On Thursday February 18th I met some very inspiring people. The Rochester City Recreation staff from three sites where we provide food for Kids Cafe operations invited me to speak to them about nutrition & kids. After having a little fun with our 5-2-1-0 beach ball, we coursed through the MyPyramid food groups and their taglines. One of the most popular was the (purple) Meat & Beans Group’s “Go Lean with Protein”.
I could tell that this group of staff were paying attention because they asked excellent questions! “What is the difference between saturated and unsaturated fat?” “Why is saturated fat worse for your heart?” “What’s the deal with trans fat?” We learned about the answers to these questions, and how it is easy to decrease your saturated fat by choosing low-to-no saturated fat protein options such as beans or fish.
We also learned that using lower fat dairy products is also an easy way to lower saturated fat. I could see light bulbs going on for one staff member who commented that she drinks “Vitamin D” or whole milk, but realized that she could switch gradually to skim by mixing the two at first – the same way she transitions her cat to a new cat food!
By the end of our time together, I felt confident that this group was ready to encourage themselves and the youth at their recreation sites to value health and eat well. One easy way for them to do that is enjoy the healthy Kids Cafe meals cooked and delivered free of charge by Foodlink’s Freshwise Kitchen. Their positive example at dinner time will influence the hundreds of youth they serve every day to make better choices. Here’s to better health for the children in our community, and the mentors that will make this happen!
Rachel Staver, RD
Child Nutrition Manager