Last weekend I was going through the newspaper ads and became frustrated when I saw this ad:

I was frustrated because it encourages parents to serve their hungry kids bowls of potato chips when they come home from school.  Now potato chips aren’t a “bad food”, but as a dietitian, they would not be what I would serve to hungry kids at the end of every school day.

Americans’ Snack Habits
Research has shown that the calories we consume via snacks have increased in the past few decades.  Snacks are a greater contributor to our diets than in years past.  The increase is due to an increased number of snacks per day and an increase in the size of our snacks.  For this reason, taking the time to plan and purchase healthy snacks is just as important as providing your family with healthy meals.

Need Some Ideas?
Create your own list of healthy, easy and FUN snacks that your kids will enjoy.  Here are some quick and simple ideas: fresh fruit, cheese and crackers, trail mix, veggies and hummus, yogurt parfaits, and even a bowl of cereal with skim milk.

You can also let your kids make their own snacks.  It’s amazing what they’ll eat when they make it themselves.  Here are some creative ideas to get you started.  And they’ve all been kid tested and approved at after school programs.

Lady Bug Core an apple and slice in half.  Let your child decorate the apple with raisins using peanut butter as “glue”.  Stick two pretzel sticks into a grape to make the lady bug head.  Attach to body using peanut butter.  Enjoy!
	Apple Smiles Continuing on the apple theme since they are delicious this time of year, slice an apple into eighths or smaller.  Spread peanut butter on one side of each slice.  Take half of the slices and stick four mini-marshmallows into the peanut butter.  Top with another apple slice with the peanut butter side facing the marshmallows.  Smile and enjoy!
Caterpillar Sometimes encouraging kids to drink milk so they get some calcium can be challenging.  I’ve never had to encourage a child to eat this caterpillar made of part-skim mozzarella string cheese.  They have a blast making this tasty treat from cheese, pretzels and raisins.
	Yummy Bug This snack is a work of art!  One creative little kindergartner in my after school class asked if he had to make a yummy bug.  I said he could make whatever he wanted, curious as to what he would make.  Well, I circled around the room and when I returned he proudly showed me his dragon fly!  I was impressed.  It’s amazing the creativity kids have.  Provide your child with crackers, peanut butter, pretzel sticks and raisins and see what they make.

What are some of your family’s favorite after school snacks?  Post a comment below and share your ideas with others.