• Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

Tucson International Academy

We Make College Come True

  • Home
  • Enroll Today
  • About
  • Campuses
    • TIA Campus
    • TIA Midvale Campus
    • TIA West Campus
    • TIA East Campus
    • TIA District
      • Job Opportunities
  • Financials
  • Resources
  • Articles
  • Call Today! 520-792-3255

healthy meals

Healthy Eating Habits Equals Healthy Kids

May 1, 2022

kids cooking with healthy eating habits
Teach your kids healthy eating habits

Did your mom tell you to eat your vegetables in order to grow up healthy and strong when you were little? She was right but there’s a bit more to that idea. For your kids, learning to eat healthy starts at home. Everyone should eat healthy meals as often as possible to ensure they’re getting the nutrients their bodies need to function at their best. Preparing homecooked meals encourages children to eat foods that are unprocessed and that don’t contain unhealthy amounts of sugar, salt, hormones, and other chemicals found in fast food. We’ve included some links below to help you with healthy, easy meal ideas.

Healthy eating habits and meals made at home have benefits for your family that extend beyond nutrition; some of those benefits are:

  • Cooking teaches your children an important life skill
  • Preparing meals at home gives your family more time to spend together
  • Cooking healthy can be a great way for your whole family to get (or stay) in shape
  • Cooking at home is a great way to save money

Healthy Eating & Cooking is a Life Skill

When your child is taught to prepare healthy meals at home, they are learning an important skill that they will need for the rest of their lives. Cooking at home teaches children about planning, patience, and preparation. It also can be a great way to gain math skills (counting, measuring, telling time, following directions). Cooking can also be used to teach important lessons on fire safety and the proper use of kitchen appliances.

What are the Benefits of Family Meals Together?

  • Few things come close to experiencing quality time together as a family in the kitchen and mealtimes at the dinner table.
  • Regular family meals help children gain confidence, improve their conversation skills, and learn good manners.
  • Children who have regular meals at home are also more likely to have better relationships with their parents.
  • Children who eat meals at home are less likely to be obese and more likely to stick to those healthy habits as adults.

Overeating fast food and keeping lots of unhealthy snacks in the home can lead to health problems for the whole family. Changing from meals and snacks that contain high levels of salt, sugar, and unhealthy fats is key and can easily be done at home in the kitchen. Studies have found that in comparison to fast food, even partially homecooked meals are more nutritious. That’s good news!

Saving Money

Another awesome advantage to healthy homecooked meals is that it saves money! Money management is another important skill that children can use for life. This can be done by allowing your child to meal plan and grocery shop with you. These meals can be made as needed or made in bulk and saved for later, which will make future meals easier to get on the table.

Simple Healthy Meal Ideas

Getting started in cooking healthy meals at home with your child doesn’t have to be complicated. Below is a list of easy meals that can be made any night of the week for the family to enjoy.

Fruits, nuts, avocado toast are all healthy choices.
Fruits, nuts, and avocado toast are all healthy choices.

Breakfast Suggestions

  • Overnight Oats
  • Avocado Toast
  • Banana or Blueberry Pancakes with fruit
  • Yogurt Parfait
  • Egg and Vegetable Omelet
  • Fruit and Vegetable Smoothies
  • Sweet Potato Hash browns
  • Simple Scrambled Eggs

Lunch Suggestions

  • Salads (Greek, Caesar, Cobb)
  • Veggie bowls
  • Tacos
  • Grilled Cheese Sandwich with Tomato Soup
  • BLT’s With fruit Salad
  • Chicken Soup
  • Vegetable Chili
Roasted Chicken and Veggies
Roasted Chicken and Veggies

Dinner Suggestions

  • Spaghetti and Meatballs (with veggie noodles)
  • Grilled Chicken Salad
  • Roasted Chicken with vegetables
  • Loaded Baked Potatoes
  • Casseroles
  • Oven-Fried Chicken Breasts with vegetables
  • Turkey or Chicken Meatloaf

Snack Suggestions

  • Greek Yogurt (With or without nuts and fruit)
  • Apples with Peanut Butter
  • Home-popped Popcorn
  • Muffins (Banana nut, Blueberry, Raspberry, etc.)
  • Baked Sweet Potato Fries
  • Trail Mix
  • Kale Chips
  • Hummus with carrots
  • Fruit Smoothies

Here are two links to simple easy-to-make meal ideas: 29 Healthy Meals You Can Make in 10 Minutes or Less and 100+ Quick Healthy Dinners.

Family Time and Cooking Time Can Be the Same

The meals and snacks listed here are all nutritious and easy to make. Use your time cooking at home together to introduce your child to these amazing recipes. Opening your child up to different recipes can improve their health and make them less picky eaters. Taking the time to help your child develop healthy eating habits will put them on the right track to living healthy lives.

 

Enroll at TIA Today!

Filed Under: Informative Tagged With: healthy habits, healthy meals, parenting advice

10 Tips for Healthy Families

January 2, 2022

healthy families
Healthy families eat nutritious meals together

When you think of healthy families, what comes to mind? Maybe it’s happy children who love to play outside and eat nutritious meals with their parents. Or perhaps a healthy family is one where the members have a strong bond and spend quality time together. Everyone may have different ideas of what a healthy family looks like. Whatever your definition is, it’s important that you learn how to best support and nurture your family for yourself and your loved ones.

If you want to create a healthy family, here are some tips to help you get started:

Tip 1: Eat meals together as a family.

One of the best ways for families to bond is by eating meals together. Everyone can enjoy nutritious meals from the comfort of their own homes while spending quality time with one another. You can all participate in meaningful discussions while you eat and enjoy your meals together as a family.

Tip 2: Go for walks or play outside together.

Another great way for families to bond is by going on walks or playing outside together. This is a great way to get some exercise and spend time together. You can explore your neighborhood, go to a park, or play games.

Tip 3: Limit screen time.

One of the biggest challenges for families is limiting screen time. This means setting limits on how much time everyone spends in front of a TV screen, computer, tablet, or smartphone. To limit screen time for healthy families, decide on an amount of time per day or week that is best for your family and stick to it.

Tip 4: Get enough sleep.

All members of healthy families need to get enough sleep. Everyone needs beneficial amounts of sleep to function properly and feel rested throughout the day. Not getting enough sleep can affect your mood.  Also, you’re less likely to exercise if you’re not well-rested. You can help your family get their best amounts of sleep by setting a bedtime for everyone.

Tip 5: Make healthy habits fun.

Healthy families make healthy habits fun. You can do this by setting goals together and celebrating everyone’s accomplishments when the goal is met. For example, families can set goals to go on walks together at least three times a week. When the goal is met, everyone celebrates by going out to eat.

Tip 6: Make gratitude part of your routine.

Another beneficial habit families can practice is gratitude. Gratitude means appreciating what you have and being thankful for the good in your life. Families can make gratitude a part of their daily routine by writing down something they are thankful for each day or saying one thing they are grateful for out loud to one another.

Tip 7: Spend quality time together.

Families make sure to spend quality time together. This means being present and interacting with one another during family activities and events. Turn off your devices and put away distractions so you can focus on each other.

Tip 8: Have healthy discussions.

Families have stimulating discussions. This means talking respectfully even when topics are controversial or sensitive. Families know how to disagree with one another in constructive ways and resolve disagreements without hurting each other’s feelings.

Tip 9: Always give forgiveness.

Forgiveness is an important value to healthy families. If someone in your family makes a mistake, they know how to apologize and resolve any conflicts. Without holding grudges or resentments, families resolve problems in compassionate ways so that everyone feels heard and appreciated.

Tip 10: Make snack time healthy.

Make sure to have nutritious snacks. This means providing healthy options like fruits and vegetables instead of unhealthy snacks like candy and chips.

These healthy habits can help you create a great family environment. If you follow these steps, your family can be healthier and happier together. If you’re struggling to know where to begin, start by setting goals together. Lead by example for your children. The best time to start your healthy habits is today!

Enroll Today at TIA!

 

 

Filed Under: Informative Tagged With: healthy habits, healthy meals

How Much Sugar is in Everything You Eat?

October 1, 2020

How much is too much and how to figure it out?

Author: TIA Administration

Do You Know How Much Sugar Is In Everything You Eat Marie thought she was making healthy food choices every day for her teenage son. She made him his favorite sandwiches, burritos, or pizza (sometimes all three) for lunch. She made sure he ate fruit and vegetables every day. As far as snacks go, he would scrounge in the kitchen for an energy bar, chips, nuts, fruit-flavored yogurt, or anything else he could find. He also drank a lot of sports drinks, which she thought was ok since he was a physically active kid. She didn’t keep candy in the house because she knew they’d both eat it.

Marie never thought about how much sugar is in everything until one day when she was at the dentist’s office waiting for her son who was having his yearly checkup. She noticed a poster on the wall showing the amount of sugar in candy, common foods, and drinks. She was shocked! On the poster was a simple formula to help anyone find out the amount of sugar in everything we eat or drink. She quickly realized her son was eating way too much of the sweet stuff on a daily basis without even knowing it, even if it wasn’t in candy form.

What does the American Heart Association recommend?

The AHA recommends that children between the ages of 2-18 should eat less than 6 teaspoons of sugar per day!! 

If your child eats one Snickers bar they’ve had all the sugar they should eat for the entire day. If they drink half a Dr. Pepper, they’re already over the daily limit.

The average child in the US eats 20 or more teaspoons of sugar per day and the average adult eats 19 teaspoons a day. Now you can easily see why obesity and diabetes are skyrocketing in the US! The AHA recommends that kids should drink no more than 8 oz of sugar-sweetened drinks ONCE A WEEK! That’s half a can of Dr. Pepper. The AHA also recommends that children under the age of 2 have absolutely NO added sugar in any food or drinks.

Everyone knows that candy, soda, and many other things are full of the sweet stuff and that we should limit how much of those things we eat each day to be healthy. But there are hidden sugars in almost everything.

Picture sugar as teaspoons rather than grams (they are listed in grams on the manufactures ingredients). This will help you better understand how much is in what you eat and drink. We will give you an easy formula to figure it out too!

First, we will share some of the crazy amounts of sugar in items consumed by many children and adults daily.

Check out the Teaspoon Amounts in Some Popular Items We Eat 

  • Mac & Cheese Original box (servings 3) is 6 grams of sugar per serving = 1.5 teaspoons of sugar. If you eat the whole box (many people do), that is 4.5 teaspoons (not counting the milk added, which adds more grams of sweetness).
  • Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup (2 in a pack) – 22 grams = 5.5 teaspoons of sugar
  • One slice of Domino’s MeatZZa Hand Tossed Pizza (serving 1 slice) is 3 grams = ¾ teaspoon of sugar. But who only eats one piece?
  • Normal size Snicker’s bar has 27 grams = 6.75  teaspoons of sugar and a Mini Snicker (3 pieces) has 14 grams = 3.5 teaspoons
  • Yoplait Original yogurt strawberry 19 grams = 4.75 tsp of sugar
  • Granola Bar (Nature Valley Oats & Honey) 11 grams = 2.75 tsp of sugar
  • M&M’s  – ¼ cup = 27 grams = 6.75 teaspoons of sugar

Here’s How You Can Figure Out the Teaspoon Amount of Sugar in Any Product! 

It’s pretty easy.

First, look for the listed amount of sugar grams in the ingredient list on every edible or drinkable item. Then divide that by 4, which will equal the amount of sugar in teaspoons!

Pay attention to the serving size! Many companies hope you don’t.

Pay attention to serving size! Sugar Grams Serving Size Affects the Amount of Sugar

Many products will list 2 or more servings on an item to make the sugar content look less and hope you don’t pay attention to that fact. You will need to take the number of sugar grams listed and multiply it by the serving size, then divide by 4 to get your correct teaspoon amount. Example: the serving size is 2 on the Kombucha bottle in the picture and it has 3 grams per serving size, you multiply it by 2 if you drink the whole bottle (2 x 3= 6), then divide your answer by 4 = 1.5 teaspoons per bottle.

Popular Drinks That Some Kids and Teens Drink Every Day

  • Gatorade (Fruit Punch Thirst Quencher 591 ml bottle) has 34 grams = 8.5 tsp sugar
  • Dannon Danimals (1 bottle Strawberry Explosion Smoothie) 9 grams = 2.25 tsp
  • SunnyD (8 oz) has 14 grams = 3.5 tsp
  • Capri Sun (1 pouch of Fruit Punch) has 13 grams = 3.25 tsp sugar
  • Coke (12 oz can) 39 grams = 9.75 tsp 
  • Dr. Pepper (20 fl oz) 64 grams = 16 teaspoons of sugar!
  • Starbucks White Mocha Frappuccino (Grande 16 oz) 64 grams = 16 tsp sugar

Fact – These are the most popular candies eaten on Halloween:

M & M’s, Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, Butterfinger, Snickers, Twix, Milky Way, Kit Kat Bars, 3 Musketeers, Almond Joy, Hershey’s Kisses, Whoppers, Tootsie Rolls, Tootsie Pops, Starbursts, Skittles, Candy Corn, Sour Patch Kids, Jollie Ranchers, Nerds, Smarties, Life Savers. Here’s another good article about this subject; The Definitive Guide To Reducing Kids Sugar Intake

Let’s all make healthier choices for ourselves and our families!

 

Join the TIA Family and Enroll today!
or call us at 520-230-3833

Filed Under: Informative Tagged With: health and fitness, healthy meals

Quick and Easy Breakfast Ideas for Kids

August 26, 2019

Breakfast Ideas for Kids
Hardboiled egg on avo toast

Parents have lots to worry about any given day of the school year. They must wake their kids up on time, make sure they are dressed and have everything they need for the school day, and then see that their kids make it to school on time. For many families, breakfast is unfortunately overlooked on busy school days. Many young students make do with bowls of cold cereal, fruit, or unhealthy options like toaster pastries or fast food. We’ve put together some easy, healthy breakfast ideas for kids along with links to a few other articles with many more possibilities.

There’s a better way to do school day breakfasts without waking up at the crack of dawn and spending an hour in front of your stove. Try the following recipes any day of the week for a more substantial breakfast with all the essential vitamins and nutrients other quick breakfast options lack.

Breakfast Ideas for Kids

Recipe: Pimiento, Ham, and Cheese Scramble

Scrambled eggs are a great source of protein that only requires a minute or two to cook, but you can ramp up the flavor and the nutritional value with this 15-minute upgrade to your typical scrambled eggs.

In a large bowl, whisk together eight large eggs, one teaspoon of your favorite hot sauce (skip or add more to taste), a tablespoon of water, and salt and pepper to taste. Heat one tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, and then add about three ounces of thin-sliced deli ham, stirring occasionally for two or three minutes until the edges start to brown. Add a sliced roasted red pepper and toss to combine, and then remove the ham and peppers from the skillet.

Next, scramble the egg mixture in the skillet to the desired doneness, and then fold in the ham, peppers, two chopped scallions, two tablespoons of cream cheese, and about two ounces of extra sharp cheddar cheese. Each serving has about 20 grams of protein, the perfect fuel to start a productive day.

Open-Face Apple Sandwich

Granola Apple Stacks 

Breakfast Ideas for Kids
Yogurt Granola Cups

This quick and easy recipe creates a fun “open-faced sandwich” any kid will love. Start by coring one of your kid’s favorite apples, and then turn it on its side and slice it into quarter-inch slices crosswise to create apple rings. Arrange the rings on a serving plate and spread your favorite nut butter over them. Peanut butter or almond butter are great choices. Finally, top the buttered rings with your favorite granola, raisins, nuts, and other healthy toppings. You can even create mini apple sandwiches by pressing granola and other toppings between two rings slathered with nut butter for a fantastic source of protein, fiber, and essential nutrients for starting the day right.

More Healthy Ideas

Breakfast during the school days doesn’t need to be quick and unhealthy, nor do you need to spend extra time each morning cooking chef-quality meals before every busy day. You can find lots of other fantastic breakfast recipes online, so start experimenting to find something your kids will love. 

 

Enroll Today at TIA!

Filed Under: Informative Tagged With: breakfast, healthy meals, kid meals

Footer

Campuses

Tucson International Academy
1230 East Broadway Blvd
Tucson, AZ 85719
Phone: (520) 624-3448

Tucson International Academy West
Corporate Office
2700 West Broadway Blvd
Tucson, AZ 85745
Phone: 520-792-3255

Tucson International Academy East
450 North Pantano Rd
Tucson, AZ 85710
Phone: (520) 722-9651

Tucson International Academy Midvale
1625 W Valencia Rd 109
Tucson, AZ 85746
Phone: (520) 295-3944

Field Trips

  • College and Career Fair
  • Facing Dragons
  • Senior Day
  • Star Party

Festivals

  • Cinco De Mayo
  • Chinese New Year
  • Cultural Day
  • Winterfest

Connect with TIA!

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • TIA Campus
  • TIA East Campus
  • TIA West Campus
  • TIA Midvale Campus

Copyright © 2023 · Tucson International Academy · Website by The J3 Effect · Log in