As a physician, I routinely counsel parents on a variety of topics regarding obesity, finding better nutrition, and children’s picky eating preferences. The topics section lists a lot of these so that you can take time to review these on your own time.
The Debut of Doctor Yum’s Cooking Club
This week I was pleased to attend the first gathering of “Doctor Yum Cooking Club.” The Lake of the Woods Chapter of MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) agreed months ago to pilot our spring debut of “Doctor Yum’s Cooking Club” To back track, I teach a free shopping class to help families to shop for healthy food and feed families better while saving money. Some of the moms that have attended my classed asked if we could put out a cooking assignment with some of my kid-tested recipes that they could cook with their...
read moreTeachers, Join the Fight Against Childhood Obesity
Dear Teachers, I am writing you today as a pediatrician, a mother, and a colleague to enlist your help. Like, you I chose my profession because I love children, and I love to teach. When starting my practice, I was excited to teach families how to navigate through the ups and downs of child development and occasional pediatric illnesses. I looked forward to seeing my patients grow up healthy and happy. Unfortunately, so many of the children in my practice are neither healthy nor happy. Every single day I care for children suffering from what...
read moreDoctor Yum’s Prescription for a Healthy Family
Here it is -our new and improved “Prescription for a Healthy Family”! These are the 10 simple rules that emcompass the messages of Doctor Yum and our nonprofit, “The Doctor Yum Project.” Click on each heading for much more information and ideas: 1.Make Wellness Number #1. Time and effort spent teaching healthy habits is an investment in a healthy long life for your kids. Long after designer shoes, electronics and fancy clothes wear out, kids will still have good health from good nutrition. 2. Get Everyone On Board. A healthy family...
read moreDoctor Yum Meets the Queen of “YUM”, Rachael Ray
Today I had the honor of interviewing Rachael Ray, the popular cooking personality first made famous by her TV show “30 Minute Meals.” She also is a host of her own Daytime Emmy winning television show, author of almost two dozen cookbooks and her popular magazine “Every Day with Rachael Ray.” Her business empire is impressive, but more impressive is her list of charity work including one project close to my heart, Yum-O. This nonprofit organization was started by Rachael Ray with a mission of empowering kids and their...
read moreChristmas Tree Veggie Appetizer with Lemony White Bean Hummus
Around the holidays many of us are asked to bring food to holiday gatherings. Instead of bringing the usual chips and dip or Christmas cookies, how about a veggie Christmas tree with lemony Whity Bean Hummus! This 3-D appetizer piled high with veggies and surrounded by hummus will be a hit at the party and will delight kids. You can also feel happy that you are contributing a healthy item to your holiday gathering. I made this last night for a neighborhood Christmas party. My mom saw it and loved it, so we made another one for a ladies night...
read moreParents Take Charge of their Family’s Health
This article first appeared in the Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star on Sunday October 28th. _________________________________________________________________________________ Betty and Steve Brown and their son Johnny have made the kind of dietary and lifestyle changes that pediatricians wish for all of their patients. Over the course of a year, they’ve knocked sugary treats off their grocery list, starting cooking more meals at home and taken other important steps to lead healthier lives. The result has been a complete transformation in the...
read moreWhat are you Paying for at the Grocery Store?
Today was doing my Sunday morning grocery shopping run for the week. Often when I am waiting in line, I like to observe what other people have in their shopping carts, particularly those people shopping with kids. This morning there was a mother with three school-aged kids in front of me. It appeared that they were doing the same as me, stocking up for the week. On the conveyer belt, I spotted a lot of “kid food.” There was sugary cereals seen advertised on TV. I saw single servings of flavored yogurts with candy bits displayed in...
read moreDoctor Yum’s Cooking Adventure for Kids
In August The Doctor Yum Project, our newly formed nonprofit, debuted it’s Cooking Adventure for kids. We enrolled 12 children, age 7-12 and spent the week learning about nutrition and cooking plant-based recipes. Each day we focused on a different food group including Leafy Greens Berries Melons Tomatoes Citrus fruits We started off the day with a nutrition lesson which highlighted the food group of the day. We learned that plants not only give us vitamins and minerals but powerful body-boosting “phytonutrients” that we can’t get...
read moreMango Strawberry Yogurt Cake
My kids (age 9 and 5) made this cake ALL BY THEMSELVES! I just read another great book on French parenting called Bringing up Bébé by Pamela Druckerman. This American author describes her experience raising children in Paris and the observations on the French way of parenting. She describes a culture and government that sets parents up for success in many ways and a calm, authoritative way of raising children that seems second nature to many French parents. Like Karen Le Billon’s book French Kids Eat Everything I found the...
read moreDoctor Yum’s Tiny Taster Rap
There is a great campaign in Maine called “Dunk the Junk” started by pediatrician Kevin Strong. Their campaign aims to get kids to stop eating junk food and start eating healthy foods, and uses graffiti art and rap to engage kids in their mission. Recently they released a rap video by some Atlanta kids quartet, The ShortZ. These kids are fun, smart, and make rapping about eating healthy SO COOL. I was playing the rap the other day, and my own kids started rapping the chorus over and over, “Dunk the Junk! Dunk the Junk!”...
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