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No white flour, no sugar and no more than five ingredients in processed foods. Could you eat like that?
These strict food rules were part of one family's pledge last year to eat only "real food" for 100 days. Although the pledge is successfully over, Lisa Leake, a mother in Charlotte, continues to write about her family's journey at www.100 daysofrealfood.com . Soon, Leake writes, her family will be heading out for vacation with a suitcase dedicated to healthy food, including homemade granola and whole-wheat sandwich bread.
Autumn Michael of Davidson says she reads Leake's blog "religiously." It took several months for her to cut out nearly all processed foods.
Among her first steps was to eliminate high-fructose corn syrup and food dyes, which, Michael says, has improved her kids' behavior.
"I always say that we follow the 80-20 rule: Eat well 80 percent of the time and you have room for the other 20 percent," Michael says. "For us, that 20 percent mostly comes from preschool and church and eating out once a week or so."
The organization Healthy Child Healthy World, at www.healthychild.org, says the easiest way to eat healthier is to start making your food instead of buying prepared food and warming it. Buying whole foods reduces your exposure to the many synthetic additives found in processed foods. Involving your children in the process will foster their healthy habits.
The Leakes and the Michaels are among families across the country who are trying to instill values in their kids for the long haul.
