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Ask
the Pharmacist By Ron and Marla Chapleau |
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Q: My child is overweight and I was told that he is at risk of high cholesterol and diabetes. I thought only adults could be affected by those. A: With the growing problem of obesity in children, we are finding that complications due to excessive weight, such as diabetes and high cholesterol to name just two, are beginning to show up earlier in life. The first and best option to treat or prevent these is to strongly encourage a healthy lifestyle including a well-balanced diet and regular exercise. Checking your labels while shopping will be critical to ensure that a healthy diet is being adhered to. Since our children are growing, it is suggested that 25-30 per cent of calories should come from fat and no more than seven per cent should come from saturated fat (cream, butter, cheese and high fat meats). Dietary cholesterol should not exceed more than 200 milligrams (mg) daily as well. What does this really mean in practical terms? For an 1,800-calorie diet (which is deemed acceptable for females aged 14-18 and males aged 9-13), the 25 per cent that should come from total fat equals 450 calories and the seven per cent equates to 126 calories maximum that should come from saturated fat. That is for an entire day! Eleven Nacho Cheese Flavoured Doritos (28 grams) have 140 calories of which 63 calories are from fat (and who could eat just 11 chips), and a small bag of regular chips averages about 90 calories from fat. You may hear that popcorn is healthier so you might consider changing your child’s snacks to it. Beware, however, that not all popcorn is created equal. A 28-gram serving of regular-flavoured microwave popcorn has 163 calories of which 107 come from fat! In contrast, a 28-gram serving of air-popped popcorn has 108 calories and only 11 calories from fat. A serving size of vanilla ice cream is just one-half cup (again, who could stop at a half-cup) and has 145 calories of which 71 calories are from fat and 62 per cent of this is the saturated type.
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A healthier
alternative would be yogurt which provides 104 calories of which
only 14 calories come from fat in that same half-cup serving size. The emphasis should be on eating more low-calorie, high-fibre foods, such as fruits and vegetables and whole grains. Participating in at least 30-60 minutes of age-appropriate physical activity on most days of the week, is also vital. For more information about this or any other health-related questions, contact the pharmacists at Gordon Pharmasave, Your Health and Wellness Destination Scrolling stops when you move your mouse inside the scroll area. You can click on the ads for more
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