Healthy Habits Santa Cruz

Back-to-school snack shopping is happening right now and 65% of kids already exceed the recommended added sugar limit. 🍎

3 swaps that keep the convenience parents need, minus the sugar spike:

🧀 Cheez-Its (0g added sugar) > fruit snacks (10g added sugar)
🥜 Trail mix with nuts + Craisins (2-5g) > trail mix with M&Ms (11g)
🍫 Larabar (3.5g added sugar) > Pop-Tarts (16g added sugar)

Plus a few always ready-to-go picks: string cheese, hummus + veggies, apple + nut butter, edamame, popcorn. These are all ZERO added sugar, depending on your selections.

Nutrition education isn’t just for kids, it’s for the parents raising them too. Read the label, not the marketing. 🏷️

August is one of the most abundant months of the year for fresh produce.

Summer favorites are still at their peak, making it the perfect time to enjoy a wide variety of fruits and vegetables before fall arrives.

One of the healthiest things you can do isn’t chasing a single “superfood”—it’s eating a wide variety of plant foods.

Each fruit and vegetable contains its own unique combination of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and beneficial plant compounds. The more variety you eat, the more nutrients you’re giving your body.

This month, fill your cart with colorful favorites like blackberries, peaches, nectarines, plums, figs, tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, green beans, sweet corn, eggplant, avocados, and more.

Instead of asking yourself, *”Did I eat healthy today?”* try asking:
🌈 **”How many colors did I eat today?”**

It’s a simple habit that naturally encourages more whole foods and more variety.

Save this post to reference at the grocery store or farmers market—and challenge yourself to try one seasonal fruit or vegetable you’ve never bought before.

What’s your favorite August produce? 🍑🫐🌽

🎙️ Parents—this podcast series was made for you.

Life is busy, so each episode of Raising Healthy Habits is just 10–15 minutes long—easy to listen to on your commute, while folding laundry, walking the dog, or making dinner.

Together, we’ve explored topics like:
🌈 Eating the rainbow
🥗 Beyond MyPlate
🥑 Healthy fats
🏷️ Reading nutrition labels
💛 Building body confidence
…and more, with three episodes still to come!

If you’re looking for practical, evidence-informed nutrition tips to help your family build lifelong healthy habits, I’d love for you to listen.

🎧 The Spotify link is in my bio.

And while the Raising Healthy Habits series is coming to a close, the podcast is just getting started. I already have some fun ideas for future episodes, and I can’t wait to keep sharing conversations that help make nutrition feel simple, approachable, and realistic for families.

What parenting or nutrition topic would you love to hear covered next? 💚

July is peak produce season.

Farmers markets are overflowing, gardens are thriving, and it’s one of the easiest times of the year to fill your plate with colorful, whole foods.

From blueberries, plums, and cherries to peaches, melons, tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplant, garlic, and fresh basil, July offers almost every color of the rainbow.

Different colors support the body in different ways:

• Red foods like tomatoes, raspberries, and cherries provide antioxidants that support heart health.
• Orange and yellow foods like peaches, apricots, melons, and corn provide nutrients that support healthy vision and immune function.
• Green foods like cucumbers, basil, avocados, and summer squash provide vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats that support overall health.
• Blue and purple foods like blueberries, plums, and eggplant provide plant compounds that help support brain health and healthy aging.
• White foods like garlic contain natural compounds that help support the immune system.

No single fruit or vegetable does it all—but together, they help provide the wide variety of nutrients our bodies need.

Save this post to reference at the grocery store or farmers market. July is one of the best months of the year to eat the rainbow. 🌈☀️

What’s your favorite July produce item? 🍑🫐🍅

How you start your morning can influence your energy, focus, mood, and even your sleep later that night.

The good news? You don’t need a complicated routine.

Simple habits like getting sunlight, drinking water, moving your body, and waiting before checking your phone can help set the tone for the rest of your day.

Swipe through to learn why these small habits can have such a big impact.

Which morning habit are you already doing? ☀️💧🚶

Most students receive fewer than 8 hours of nutrition education each year.

Yet nutrition influences energy, focus, confidence, athletic performance, and long-term health.

At Healthy Habits Santa Cruz, we’re working to change that by teaching nutrition in a way that is practical, engaging, and age-appropriate for children.

Our curriculum goes beyond memorizing food groups. Students learn how food fuels their bodies, how to build balanced meals, how to recognize whole foods, and how to develop lifelong habits rooted in curiosity rather than perfection.

Because nutrition education isn’t just about what children eat today—it’s about the knowledge and confidence they carry for the rest of their lives.

Learn more at HealthyHabitsSC.com

June is when summer produce really starts to shine. 🍓🫐🍅🌽

Berries are abundant, cherries and nectarines are in full swing, and garden favorites like tomatoes, basil, corn, and summer squash begin showing up everywhere.

If you’ve been wanting to eat more colorful foods, June makes it easy. With so many fruits and vegetables naturally in season, it’s one of the best months of the year to eat the rainbow.

Seasonal foods support the body in different ways:

• Blue and purple foods like blueberries can help support brain health and memory
• Red foods like tomatoes, cherries, and raspberries provide antioxidants that help protect the body from everyday wear and tear
• Orange foods like apricots, nectarines, and carrots contain nutrients that support eye health and immune function
• Green foods like lettuce, basil, and avocados provide vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats that support overall health
• Fiber-rich fruits and vegetables across every color help support digestion, fullness, and a healthy gut

The more colors you eat, the more variety of nutrients you’re giving your body.

Save this post to reference at the grocery store or farmers market. Eating the rainbow has never been easier. 🌈

What’s your favorite June produce item? 🍓🫐🍅🌽