Many women, pregnant, or considering becoming pregnant visit me in the clinic to seek out nutritional advice and quality pregnancy supplements that meet the recommended guidelines for folate, iodine and therapeutic doses of other supportive vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids to sustain a healthy pregnancy. While this is very important, we need to acknowledge why. It is important due to the lack of these nutrients in the average diet. Apart from taking a pregnancy supplement every day, it is also vital to consider what you choose to nourish your body with, to avoid heading down the gestational diabetes pathway.
Nothing like school holidays after a long term! One of our outings these holidays was a trip to Brisbane to see my sister and her family. We planned an exciting day out at the Winter Wonderland in King George Square, where we ice skated and played in the snow pit. I was a little worried about the ice skating and in the back of my mind worried about broken bones from falling on the ice! We all had varying success at ice skating. My sister and I skated the rink like we were kids again on our roller skates (well in our minds we thought so, I’m not sure the video quite captured our grace and skill like we did!) and we all walked away and enjoyed some well-earned gelato, yummy!! That afternoon the kids were playing in the park, on the same play equipment as most parks. The park had a fort and fireman’s pole, just like the kindergarten Master B goes to and loves playing on each day. Unexpectedly, Master B, my littlest man, broke his radius and ulna in a fireman pole fall off the fort. I felt completely helpless. All I could do was accompany him in the ambulance, keep my own emotions at bay and pat him the way he has always likes and reassure him that he is safe and that he will be ok.
Do you relate to the saying “add coffee – instant human”? Do you need a coffee before you can face the day? If so, you are just like millions of other people on this planet. But is caffeine good for you? Well that all depends on how much you consume in a day. Caffeine can be found in coffee beans, cocoa beans (chocolate), tea leaves and guarana. When it comes to coffee, the amount of caffeine depends on the type of bean, brew and the serving size- small, short, long, tall, grande, venti, trenta…… and the list goes on!
Providing our children with nutrient dense foods that help them grow, concentrate, engage in learning and be energised is the most important thing we as parents can do, from a nutritional perspective that is!
When you are working, a domestic goddess, a mother of 1, 2, 3 or more and a wife, friend to a few or many, you feel like you spread yourself thin, and I totally understand how sometimes you just chose the easy option, because it can all become just too hard!! Right? Now that we have established that you are human, and that feeding children just on its own can be hard work, it’s important to realise that we can’t always be perfect, and it is what we do most of the time that counts.
I’ve put together some helpful tips that may help improve the nutritional value of your gorgeous childrens’ lunchboxes.
Hydration, hydration, hydration …..
With the temperature rising and the party season upon us, don’t forget to drink your 2 litres of water, plus 1 litre per hour of exercise and an extra glass for every coffee or tea you have. Drinking water by the glass full will help your body flush and eliminate toxins.
