Glycemic Life Style | Let's Get Healthy Together

Glycemic Index for KIDS

If parents don't know what foods, drinks, and snacks contribute to the current childhood obesity epidemic, how can they possibly address these issues with their families.

At Glycemic Lifestyle, our goal and commitment is to provide families the tools, education, and information to make healthier lifestyle choices.

Obesity and diabetes have become serious issues for both adults and children. Glycemic Lifestyle will help parents make the right food decisions, based on current research in the field of the Glycemic Index, Childhood Obesity, and Childhood Diabetes.

Glycemic Lifestyle will provide clinically-proven information on which foods and beverages stimulate fat-storage in children, and which foods and beverages do not stimulate fat-storage and exacerbate diabetes in children.

This website is authorized to make Kid Friendly food lists available, as well as Kid Friendly snacks and recipes.

Fast food and over-scheduling are two major contributors to the childhood obesity epidemic. As a wife and mother of three kids (all girls), I am looking forward to working with parents to bring awareness and solid solutions to these problems in a user-friendly format, and to sharing “Better For You”, Kid Friendly®, Low Glycemic foods, snacks, and recipes that the whole family will love.

I will also be sharing easy hints and tips that will help us remember why the little things in life are so important.

Debbie Krushell
Host of Glycemic Lifestyle

Let’s Get Healthy Together
at Glycemic Lifestyle

The following snacks are Low Glycemic and are specifically designed not to over-elevate blood glucose and insulin levels in children, and not to stimulate the production of Progenitor fat cells.

Celery with Peanut Butter

Rinse fresh celery with cold water (to remove any pesticide residue), dry celery, and cut into 5” pieces. (Celery can be stored in a zip-lock bag for a few days in the fridge). Spoon 1 tablespoon of peanut butter (peanut butter with no added sugar) into each of the 5” celery pieces.

Little Apple Sandwiches

Peel and slice a fresh apple into slices (peeling the apple removes pesticide residue). Make little sandwiches using 2 apple slices and fill with 1 teaspoon peanut butter or thinly sliced cheese (any type of hard cheese is acceptable – kids seem to prefer American cheese.

Chicken, Cheese & Fruit

3 cooked chicken strips (not fried), 1 individually-wrapped cheese sticks, 1 sliced fresh peach.

Yogurt Parfait

In a 1 cup (8 oz) parfait glass, layer yogurt (low fat or no-fat plain or fruit yogurt is acceptable), and berries: Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and/or raspberries. Mix and match your child’s favorite berries.

Tortellini

6 ounces of cooked cheese tortellini, raw carrot or celery slices, 1/3 cup of sugar-free apple sauce (no artificial sweeteners added).

Fruit, Cheese, Nut Plate

On a 6” to 8” sized plate, arrange ½ to ¾ cup of Low Glycemic fruits (see Kid Friendly Fruits List), with ¼ cup of your child’s favorite nuts, and 3 1-inch cheese cubes (child’s favorite).

Egg & Cheese Plate -1

1 hard-boiled egg (or 1 deviled egg), 1 individually-wrapped cheese stick, and 15 grapes or 1/3 cup of sugar-free apple sauce with no-artificial- sweeteners added.

Egg & Cheese Plate -2

Scrambled eggs and cheese (1 egg, 2 1-inch cubes of cheese), 1 small can of Mandarin oranges (canned in water/single serving).

Peanut Butter & Jelly Crackers*

Spread peanut butter on Kashi TLC (Tasty Little Crackers)(Toasted Asiago)(10 crackers), then thinly spread Dickinson's Purely Fruit® on top of peanut butter. Serve with fresh apple slices. *See Acceptable Flavors Below.

The Glycemic Index of a regular peanut butter & jelly sandwich on white bread is 80.

The Glycemic Index of the Kid Friendly® Peanut Butter & Jelly Crackers above is 40.

This means that the glycemic impact of the Kid Friendly® version of only ½ that of the regular version.

Source: Glycemic Research Institute® 2010

*Dickinson's Purely Fruit® Acceptable Fruit Flavors:

•	Seedless Blackberry Spreadable Fruit
•	Blueberry Spreadable Fruit
•	Seedless Boysenberry Spreadable Fruit
•	Bing Cherries Spreadable Fruit
•	Raspberry Spreadable Fruit
•	Strawberry Spreadable Fruit

Do not use Dickinson's Sugar Free Flavors because they contain maltodextrins

Do not use the Dickinson' Organic Fruit Spreads because they contain table sugar (Sucrose)

UPDATE:
Polaner All Fruit does not qualify as KID FRIENDLY® because it contains maltodextrins

Note: These snacks are designed to elicit a specific glycemic response and cannot be mixed-and-matched, as that would change the glycemic response in children.