Colorful New Book for Kids and Parents Makes Eating God's Food Groups Adventurous and Fun

Press Release/ NRB 2022

Award-Winning Author Susan Neal Releases New Book "Eat God’s Food: A Kids Guide to Healthy Eating"

Kids have strong opinions about food. Some foods they love and others they don’t. Instead of letting their taste buds rule over your family’s food choices, teach them early to love the right kinds of food. Healthy food can be fun!

Every good thing we need to grow strong and healthy, God created for us to eat. A body needs different foods to grow and work well. Eat God’s Food: A Kids Guide to Healthy Eating by Award-winning Author Susan Neal teaches kids what foods are healthy and unhealthy, preparing them for a lifetime of eating and living the way God intended.

"Your child will learn through fun educational activities like identifying fruit colors, counting vegetables, matching nuts, grains, and seeds, seek and find, and identifying unhealthy items on a food label," says Neal.

In Eat God’s Food, you’ll find healthy activities and cooking adventures to ensure kids not only learn but have fun too. You and your child will learn together through fun yet educational activities.

As kids begin to grow, they need to learn to care for their body to become healthy adults. Help your child discover how to eat foods from each of God’s food groups (vegetables, grains, fruits, nuts, seeds, and meat). Eating a variety of colorful food is healthier. Your child will learn how to become a healthy kid and grow into a healthy adult.

For more information, visit SusanUNeal.com.

Media Note: For interviews during the National Religious Broadcasters event in Nashville, TN, interested media should contact Gregg Wooding of I AM PR, 972-567-7660/ gregg@iamrponline.com.

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BIO

Susan Neal Bio

Susan Neal RN has a masters in health science and an MBA. She lives her life with a passion to help others improve their health. After suffering a health crisis, she became an author and health coach to provide others with the tools they needed to heal their bodies and reclaim their ideal weight.

Her award-winning #1 Amazon best-seller is 7 Steps to Get Off Sugar and Carbohydrates. The third book in her Healthy Living Series, Healthy Living Journal, won the Golden Scrolls award “2019 Best Inspirational Gift Book.” Her newest release Solving the Gluten Puzzle helps many determine if they have a gluten-related disorder and how to treat it.

She's been featured in many media outlets including The Bridges TV show, Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN), Charisma magazine, and numerous podcasts and radio shows. Learn more about Susan at SusanUNeal.com.

Suggested Interview Questions for Susan Neal

Regarding Childhood Eating Habit

What is the rate of childhood obesity in United States?

For children aged 2–5 it is 13 percent

For children aged 6–11 it is 20 percent

For children aged 12–19 it is 21 percent

For an average of 19 percent for children aged 2–19

Nearly 1 in 4 children are overweight or have obesity. Therefore, childhood obesity is a serious problem and puts children at risk for poor health.

What type of health problems are associated with obesity?

For children, obesity can lead to type 2 diabetes, asthma, anxiety and depression, low self-esteem, and social problems such as bullying. If it continues into adulthood it can lead to heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, glucose intolerance, insulin resistance, sleep apnea, fatty liver disease, gallstones, gastro-esophageal reflux (heartburn), and some cancers.

Why have you chosen to write a children’s picture book about healthy eating?

Young children who are overweight in kindergarten are four times more likely to have obesity by eighth grade. It’s easier to influence children’s food and physical activity choices when they are young, before they form unhealthy habits. Kids are smart; you can teach them at a young age that whole foods contain nutrients and processed foods don’t. Whole foods contain vitamins and minerals to help a child grow into the strongest, smartest, healthiest kid they can be.

Can obesity rates be decreased through a change in diet?

Yes, healthy eating and regular physical activity is the key to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight. But it is a lifestyle change not a diet. Children should not be put on a weight-reduction diet but simply change the types of foods eaten to healthy fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, grains, and meats. Teaching kids early in their formative years to eat a healthy diet and limit caloric-rich sweets and processed foods is key to decreasing the childhood obesity epidemic.

How does a parent limit the caloric-rich sweets and processed foods?

Providing a multitude of healthy snacks versus prepackaged processed treats. For example: fresh fruit (blueberries, organic strawberries, oranges, etc.), whole nuts (almonds, pecans, pistachio, etc.), apples slathered with almond or cashew butter, organic popcorn with coconut oil drizzled on top, sliced carrots and celery, sugar-snap peas, and sunflower seeds. The list can go on and on.

What habits promote the childhood obesity epidemic in the United States?

Behaviors that promote excess weight include eating high-caloric, low-nutrient foods and beverages. Plus not getting enough physical activity. Spending too much time on sedentary activities such as watching TV or using screen devices.

Eat God’s Food teaches children to avoid junk food and instead:

· drink water, not beverages that are loaded with sugar and dyes

· avoid products made with white flour as the nutrients are stripped from the wheat

· avoid prepackaged foods because they do not provide the body with vitamins and minerals

· read food labels to determine if food companies added sugar, dyes, or other harmful ingredients

· eat God’s food because they contain the nutrients your body needs to grow properly

What do you mean by God’s food?

It is simple, look at your plate—does the food resemble what came out of the garden or ranch? If yes, it is God’s food. Food contained in boxes and bags that sit on the grocery store shelf for months do not contain fresh natural nutrients that the human body needs to grow.

Part of a healthy lifestyle is physical activity. How can a parent promote this?

Physical activity can be promoted through family fitness. There are all sorts of things parents can do with their kids to get them in the habit of playing. For example: biking, hiking, skating, throwing a ball or frisbee, swimming, snowball fighting, etc. Spending time with family while getting fit demonstrates a healthy lifestyle to a child. When a parent is busy, ask kids to get off the screen and go outside to shoot a basketball, climb a tree, jump rope, do some cartwheels, or jump on a pogo stick. Kids and parents can brainstorm other fun activities.

What are the benefits of regular physical activity for kids?

Physical activity helps strengthen bones and muscles, reduce stress and anxiety, manage weight, improve self-esteem, and it can be fun! Children who are 7–17 should be physically active for at least 60 minutes a day.

"Eat God's Food": Story Ideas