The History of Nutrition

Even if you’re not a history nerd, you’ll want to download our latest free handout – the history of nutrition timeline. The link is permanently located at the top of our Nutrition Month Theme Page. It’s so interesting to see how our field has evolved from the early 20th century to now. Here are some things that stand out to me:

  • The first half of the 20th century was pretty much dedicated to the discovery and study of micronutrients, with vitamin B1 (thiamine) being the first discovered in 1910, iodine added to salt in 1924, vitamin D added to milk in 1933, and flour enriched with vitamins and minerals in the 1940s. By 1950, all the vitamins had been discovered.
  • Introduced in 1911, Crisco was the first manufactured food product to contain trans fat. It wasn’t until 2015 that the U.S. government determined that trans fat is unsafe.
  • The Clean Plate Club wasn’t something invented by nagging parents! It was an actual government campaign to get citizens to not waste food during World War II.
  • MyPlate, which launched in 2011, has plenty of predecessors: the Basic Four in the 60s and 70s, the Food Wheel in 1984, the Food Guide Pyramid in 1992, and MyPyramid in 2005.

Download the timeline today and let us know what stands out to YOU!

Teacher Wish Program for Health and Nutrition Education Materials

Have you heard of the Classroom Wish Program? It’s a simple way to get great new materials for your classroom. Use the Nutrition Education Store to make health, nutrition, and fitness lessons a snap! Here’s how…

  1. Preview the school nutrition education page of the Nutrition Education Store. Use the wish list form to create a list of resources that would benefit your classroom. You can also use the handy order form to request materials directly from your school district.
  2. Display your wish list. These wishes can’t come true unless someone knows about them, so make sure to display your wish list in your classroom. Not sure where to put it? Try dedicating a space on your bulletin board during an open house or class parties. That way, parents can take a wish and grant it.
  3. Share your wish list. Sharing is caring, after all. Include your wish list in your class newsletter, in special notes to parents, or on your class’s online homepage. You could also give a classroom wish list to the Parent Resources Organization or “room parent” volunteers. Use this letter to parents to explain the importance of proper nutrition for better classroom behavior and academic performance.
  4. Watch your wishes come true. The people who wish to support your classroom by picking up an item on your wish list can easily purchase the materials from our store. Then they can have them shipped to you with a gift message, or they can have the items sent directly to them, so that they in turn can give their gifts to you in person.
  5. Thank your donors with special thank-you-notes that express your appreciation for these generous gifts.

There are lots of wish list programs available. Choose from any of the following options…

There’s also Amazon.com. Did you know that we have a list of Nutrition Education Store materials available on Amazon? You can add them to an Amazon Teacher Wish List. Use the Amazon Universal “Add to Wish List” Tool to add any school nutrition education materials to your list.

Any questions? Call us toll-free at 800-462-2352. We can even take steps to add more of our materials to Amazon.com.

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Free Handouts: Enjoy the Taste of Eating Right

Nutrition Month is right around the corner, and we’re already getting great material requests from health educators.

Coloring Page One

Mary Therese Maslanka, RD, LDN, recently wrote to us to see if we could craft a few handouts that kids could color for fun. The handouts needed to feature the March 2014 Nutrition Month theme, “Enjoy the taste of eating right.” We were thrilled to oblige, especially when we learned that the handouts are part of a poster project for kids in kindergarten through second grade. The kids each get a handout with health messages on it, which they can then color in. What a great way to teach vital health and nutrition messages!

We decided that Mary’s idea was too wonderful not to share, and so now we’re passing the handouts on to you. Feel free to download and print as many as you’d like. And let us know if there’s anything that we can make for you.

What are you waiting for? Get the handouts now!

Enjoy the Taste of Eating Right Coloring Page TwoThere are lots of other nutrition education resources in the Nutrition Education Store. It’s ready to go for Nutrition Month — are you?

If you’re looking to brighten up your space, check out the loads of wonderful nutrition education posters. Some of the latest and greatest posters include the High Five for Fiber poster, a Fruit and Vegetable poster set, a Healthful Food Photo Collection poster, and the ever-popular Eat from the Rainbow poster.

Setting up for a wellness fair? Don’t miss the Fruit and Vegetable Salsa Wellness Fair Kit. Or perhaps a Salt Awareness Display Kit is just what you’re looking for. If you’re hosting any kind of contest or raffle at your booth, MyPlate Bookmarks, Fruit Dessert Recipe Cards, and healthful cooking utensils all make great prizes too.

It’s easier to enjoy the taste of eating right when you have recipes for healthful and balanced meals. That’s where our cookbook collection comes in. The author of these amazing healthy eating cookbooks is a professional chef who graduated 2nd in her class from culinary school. With over 20 years of recipe-testing experience and an eye for detail, Judy Doherty, PC II, has put together some truly amazing healthful cooking resources. No Battles, Better Eating is a fantastic guide that makes cooking for picky eaters a snap, and people regularly “ooh” and “aah” over the gorgeous fruit desserts in Fruit Tooth, a healthful dessert recipe collection. There’s also the top-selling Home Run Cooking and Holiday Secrets — two books that deliver smash hit meals, every time.

What are you doing for Nutrition Month?