Sugar Busters! for Kids - Hardcover

Morrison C. Bethea; Sam S. Andrews; Luis A. Balart; H. Leighton Steward

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0345445716 ISBN 13: 9780345445711

Publisher: Ballantine Books, 2001

Synopsis

It's become an epidemic: More than six million American kids are overweight--that's one in five children. Now the authors of the bestselling diet phenomenon Sugar Busters!® have given us a plan specifically designed to keep our children fit and healthy.

Ice cream, candy bars, sugar-frosted cereals, potato chips, soft drinks. From coast to coast America is flooded with fast food and sweets--and our children are the sugar tide's first victims. Kids learn harmful eating habits from a society that loves snacking and sitting in front of the TV, fat-laden foods and little exercise. The sobering fact is: overweight children are susceptible to the same health problems as overweight adults--including heart disease and diabetes--and the longer a weight problem goes unchecked, the more serious the consequences for a child as he or she matures into adulthood.

Yet millions of adults have discovered that by lowering their carbohydrate and sugar intake, they can shed the pounds they failed to lose on other diet plans. Now it's time to help our children lose weight and feel better the Sugar Busters!® way. Remember: sugar spikes the production of insulin, which, in large amounts, keeps a child's weight from dropping off, no matter how strictly he or she diets and exercises. Based on sound nutritional principles, Sugar Busters!® for Kids is a revolutionary program that shows us how to eliminate sugar from a child's daily menu through easy-to-follow recipes and healthy meal plans . . . all without making kids feel deprived.

With Sugar Busters!® for Kids you will
· Determine whether your child is overweight with the Body Mass Index test
· Learn how to help your child diet with useful parental involvement tips
· Discover which foods to serve at what time of day for optimal health
· Rate the glycemic levels of various foods with a handy glycemic index
· Understand the myths of calories, fats, cholesterol, and weight gain
· Motivate your children with the charming Rhymes for Kids section

With colorful and fun illustrations by Walt Handelsman, Sugar Busters!® for Kids is a great book for adults and kids to learn from and enjoy together. The simple to start 14-day Meal Plan will set children on the right track to a lifetime of healthy eating. And as a special incentive, kids who send in a two-week diet journal get a great Sugar Busters!® Club Certificate.

If your child is overweight or is beginning to display eating habits that concern you, Sugar Busters!® for Kids will be an essential tool for you and your family. This book is every parent's little helper in the battle to ensure that your children are healthy and fit--for life.

About this title

Review

At first glance, Sugar Busters for Kids looks like a no-no. Aren't we supposed to encourage healthy eating but avoid putting our children on diets? However, if you can bring yourself to look past the hype, what you'll find here is actually a fairly sensible family eating plan that aims to improve overall health with the same changes recommended by your own family doctor: more whole grains, fruits, and vegetables, and less animal fat and sugar, no matter what form that sugar takes.

The program revolves around the glycemic index of food, which is defined as "a measure of how carbohydrates differ in their ability to elevate blood sugars and insulin levels after they are digested." Foods with low glycemic indexes like whole wheat, black beans, milk, and cherries are encouraged, while rice noodles, corn flakes, and potatoes have high numbers and should be avoided.

Much of the book is devoted to scary statistics about the health of children worldwide. Busy parents might be wise to skip these chapters and focus on the practical matters of how to change their family's daily habits. The basic plan offers plenty of good guidelines along with meal-planning ideas, suggestions for portion control, "phasing in" new foods, and making exercise a fun family activity.

Most of us have heard that more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains improve overall health. If your family needs more specific guidelines to follow through on dietary changes, Sugar Busters for Kids may be just the ticket. --Jill Lightner

About the Author

H. Leighton Steward has a master of science degree from Southern Methodist University and is CEO of a Fortune 500 energy company. He also authored a booklet on causes of land loss of the lower Mississippi River wetland system. Sixty thousand of these booklets are in circulation worldwide and are referred to by many educational and governmental institutions. He is on the board of Tulane University as well as on several corporate boards. His own success and the success of others on this way of eating motivated him to write Sugar Busters! ® and Sugar Busters! ® for Kids.
Morrison C. Bethea, M.D., is a graduate of Davidson College and Tulane University School of Medicine. He completed his postgraduate training in thoracic and cardiac surgery at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York. Currently he practices thoracic, cardiac, and vascular surgery in New Orleans. He is the medical consultant to Freeport-McMoRan, Inc., for its worldwide operations and sits on the Board of Taylor Energy and Tenet's Memorial Medical Center in New Orleans. Dr. Bethea has authored many publications in the field of cardiovascular disease and is a diplomate of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery.
Samuel S. Andrews, M.D., is a graduate of Louisiana State University School of Medicine. He currently practices endocrinology with the Audobon Internal Medicine Group. Dr. Andrews has authored many publications and participated in several drug studies in the field of endocrinology. He is a fellow in the American Colleges of Physicians and Endocrinology. He is clinical associate professor of medicine at Louisiana State University and a member of the pancreatic transplant team.
Luis A. Balart, M.D., is a graduate of Louisiana State University School of Medicine. He completed training in gastroenterology at Ochsner Clinic in New Orleans and in hepatology at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. Dr. Balart practices gastroenterology and hepatology at Tenet's Memorial Medical Center in New Orleans and is clinical associate professor of medicine at Louisiana State University in New Orleans. He is currently involved in several clinical trials in the treatment of chronic viral hepatitis and is medical director of the Louisiana State University Liver Transplant Program.

Edition details

• Publisher: Ballantine Books
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0345445716
• ISBN 13: 9780345445711
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 240