Last month Health Canada announced the launch of the second phase of its Nutrition Facts Education Campaign, called “Focus on the Facts.” This campaign centres on helping Canadians – especially parents of children aged two to twelve – better understand how to use this tool, and make nutrition choices that fit their family’s needs.
Paying particular attention to the “Serving Size” and the “Per Cent Daily Value (%DV)” measures located on the NFT is one of the best ways to make a smart choice and keep portions in check. You can use the % DV to see if the Serving Size has a little or a lot of a nutrient – 5% DV or less is a little and 15% DV or more is a lot.
To reinforce the importance of “Focusing on the Facts,” Kellogg is pleased to support this initiative alongside 20 other leading food companies who are committed to this effort. Keep an eye out in-store for communications rolling out in the coming months, and use these messages as an opportunity to teach your little ones about how to use the NFT to make smart choices.
How do you decide what products to buy? Do you look at the Nutrition Fact Table on the side of products? Do you involve your little ones to help them better understand what they are eating?
My Little One just turned 8 years old and I have introduces her to the Nutrition Fact Table on the side of products. I have also shown her that products display the ingredients in them. We have started to talk about the content of vitamins and minerals we get from things we eat. She is also understanding about super-foods as well as foods that contain natural sugars versus having sugar added to them. All these conversations are providing the foundation for my Little One to think before she eats and to learn about how to eat to be healthy.
We have also talked about serving sizes. Having said that, with my Little One, I tend to let her eat as she needs because sometimes she eats more when she is in a growing spurt and other times it seems like she just does not feel like eating. I just ensure that what she has available to her is healthy and helps her body grow. I also have ensure that she understands that we eat to fuel our bodies and not to entertain ourselves.
What do you do to ensure that your family is eating right? Share your tips and tricks with all of us.
Find out tips and tricks by following Healthy Canadians here:
You can also enter this giveaway for a chance to win $300 in groceries. How awesome is that.
Challenge your friends and family to ‘Focus on the Facts’ with our fun, interactive quiz. Learn about making informed food choices and you could win $300 in free groceries. FocusontheFacts.ca
