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NUTRITION PROGRAM

Dear Nolan Parents,

You may have a student in one of the classes who has already heard one or more Nolan Nutrition Talks this semester. The goal is to have every classroom hear the talks this semester. The Nutrition Talk Series has 5 different 15 minute lectures entitled Whole Grains, Healthy Drinking, Legumes, Good Fats, Sugar Hazards/ Portion Control. In reaction to the food advertisements around us, these talks are designed to encourage education and experimentation with healthy food choices for our children (and ourselves). The talks include good food choices for the students to try and have been lots of fun to give to such a receptive audience! Bluff View and Niedlov's are donating the bread the students will try out in this first talk. If you are interested in helping give these talks to classrooms at Nolan, please contact me at marybaxter@gps.edu. Following is the inspiration of the whole grain talk. If you would like me to send you the actual talk, just ask

. "Much of our food today contains refined flour which converts whole grains into white flour. This is one of the most detrimental practices for nutritional health. Refined grains have both the bran and germ removed from the grain kernal. The bran is the protective outer layer, high in fiber and rich in protein. The germ is the part of the seed that actually sprouts, and is rich in vitamins, minerals, and essential fatty acids. What remains is the starchy white inner core, which is used to make white flour products. (White flour is 95% less nutritious than whole grain flour. Since it is less nutritious, the body not satified --so over eating is more likely.) Whole grains are clearly superior. Enriched flour adds back a few synthetic nutrietnts to the refined flour, not replacing the dozens of nutrients and uncounted phytonutrients lost to refining. A fundamental principle of good nutrition is that you do not process the nutrients out of your food. Perhaps the greatest refining loss is fiber. The sweeping action of high fiber foods is vital for intestinal health and their lack has beeen linked to health problems ranging from heart disease to colon cancer." from www.nutritioncrashcourse.com/refined-grains.html.

"Food is one of the most important things you'll ever buy since you can't get rid of it once it's a part of you. It helps determine your size and strength. It helps determine whether you will enjoy a long, healthy life or not." (paraphrased from Chew On This by Schlosser and Wilson).

Here's to health and education!

Warmly,
Mary Baxter