Many parents are wondering how to make healthy lunches for their children this year and keep them affordable.  Here are some things parents and analysts recommend:

• Package your own bags or snacks in baggies or reusable plastic containers rather than buying prepackaged ones.
• Take a reusable water bottle instead of a drink like a juice box.  Fill it with water, milk or juice.
• Consider buying more hot lunches, which sometimes cost little more than a dollar.
• Shop around for sales and buy in large quantities when you can.  Freeze things until you need them.
• Think about lunches when you’re making dinners, and set some aside so you have enough for the next day.  That will make sure your family doesn’t eat it up.
• Take a food inventory so you know what you have and can plan around that.  And that will cut down on trips to the store–which could add up to big savings.
• Talk to your kids to see what they really want.  If they’re not going to eat it, don’t give it to them.
• Involve children in the lunch-making process.  Analysts say if kids take part in packing their lunches, they will be more apt to eat them.

How your child spends his out-of-school hours has a direct impact on his fitness. One way you can encourage him is to set a good example. If you can find physical activities to do together, your child might be more motivated.

Here are some specific steps you can take:

• Limit TV-watching and video game playing—no more than two hours a day—for both kids and adults in the family.
• Give your child “fitness” gifts for birthdays—anything from jump ropes to in-line skates. 
• Make his birthday party something physical. Indoor climbing gyms are popular with the younger set. Older kids might like ice skating, bowling, or facilities with climbing walls, which have become the “in” thing.
• Walk with him instead of driving whenever possible.
• Make family weekends and vacations active ones. Take a bike, ride or swim or go hiking.
• Offer him lessons in tennis, horseback riding, or some other activity he wants to try.
• Get exercise tapes with fun music that kids and adults can do together.

Physical fitness has tangible effects on classroom performance, says a new study….

What’s the Latest?  The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) surveyed 5,000 students ranging from kindergarten to fifth grade and found that girls who got from 70 to 300 minutes of physical education per week scored consistently higher on standardized tests.  More exercise also translated into increased classroom participation and concentration skills.

What about Boys?  The study found no correlation between gym class and test scores for boys, but that may be because elementary-school-age males tend to be more active outside school.  And according to the CDC, boys are often more physically fit than girls, meaning gym-class dodgeball might not be enough to give them the same beneficial physiological effects. 

Why Does it Matter?  Many school districts are slashing PE to meet budgets; math and reading are what count on standardized tests–and in assessing schools’ performance under No Child Left Behind.  As a result, most kids have gym class only once or twice a week.  The lack of physical exercise could be adversely affecting girls’ academic development.

Attention-deficit disorder (ADD) or attention-deficit (hyperactivity) disorder (ADHA) is characterized by poor ability to attend to a task, motoric overactivity and impulsivity.

ADHD-afflicted people display different behaviors indicative of problems associated with the disorder.  Being inattentive can be seen when a child or adolescent:

• Often does not follow through on tasks.
• Often has difficulty getting organized.
• Often makes careless mistakes, failing to give close attention.
• Often has difficulty sustaining attention.l
• Often does not seem to listen.
• Often dislikes or avoids sustained mental efforts.
• Often loses things.
• Often is easily distracted.
• Often is forgetful.

Having your child diagnosed with ADD/ADHD is best accomplished by a licensed medical professional specializing in AD/ADHA and similar medical conditions.  The most comprehensive testing for ADD/ADHD is performed by a psychologist or neurophysiologist.  Psychological testing provides important data in the process of diagnosing ADD/ADHD as well as other possible diagnoses. 

I went to a party,
And remembered what you said.
You told me not to drink, Mum
So I had a sprite instead. I felt proud of myself,
The way you said I would,
That I didn’t drink and drive,
Though some friends said I should.

I made a healthy choice,
And your advice to me was right.
The party finally ended,
And the kids drove out of sight. I got into my car,
Sure to get home in one piece,
I never knew what was coming, Mum
Something I expected least.

Now I’m lying on the pavement,
And I hear the policeman say,
The kid that caused this wreck was drunk,
Mum, his voice seems far away. My own blood’s all around me,
As I try hard not to cry.
I can hear the paramedic say,
This girl is going to die.

I’m sure the guy had no idea,
While he was flying high,
Because he chose to drink and drive,
Now I would have to die. So why do people do it, Mum
Knowing that it ruins lives?
And now the pain is cutting me,
Like a hundred stabbing knives.

Someone should have taught him,
That it’s wrong to drink and drive.
Maybe if his parents had,
I’d still be alive. My breath is getting shorter, Mum
I’m getting really scared.
These are my final moments,
And I’m so unprepared.

I wish that you could hold me Mum,
As I lie here and die.
I wish that I could say, ‘I love you, Mum!’
So I love you and good-bye. MADD  (Mothers Against Drunk Driving)