Combination Food. Combination Foods combine foods from two or more food groups. They count as a full or partial serving of the food groups from which they are made. For example, cheese pizza combines:

• Mozzarella cheese from the Milk Group
• Tomato sauce from the Vegetable Group
• Pizza crust from the Grain Group

Combination Foods are great sources of nutrients because the combine the nutrients those foods provide. They have been criticized for being high-calorie, but calorie for calorie, Combination Foods like tacos, sub-sandwiches, Chef's salads or stir-fry dishes are nutritious choices.

Related Links:
Combination Food Nutrient Bar Graphs

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Q: One of my students is a vegetarian? Is that safe for children?

A: It depends on the type of vegetarian. Some "vegetarians" skip red meat occasionally, while others eat no animal products. The more food groups a vegetarian eliminates, the trickier it is to get all of the nutrients the body needs. According to the American Dietetic Association, vegetarian children can meet all of their nutrient and energy needs with a well-planned diet that includes dairy products and/or eggs. The Dietetic Association also recommends that children who eliminate all animal products work with a registered dietitian or health professional to plan meals and snacks that meet their nutrient needs.

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