April 26th through April 30th of 2021 is Every Kid Healthy Week.
- Monday, April 26th– Mindful Monday
- Social. Emotional. Health.
- Tuesday, April 27th– Tasty Tuesday
- Nutrition and Food Access
- Wednesday, April 28th– Wellness Wednesday
- Self-care Strategies
- Thursday, April 29th– Thoughtful Thursday
- Connectedness. Relationship Skills. Social Awareness.
- Friday, April 30th– Fitness Friday
- Physical Activity and Active Play
Every Kid Healthy Week is a holistic approach to childhood health. The conversation on children’s mental, emotional, social, and physical well-being equally hold the spotlight the last week of April, highlighting the importance of each of those discussions.
Reflect on Childhood: Share the Good & Help Lessen the Bad
Jump in the DeLorean from Back to the Future. Check the flux capacitor. Make sure you have 1.21 gigawatts of power, and then increase your speed to 88 miles per hour. Take the time machine back to your childhood and remind yourself of your experience and perspective.
Were you figuring out your friend circle? Were you frustrated? Were you feeling uncomfortable in your body? Did you feel misunderstood or overwhelmed? Was unhealthy food your constant companion? Were you easily upset? Were you out of touch with your emotions? Did you struggle with belonging, whether at home or school or among friends or in the world in general?
Whether you soared through youth with flying colors or floundered on the banks of adolescence, if you’re an adult, you survived. And once you’ve survived youth, it’s easy to compartmentalize your experience. Although it may seem therapeutic to stop revisiting a time filled with ever-changing friends, acne, and questionable choices, it’s important to reflect on your childhood so that you have a better chance of understanding your children and the children of others.
Fast Food Makes Supplements a Fast “YES!”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that “during 2015-2018, over one-third (36.3%) of children and adolescents consumed fast food on a given day.” Since “fast food is typically loaded with calories, sodium, and unhealthy fat— often enough in one meal for an entire day” and it “ tends to be low in nutrients and almost totally lacking in fruit, vegetables, and fiber,” many children have bodies that are begging for the nutrients and minerals it needs.
Even if fast food isn’t part of your weekly routine, you may still have a ‘fast pantry’– cupboards loaded with food and beverages with little to no nutrition. The CDC says “empty calories from added sugars and solid fats contribute to 40% of daily calories for children and adolescents age 2-18 years– affecting the overall quality of their diets. Approximately half of these empty calories come from six sources: soda, fruity drinks, dairy desserts, grain desserts, pizza, and whole milk.” No wonder we need an Every Kid Healthy Week!
Cue EMPowerplus Advanced, the most studied micronutrient formula in the world, as well as AminoPower Advanced, which provides the ideal balance of amino acids for mental and physical wellbeing, to the rescue.
Supplements help you better ensure that children consume the vitamins and minerals they need to not only operate at their physical best, but also their best mentally. Supplements can help lessen the stress of homework, testing, and even bullying by helping children’s bodies and their minds operate at their highest possible level. Poor nutrition affects everything from a child’s patience level to their ability to maintain a positive mood and attitude, making investing in quality supplements, like EMPowerplus Advanced and AminoPower Advanced, one of the wisest moves you can make for your children.
Never Stop Investing in & Nurturing the Well-Being of Youth
Don’t just dedicate the last week of April to children’s health, dedicate every week to it. Whether or not youth have a positive sense of self, an understanding of how to deal with obstacles in a healthy way, healthy self-confidence, and an understanding of how nutrition plays a direct role in their physical and mental well-being is crucial.
The odds are that the youth you know now will become parents in the future, and how the adults in their world treat them and guide them will play a massive role in the kind of parents they become. Take the time to notice and nurture children’s well-being, and you make one of the best investments of your life.
Author: Evelyn Lindell
Certified Health & Wellness Coach