Nutrition
PHS Community Resources Menu
Importance of Nutrition
Here you’ll find different resources to help increase your nutrition knowledge and skills. From healthy recipe ideas to fun games, we have great resources for the whole family!
PHS Lesson Preview
Salad Lesson
In this PHS lesson, students learn why fruits and vegetables are important for their bodies and why it is important to include a variety of produce in their diets. Students will assist in creating and sample a nutrient-dense rainbow of color salad.
MyPlate MyWins
Eat Right with MyPlate
Food, Nutrition and Health Tips from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
Find your healthy eating style using these recommendations from the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Simply start with small changes to make healthier choices you can enjoy.
Use your mouse to peel back each category cover to reveal useful information about that food group.
Fruits
Make half your plate fruits and vegetables. Focus on Whole Fruits.
Choose whole, cut, or pureed fruits -- fresh, frozen, dried, or canned in 100% juice.
Vegetables
Make half your plate fruits and vegetables
Try adding fresh, frozen, or canned vegetables to salads, sides, and main dishes
Grains
Make half your grains whole grains.
Look for whole grains listed first or second on the ingredients list - try oatmeal, popcorn, whole-grain bread and brown rice. Limit grain desserts and snacks such as cakes, cookies, and pastries.
Protein
Vary your protein routine.
Mix up your protein foods to include seafood, beans and peas, unsalted nuts and seeds, soy products, eggs, and lean meats and poultry. Try main dishes made with beans and seafood, like tuna salad or a bean chili.
Dairy
Move to low-fat or fat-free milk or yogurt.
Choose fat-free milk, yogurt and calcium-fortified soymilk to cut back on saturated fat. Replace sour cream, cream and regular cheese with low-fat or fat-free yogurt, milk and cheese.
Limit
Drink and eat less sodium, saturated fat and added sugars.
Use the Nutrition Facts label and ingredients list to limit items high in sodium, saturated fat and added sugars. Choose vegetable oils instead of butter and oil-based sauces and dips instead of ones with butter, cream or cheese. Drink water instead of sugary drinks.
Knife Skills
Check out our latest knife skills video for cutting carrots four ways!
Simple Steps for a Healthful Lifestyle
Good nutrition doesn’t have to be restrictive or overwhelming. Small goals and changes can have a cumulative healthful effect, and every little bit (or bite!) of nutrition is a step in the right direction.
Eat a variety of nutritious foods
Plan your meals each week
Learn skills to create tasty meals
Consult a registered dietitian nutritionist
Plan and Shop for a Weeks' Worth of Lunches for Kids
Credit: EatingWell.com
Are you or your kids tired of the same lunches week after week? Try something new with these five kid-friendly lunches: Veggie Sushi, Tex-mex Bento, Greek Yogurt Parfait, Mini Mezze, and Confetti Pasta. Click the button below or keep scrolling for shopping lists and Sunday prep instructions for these five lunches.
Tips for Planning from EatingWell.com
Planning kids’ lunches in advance saves time (for you!) and keeps things exciting (for them!). Make a list of five to eight reliable main-dish “templates” (see some ideas, below) and rotate them into your plan each week. For example: wraps, pizza, mini sandwiches, finger foods with dip, pasta salad, yogurt parfait, and breakfast for lunch.
Consider creating multiple main dishes with the same ingredients-like using whole-grain English muffins for mini pizzas one day and a peanut-butter-and-banana sandwich the next.
Whole or sliced fruit and raw or lightly steamed vegetables are perfect lunch side dishes for kids. Yogurt tubes and string cheese are portable and a great way to add an extra dairy serving. Add a serving of healthy fats with sliced avocado or mixed nuts and seeds. Popcorn, dry cereal and granola bars add crunch and fiber.
As a general guideline, aim to offer a serving each of whole grains, protein, vegetables and fruit at each meal. Pick two to three foods from each category to use for lunches throughout the week.
Whole grains:
Whole-grain tortillas
Pita bread
Crackers
Cereal/granola
Pasta
Frozen waffles
English muffins
Mini bagels
Proteins:
Deli turkey
Hard-boiled eggs
Hummus
Canned beans
Edamame
Greek yogurt
Cheese
Cottage cheese
Nuts, seeds, nut butter or sunflower-seed butter
Vegetables:
Carrot sticks
Sliced bell peppers
Cucumber rounds
Halved grape tomatoes
Sugar snap peas
Lightly steamed broccoli
Cauliflower
Green beans
Frozen peas
Fruit:
Apple and pear slices
Grapes
Berries
Melon
Bananas
Oranges or clementines
Unsweetened applesauce
Fruit cups or fruit pouches
Set aside 20 minutes over the weekend for some simple meal prep. Completing a few easy tasks in advance-like slicing vegetables, making hard-boiled eggs or assembling quesadillas-cuts down on time spent making lunches during the busy week.
If you’re packing a lunch for younger kids, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that you avoid giving these foods to kids younger than 4 years old, because they are considered a choking hazard: hot dogs, nuts and seeds, chunks of meat or cheese, whole grapes, popcorn, chunks of peanut butter, chunks of raw vegetables, raw carrots. If you serve grapes or cherry tomatoes to young children, cut them in half lengthwise, or quarter them (no larger than 1/2 inch).
Monday: Veggie Sushi
Make colorful crunchy veggies even more appealing by rolling them into kid-friendly sushi. Top a whole-grain tortilla with ranch dressing, cream cheese or hummus, an assortment of sliced vegetables, like bell peppers, and avocado. Roll tightly, then slice crosswise into bite-size pieces.
Tuesday: Tex-Mex Bento
Quesadillas are easy to make ahead, pack up well, and can be eaten cold or at room temperature. Keep things simple with cheese and canned black beans, or tuck in a few leftovers from dinner, like chopped chicken or grilled vegetables. Serve with sliced avocado and tomatoes or salsa.
Wednesday: Greek Yogurt Parfait
Let kids customize plain or vanilla Greek yogurt with an assortment of easy stir-ins, like fresh berries, granola, whole-grain cereal and/or dried fruit. Round it out with a side of raw or lightly steamed vegetables.
Thursday: Mini Mezze
We’re pretty sure kids won’t complain about a snack lunch. Pack hummus along with a couple dippers, like tortilla or pita triangles and veggie sticks, some fresh fruit and cubed cheese for a Mediterranean-inspired lunch. Customize by adding olives, sliced deli turkey or dried fruit.
Friday: Confetti Pasta
Pasta salads are a good way to use up whatever vegetables are left at the end of the week. Add protein with canned beans, leftover chicken, deli turkey or tuna. To make a simple creamy dressing, combine plain Greek yogurt with ranch dressing to taste. Toss in cubed cheese or serve it on the side.
Sunday Meal-Prep To-Do List
Store your prepped ingredients in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Prep these foods ahead on the weekend, to save time during the weekday rush:
- Cut bell peppers into strips.
- Slice cucumber into rounds.
- Rinse grapes and pat dry.
Refrigerate in an open container lined with a paper towel. - Slice or cube cheese.
- Make quesadilla(s) for Tuesday. Let cool.
Healthy Fats Game!
Test your
Knowledge!
Click on the food you think contains healthy fats.
There are four correct answers and four wrong answers.
Click the question mark (?) to reveal the answer!
Salmon
Pancakes
Bread
Avocado
Pineapple
Popcorn
Olive Oil
Nuts
Facts on Fat
The Facts on Fat lesson is just one of our ten lessons that teach students invaluable lessons about nutrition, physical activity, mental health, and more!
Why do we need healthy fats in our diet? Fat is a macronutrient that our body needs for several reasons:
- Healthy fats help our body to function properly by absorbing and transporting Vitamins A,D,E,&K
- Healthy fats keep our hair and skin looking great
- Some healthy fats might protect us from heart disease and improve other aspects of our health
- We need healthy fat stores in our body to cushion our organs, insulate our body, and provide energy
Lesson 9 Facts on Fat intro video
During the Project Healthy Schools lesson 9 called “Facts on Fat,” students use nutrition menus from McDonald’s and spoons with Crisco to measure the fat content of specific fast foods items and identify healthier options, and learn more about fat and how it impacts our health. Including what common foods contain healthy fats and what common foods contain unhealthy fats.
Recipe Videos
Knife Skills
Storing and Chopping Herbs
How to Dice an Onion
Zesting a Lemon
Cutting Peppers
Cutting Cucumber
How to Cut an Eggplant
Recipes
Corn & Zucchini
Tuna Apple Salad
Stuffed Bell Peppers
Gingered Carrot Soup
Baked Blueberry Banana Oatmeal
Grain Bowls
MHealthy Recipe Finder
Browse or use the search tool to find delicious and easy recipes that can help you and your family eat smarter. More than 400 healthy recipes are available. All recipes meet MHealthy’s Nutrition Guidelines, emphasizing whole grains, fruits, vegetables, beans, lean protein, low-fat dairy and healthy fats.
What is MHealthy?
MHealthy is the University of Michigan’s health and well-being program committed to creating a community of health where both the individual and organization thrive. MHealthy offers programs and services supporting physical activity, weight loss, nutrition, mental and emotional health, and occupational health.
MHealthy’s goals are to:
- Improve health and quality of life for the U-M community
- Educate, motivate and empower individuals to make good health care decisions and practice healthy behaviors
- Promote wellness, illness and injury prevention and disease management
- Coordinate and streamline programs and services to improve effectiveness, efficiency and communication
- Measure and monitor progress
Achieve high-level customer satisfaction - Disseminate findings to enable replication
Click here to learn more about MHealthy
Nutrition Resources
MyPlate Website
Build healthy eating habits one goal at a time! Use the Start Simple with MyPlate mobile app to pick daily food goals, see real-time progress, and earn fun badges along the way.
Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Website
The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics is the world’s largest organization of food and nutrition professionals founded in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1917.
Iowa State University Extension and Outreach
Head to the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach site to learn more about cooking recipes, blog posts, and videos for making nutritional meals.
Cooking Matters
Cooking Matters is on a mission to make eating healthier fast and affordable for families everywhere.
Smitten Kitchen
Recipes that lean heavily on pantry staples like rice, grains, dried beans and legumes.