Parents

Parents can make a huge impact in their families, their communities and their schools when they're armed with solid facts about the benefits of healthy lifestyles.

Healthy Eating: Fruits and Vegetables

Eating a wide variety of fresh veggies can not only add more color and excitement to your child's eating but also ensure they are getting many of the nutrients needed for good health.  One quick and easy way you can make sure you are getting enough variety each day, is the use the national 5 A Day recommendations to eat a RAINBOW of colors each day.  Young children have fun with the rainbow guideline and older children find it easy way to remember to have a variety each day.

Ideas to help build healthy habits:

At the supermarket:

  • Next time you go to the supermarket, take your child, and together see how many of the rainbow colors you can find in the produce, frozen food, and canned food sections. 
  • Take the Fruit and Veggie Rainbow list and circle fruits and veggies you haven’t ever tried (or haven’t had for quite a while). 
  • When you get home, make plans with your child to try something new soon!

At home

  • Together, prepare and taste healthy fruit and veggie snack ideas. Here are a few to get you started.
    • Slice pears and dip in yogurt
    • Mix banana slices and mandarin oranges
    • Peel an orange, and cut it across the sections so it looks like pinwheels
    • Slice cucumbers and dip in low fat dressing
    • Grate carrots and sprinkle on peanut butter and crackers

For more great ideas to increase variety of fruits and veggies, visit

Teach your children that good health depends on the right balance between what they eat and how much they move.