Levels of physical activity and examples
Low energy = walking dog 10
Reading nutrition labels and nutrients that corn, potatoes, and green peas were part of the grain group.
“ I learned that corn and potatoes are grains. I learned more new foods that I never heard of before, like couscous, and quinoa. Protein and dairy and fruits and vegetables are others. Fruits and vegetables should be half the plate.” – nine year old female.
All participants were also able to recall the different edible parts of the plant. The parts identified were the root, stem, leaves, and fruit. Two participants recalled seeds as the final edible part of the plant. The most common examples provided for the root were potatoes and carrots, for leaves were lettuce and spinach, for stem were celery and asparagus, for fruit were tomato and strawberries, and for seeds were sunflower seeds.
“ Cauliflower and broccoli are flowers and there are some edible flowers like rose pedals you can eat. And we can eat the stalk like celery and roots like potatoes and carrots.” – 10-year old female.
Physical activity was identified as sports and non-sports activities with three varying levels of energy. All participants were able to recall the three levels as high energy, medium energy, and low energy. The examples most provided were walking the dog as low energy, playing basketball as medium energy, and swimming as high energy.
“Doing physical activity is really good for you. You can do low energy and high energy and medium energy!” – nine-year old female.
“Physical exercise is important because when you eat, you need to balance out what you eat with how many calories you burn because everything has calories and so when you exercise you burn calories, because you don’t want to eat a lot and not exercise or exercise too much and not eat enough.” – 11 year old female
Nutritional labels were a little more difficult to grasp for the participants. The older participants were able to recall calories, fat, sodium, sugar, and protein as the main components of the nutrition label. The younger participants struggled more recalling the information. Sugar and fat were the nutrients most recalled by all participants. However, when the researcher asked the participants which nutrients should be kept lower and which ones should be kept higher, all participants were able to answer correctly when presented with the options. Two younger participants were able to recall the information by drawing a picture and pointing to where the nutrient is located. Portion control was discussed in the context of using one’s hand to estimate sizes. The majority of the participants, 80%, were able to recall all of the examples of using the hand in order to determine portion control. The portions discussed were the palm of the hand for meats, a fist for grains, the tip of the thumb for one tablespoon, and the tip of the index finger for one teaspoon. A seven-year old female participant explained the following:
“I realized the bigger the person you are, the more food you could eat and that is why you use your hand to measure and not someone else’s.”
A nine-year old female exclaimed:
“I think it is crazy that you are only supposed to have that little bit of meat!”
The following exchange happened which highlights the understanding of the nutrition labels of a seven-year old female participant and her six-year old brother:
“ Nutrition labels tells you how much calories are in that food, and the serving size in the whole box or container. We need less calories. We also need less of the bottom things…sodium.” – seven- year old female.
“And what is sodium? Remember? Pinch, pinch?” – instructor
“Pinch, pinch! Salt! And we need less sugar… low cho-les-tol…and protein high.” – six-year old male.
“And why do we need the protein to be high?” – instructor.
“Protein we need it to keep our bodies strong!” – six-year old male.
The exchange above demonstrates the participants having a grasp on the concept of nutrition label reading and portion control.
Healthy swaps were discussed in the context of cravings and replacing foods with healthier versions. To curb sweet cravings, instead of candy, participants were taught to reach for fruit. To curb the craving for something salty and crunchy, participants were encouraged to reach out for vegetables and a healthy dip. When thirsty, participants were encouraged to drink water and 100% fruit juice instead of regular juice and sodas.
“Instead of candy I can eat a sweet fruit. For something crunchy, instead of chips I can have toast…or crackers…oh, yeah, vegetables! Best thing to drink is water and milk.” – 13-year old female
Participants identified food safety practices that were important to follow. The use of multiple cutting board and separating fruits and vegetables from meat was recalled by all participants. Likewise, all participants had no problem identifying two hours as the limit for leaving food out on the counter and four days as the limit of having leftovers before disposing of it. The two oldest participants were able to recall the four steps to food safety as clean, separate, cook, and chill. During one activity, participants were asked to take laminated pictures of food items and identify if the foods need to be placed in the refrigerator, freezer, pantry, or trash. All participants performed well in the tasks, remembering that any items older than four days or with mold went into the trash.
“The food can only stay out for two hours and then we have to put it into the fridge for only four days. After it goes straight into the garbage!” – six-year old male.
New Practices Learned
The participants were also asked what new skills were learned during the cooking activity. Table 5.2 provides a comprehensive list of the new skills learned as identified by the participants.
Table 5.2 Most Frequently Stated New Skills Learned Identified by Child Participants