Kids Heart Disease Info Center - Rachel Cooper Foundation

The Rachel Cooper Foundation. Providing life saving Heart Surgery at the Rachel Cooper Heart Center at Montefiore.

TOP 10 WAYS TO HELP CHILDREN DEVELOP HEALTHY HABITS

1. Be a positive role model. If you’re practicing healthy habits, it’s a lot easier to convince children to do the same.

2. Get the whole family active. Plan times for everyone to get moving together. Take walks, ride bikes, go swimming, garden or just play hide-and-seek outside. Everyone will benefit from the exercise and the time together.

3. Limit TV, video game and computer time. These habits lead to a sedentary lifestyle and excessive snacking, which increase risks for obesity and cardiovascular disease.

4. Encourage physical activities that children really enjoy. Every child is unique. Let children experiment with different activities until each finds something that he or she really loves doing. They’ll stick with it longer if they love it.

5. Be supportive. Focus on the positive instead of the negative. Everyone likes to be praised for a job well done. Celebrate successes and help children and teens develop a good self-image.

6. Set specific goals and limits, such as one hour of physical activity a day or two desserts per week other than fruit. When goals are too abstract or limits too restrictive, the chance for success decreases.

7. Don’t reward children with food. Candy and snacks as a reward encourage bad habits. Find other ways to celebrate good behavior.

8. Make dinnertime a family time. When everyone sits down together to eat, there’s less chance of children eating the wrong foods or snacking too much. Get the kids involved in cooking and planning meals. Everyone develops good eating habits together and the quality time with the family will be an added bonus.

9. Make a game of reading food labels. The whole family will learn what’s good for their health and be more conscious of what they eat. It’s a habit that helps change behavior for a lifetime.

10. Stay involved. Be an advocate for healthier children. Insist on good food choices at school. Make sure your children’s healthcare providers are monitoring cardiovascular indicators like BMI, blood pressure and cholesterol. Contact public officials on matters of the heart. Make your voice heard.

Thanks to American Heart Association

KID'S HEALTH...YOUR HEART
The Child and Youth Health web site is part of the Women's and Children's Health Network in South Australia. in the attached web page they present information about the heart in language that is easy for children to understand.
http://www.cyh.com/HealthTopics/HealthTopicDetailsKids.aspx?p=335&np=152&id=1446

UCLA HEALTHCARE
"The path to heart disease begins at an early age," said Dr. Thomas Klitzner, professor of pediatric cardiology at Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA. "Obesity and high blood pressure are becoming an epidemic in children and young adults. By exercising regularly, eating well and not smoking; children can form heart-healthy habits that will help protect them from future heart attacks and strokes." This article contains tips for adults and children to stay heart health.
http://www.newswise.com/articles/embrace-a-healthy-heart-tips-for-adults-and-kids

KIDSHEALTH
KidsHealth provides information about health, behavior, and development from before birth through the teen years. It is that it's really three sites in one: with sections for parents, for kids, and for teens.
http://kidshealth.org/parent/kh_misc/about.html

HEALTHY HEART ACTIVITIES LEARNING PAGE
The heart is an important organ and requires healthy foods and daily exercise to remain strong. Help children learn that the heart is a muscle and needs daily exercise to help it stay strong. Building a strong heart is a combination of healthy food choices and being active.

Kids will have fun learning about the foods and activities that makes the heart very happy,
http://www.nourishinteractive.com/nutrition-education-printables/category/35-healthy-heart-activities-kids

TEXAS HEART INSTITUTE
This site provides information on the risk factors that affect children and can be controlled early in life, lowering the risk of heart disease later in life. It answers questions and provides information about high blood pressure, cholesterol, smoking, obesity, physical inactivity, as well as a link to Project Heart: a heart-smart resource for teachers.
http://www.texasheartinstitute.org/HIC/Topics/HSmart/children_risk_factors.cfm

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