Kids follow parents' lead on fruits and vegetables

Parents who want their preschoolers to eat their fruits and vegetables should probably practice what they preach, a new study suggests.

In a study of more than 1,300 families, researchers found that when parents boosted their own consumption of fruits and vegetables, so did their young children.

The findings, reported in the journal Preventive Medicine, point to the importance of parents "modeling" a healthy diet for their preschoolers. They also suggest that educating parents on nutrition early on could help address the problem of childhood obesity, the researchers say.

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Expectant moms who eat nuts boost child asthma risk

Pregnant women who eat nuts or nut products like peanut butter daily raise the risk their children will develop asthma by 50 percent, Dutch researchers said on Tuesday.

The study also showed that moderate amounts did not seem to have an effect, meaning it is too soon to say whether pregnant women should give up nuts because they contain many important nutrients and healthy fats a developing fetus needs, they said.

"We were the first to find these strong effects on asthma symptoms," said Saskia Willers, an epidemiologist at Utrecht University, who led the study linking nuts with asthma.

"But until we are certain we don't want to restrict them from the diet. So it is important that other studies replicate the findings," she said.

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Sneak in Some Green

Parents of picky eaters may get a little break from unsuccessful attempts at getting their kids to eat their vegetables. Sunkist Naturals, maker of exceptional smoothies and juices, is introducing Glorious Greens.

Made with broccoli, cabbage, kale, dulse, echinacia, wheat grass, flax seed, spirulina, and green tea (among other ingredients) the flavor is sweet and delicious.

The key is mixing these nutrient packed veggies with apple, kiwi, mango, and pineapple. The result is a healthy dose of superfoods high in vitamins, antioxidants and Omega-3 EPA & DHA.

While Missy Lapine and Jessica Seinfeld have excellent recipes for making cakes from beets, and brownies from broccoli, we think opening a bottle of juice is a lot more time efficient for busy parents. The convenient 15.2 fl oz size fits in a diaper, gym, or hand bag quite easily.

Sunkist Naturals Glorious Greens is vegan, and features no added sugar, preservatives, artificial ingredients, or GMO. The Sunkist Naturals collection of smoothies and juices is currently available in Florida, and Southern California.