I've written about parenting and about TV.

Here's a short post about all 3 topics.

Parents! You and the TV have an impact on what your child chooses to eat.

If you let your child know your opinion [and we hope it's to choose healthier food] your child is more likely to chose healthier food – even after seeing a TV ad for less healthy food.

BUT – if you are neutral – your child is more likely to choose the less healthy food.

Moral of the study? TV is powerful in influencing children's choices of foods – but – and this is important – parents – you have more clout than the TV if you give your  kids your own input.

So watch that TV with your kids and let them know what YOU think about the commercials.

Thoughts? Comments? Thank you.

 First we must recognize that it is an epidemic – a major health problem.

 This is important because many people do not or will not see obesity, especially in children. But almost 1/3 of our kids are obese. It's why I wrote a book called: It’s Not Always Baby Fat!  [Available for your Kindle or for your Nook]

In my book, I write about some of these suggestions in more detail. I know that for some families my suggested strategies may not be easy – but parents – these are your children and no one ever said child rearing was easy [especially me!!]

Here are some simple strategies for YOU – as the parent you can:

•  set a good role model
•  learn about nutrition
•  talk about nutrition
•  discuss the effects of obesity
•  get more exercise

Here is an easy-to-do strategy – plan, cook and eat meals together with your kids.

Kids like to cook. Have chats about what meals they can make – with your help and without! Work out the menus; plan fancy meals, quick meals and meals to freeze. Plan this out before shopping. Make a list of the meals and needed ingredients and then go to the store.

Cook up a storm together with your kids one day a week and freeze the foods you are not eating that night. It makes it very easy then to have good, healthy and fast meals all week. Microwaves are good defrosters – but if you do not have one, take out the frozen meals in the morning and they will defrost by dinnertime.

Cook or warm up the meals or let the kids do that. Have the kids set the table and maybe let them decorate it as well. A festive table makes for a nicer meal.

Turn off the TV, the radio and the "whatever-your-kids-own" stuff.

Sit down. Eat. Converse. Laugh. Enjoy a meal together!

Comments? Thoughts? Thank you.

[I do love this photo! It's of my own non-linear child taken way back when.]

Parents!

Does your child march to his or her own drum?

Is your child creative?  Color on self with markers?

Are you thinking of your child as having ADD or ADHD? [Or did someone suggest you might consider this diagnosis?]

Please read this and give it some thought. It may just be that you have a child who has a non-linear mind!

If you find yourself asking asking ”What is a non-linear mind?” – you are probably in that super majority of people who have a linear mind. And if you are linear – you may not really understand what it is like to not be one of the linear minded people.

But – that small percent of us who are non-linear minded do “get it.”

We non-linears even understand that you “do not get it.”

What is a non-linear mind? It's a mind that is constantly in motion – scanning, thinking, creating, jumping from point <a> to point <h> without seeming to pass through points b to g.

[We non-linear people could, at some later time, fill you in on the b through g parts – we just don’t see a need to include it in the conversation.]

Conversations between two or more non-linear minded people may sound bizarre to the linear minded. The talking may seem confused, disconnected and on several topics at the same time and many or all may be speaking simultaneously. Yet the non-linear people having the conversation understand each other very well.

Why are some of us non-linear? It’s probably genetic but, like most development, it can be influenced by one’s environment. Because we live in a linear society we are more often exposed to that type of thought. And in our culture – we also have a notion that children who display the above listed non-linear qualities are ADD/ADHD.

And so your parents and neighbors and well-meaning "others" behave toward your child in ways they think are best and try to get the non-linear child to act like "everyone else" and to not be so "unfocused."  Or it may be suggested that you just get your child on medications.

For adults, other aspects of being non-linear are that we can get lost in books and the Internet as it is ALL so interesting. We may not finish all our projects because something more interesting comes along and we may not follow a secure career path or have a major interest in retirement funds and pensions.

Some, usually the linear-minded, see the above as negative aspects of non-linearity. But the world is changing and is beginning to function in a more non-linear fashion.  We are beginning to recognize major brain/thought differences and we are no longer so quick to label one type of thinking as "good" and another as "not-so-good."

We each encompass linear and non-linear aspects – and the non-linear creativity and entrepreneurship in all of us should be encouraged!  Especially in children!

If you find yourself saying "ah…that's me" – you are most likely non-linear and you may have felt there was something "wrong" with you! Nope – you are perfectly fine – and the world is slowly catching up to you. And your child is just like you – but hasn't been in the world long enough to know his or her brain is non-linear. He or she is just doing what non-linears do!

So let your child's non-linear run free…and tell the well meaning others "thank you but we are just fine!"

And both of you – go – be creative – the world is waiting for YOUR non-linearity!

Thoughts?  Comments?  Thank you.

I  finished and published an e-book on childhood obesity!

The title of the book is: It's Not Always Baby Fat!

Now  that one-year-old I wrote about, and I,  can go forth and get on with our other development

I am not a nutritionist. I am a Developmental Psychologist who, for all my professional life, has advocated for good nutrition – because I want all humans to develop as optimally as they can. And they do that best when they have good fuel [nutritious food] for their development!

This is especially true for the youngest among us who are at the start of a long process of developing – and who will ultimately become the adults of our culture.

In this book I give you information about obesity in general and about childhood obesity in particular – and let you know what this is doing to our children and to us as adults.

I write about food – what we eat, how much we eat, what’s in it and how to read labels so that you become a more intelligent consumer.

I add information about the importance of good nutrition for our development – especially cognitive development.

I offer suggestions to help you with your kids and family regarding weight and nutrition – all while doing things that may also encourage your child's cognitive development!

The book is available for Kindle and they have apps that you can download for free to read e-books on your computer or other device!

You don't need to own the Kindle!

I don't own one either device and still I write books for it

Get the book for Kindle

Here is the link for free Kindle apps

I had a conversation one day with the mother of a one-year-old who was saying that her daughter's language development had seemed to stall – but that she was running all over the place. That happens – pieces of the development puzzle often compete with each other. Some adults, the saying goes, can't "think and chew gum at the same time." Well – in adults we see it as funny – in kids – it's part of the pattern of language and physical development.

The body needs a lot of energy for language and for running – or in broader terms for cognitive development and physical development. At this point in your child’s life, it may be that the amount of energy required for one of these activities is so great, that one is all your child can do at a time. 

After the walking/running is under control – language will zoom ahead. It hadn't stopped developing – it was still undergoing the process but we weren't seeing it – or hearing it. 

Well – I seem to be like the child. I finished the book and fiddled with it: working on the cover and formatting to get it up for sale on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Then my fingers and brain seemed to be controlled by another ebook just waiting to be written and that one is It's Not Always Baby Fat! which is about our childhood obesity epidemic.

It seems my brain, fingers and time can only go toward "so much" writing and then no more – and so my blog posting has stopped! Just like the one-year-old's language development had stopped when she started running.

I can switch from writing one book to another – but until today [a lull in the brain?] I could not switch from book to blog…

It's good lesson to learn! What we think of as childhood development is not always only in childhood – sometimes the same processes are at work in adults!

Do you have this happen? Please share your thoughts.

As I write much about nutrition, I have been asked: In terms of healthier children, what is the best time for a female to start eating well?

Answer: BEFORE you even consider getting pregnant! Preferably when still in your teens!

So – BIG OOPS!!  What happens if you did not? We all know teen diets outside the home are not usually nutritious and that adult women may not eat well either. 

What to do?

If getting pregnant is in your future – start eating well NOW!  Or as soon as you think you are pregnant – start getting good nutrition Immediately.

In the USA we have a long history of not taking care of pregnant women; especially poorer pregnant women – while knowing that good nutrition during pregnancy would help solve many of the problems that newborns come into the world with.

Decades ago I saw a film about the high costs associated with early prenatal care of infants born to malnourished mothers. Intensive care nurseries are very expensive – yet the cost of feeding a pregnant woman with good food is minimal. Over those decades, the cost of food has not risen to the levels of the costs for the newborn intensive care – so why do we still not feed pregnant women?  Answer: Politics…..[and that's for another day and another eBook or blog: http://lynnsrants.com]

A growing fetus needs protein – so the mother must eat that protein or the fetus does not get it. A long held myth is that babies will take what they need from the mother's body.  Not true. The mother needs to ingest the nourishment while she is pregnant or it is not there for the fetus.

Long term effects of poor nutrition during pregnancy are problematic births, delayed physical and cognitive growth and ongoing illnesses. This is worsened if the child continues to be malnourished after it is born. And malnourishment, while found more often in poorer homes, is not absent from homes of the wealthy.  Just having money does not create common sense!

What is good nourishment? Protein is important as is a balanced diet. Junk food is not nutritious for anyone! Diet sodas and chemically doctored food that supposedly tastes good is not nourishing….Prepackaged "stuff" [I dare not call it food] is not nourishing.

Look at the labels on the food you are buying next time you in a store. You might find words there that you cannot pronounce. One of my mantras is that if I can't read the small print or I can't even pronounce the name of the ingredient – I don't want it in my body…and I'm well past child bearing age

I wrote a post about some of my concerns with IQ testing but I did not get into ALL the factors that influence IQ scores.

Let me amend the concept of IQ testing to be the concept of cognitive testing – or for an IQ to be a measure of cognitive development – because cognition is what IQ testing is all about!

It turns out, as many have long argued, that what you eat affects your cognition – and in turn, your IQ score. In a study of food and IQ results, it was found that eating processed foods when 3  years of age led to a decrease in IQ scores at 8 1/2.  Eating healthier foods such as salads, pasta and fruit at 3 – led to an increase in IQ scores at 8 1/2.  The decreases and increases were not huge – they were in effect small – but it is the direction of the trend that is important

The authors of the study on food and cognition conclude:

There is evidence that a poor diet associated with high fat, sugar and processed food content in early childhood may be associated with small reductions in IQ in later childhood, while a healthy diet, associated with high intakes of nutrient rich foods described at about the time of IQ assessment may be associated with small increases in IQ.

Some of us old-timers were warning in the 1960's that colorings, additives and processing of foods were not good for a child's development!  It's sad but we were right – back then we were laughed at for suggesting that what we ingested affected our brains! Especially a growing child's brain!

I still argue for good nutrition – even as our food supply is less nutritious than it was when I was growing up.

Now I suggest that if you want your child's brain [and yours also by the way] to function as optimally as it can – that you use real food supplements.

Below are links to real food supplements that I use and DISCLAIMER sell! If you buy any – i do make some $$ [but so can you]

helping your children

powering your brain [and immune systems]

In Vermont you get a lot of snow – a real lot of snow!  Schools rarely close unless it's really bad – or really unexpected – or both!

For years, my son and I played April Fool tricks on each other – usually along the line of trying to get the other to look at some imaginary object or some event that was not actually happening.

On April 1 of his year in VT there was a 2 foot snow storm and school was canceled.  I knew he would not be happy if he got up and took a shower only to find out he could have slept in so I woke him around 5:30 AM to tell him there was no school due to a snow storm.

His reply was along the lines of "ha ha I know it's April Fool and I am not falling for that."  I suggested he look out the window but as that had been our usual "fool" he refused.  He got up and was heading for a shower and I tried most seriously to again tell him there was no school.

I forget how I managed to convince him to look out a window – but he did. 

His words were not appropriate for a family-friendly blog so I won't print them

It was such a funny experience I recall it most every April 1 – and especially on days like today when New England got hit with another April Fool snow storm!

Happy April Fool

P.S. The story is true and neither of us lives in New England anymore

What's your favorite April Fool memory? Let us know below in the comments…thanks

Snuggle time!!

This bed is a one cat kind of thing…and they both easily fit into it when they were newly adopted and were 2 and 3 months old.

But now that they are 5 and 6 months old – and like children – they have grown and the bed has not

….but when it's windy out there – and everything is shaking – they both hop into it and snuggle to fit – with some limbs hanging out.

And parents, you may see limbs hanging over edges when a new bed is needed for your teen!!

OK – my balloon baby above may be an exaggeration but the problem is not!

We are entering a new generation of obesity and now it's not just adults who are obese – it's everybody – including the children and adolescents.

We are reaching that stage in obesity where this or the next generation of children will NOT have a longer life span than the parents…previously unheard of!

Not only is obesity bad in and of itself, it makes all other medical problems worse….

I've been writing about healthy children and adults for a while now and hope the readers of my outputs are among those who will pay attention to the news and act on it…It is something parents have control over during the child's early years…and good nutrition early on can never be a bad choice… good nutrition in the younger years leads to healthier choices in the teen years….

Yes we know that teens will make bad food choices when out of our sight – but if they have a foundation of good nutrients and good role models – they will come back to eating healthy foods….

There are supplements that will give your child some real-food nutrients.

And there are products for adults too at:  beING healthy