by Angie Pollock

Created on: July 05, 2008   Last Updated: August 10, 2009

Many times children are given between-meal snacks that are labeled "healthy," but most of these "healthy" snacks are loaded with preservatives, fat and sodium. Even trickier than finding time to make a healthy snack is getting our children to eat what we set in front of them.

Sometimes getting children to choose better alternatives for snacks can be as simple as a parent making better choices for them. Instead of having prepackaged cookies available, a piece of fruit, such as a banana, can be placed in view to give them the chance to make a healthier choice.

Children will be more apt to try new things or eat nutritious foods if they are made available to them, if they are prepared in an interesting way or if they are encouraged to participate in the preparation of their own meals and snacks.

Start with allowing children to choose their own fruits and vegetables when shopping and encourage choice of a variety of different types to overcome boredom with the same food. There are the tried-and-true tricks that we use every day, like placing fruit in our child's yogurt, blending up smoothies or the old stand-by: fruit mixed in with Jell-O. We can also learn a few new recipes that our children can help us prepare; prreparing together can encourage healthy eating habits.

FROZEN YOGURT POPS
1 8-ounce container of yogurt, any flavor
small paper cups
wooden popsicle sticks or craft sticks
plastic wrap
Fill paper cups 3/4 full with yogurt. Cover each cup with plastic wrap. Poke a small hole into the top of each cup through the plastic wrap. Place the popsicle stick into the hole, standing upright. Place in freezer and leave until frozen solid. Remove plastic wrap before enjoying.

PIZZA SNACKS
Crust: whole wheat bagel or English muffin, cut in half
tomato sauce
low-fat mozzarella cheese
Toppings can be any of your child's favorites, including olives, mushrooms or even pineapple. Place tomato sauce, cheese and toppings on the bagel or muffin and cook in the oven at 375 degrees until bubbly.

ANTS ON A LOG
peanut butter or low-fat cream cheese
celery sticks raisins
plastic knife (optional if young child is assisting)
Spread peanut butter or cream cheese across celery sticks and cover with raisins. We have also made an alternative to this that we call "ants on a boat" by placing cream cheese on graham crackers and topping with raisins.

Other healthy and easy healthy snacks include trail mix, fruit kabobs, fruit salads, homemade oatmeal cookies and fruit-filled muffins.

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