How we eat and who we eat with has a powerful influence on what we eat. Eating with friends and loved ones can have benefits that lead to making healthier food choices.

Connect With Each Other and With Yourself Mealtimes are a good time to connect, talk about your day, or take a moment to relax and reflect. Put away phones, turn off the TV and minimize other distractions to help focus on the present moment and the meal. Being in the moment can also allow you to listen to hunger and fullness cues better and can help avoid overeating.

Family Friendly Meals and Snacks Make healthy food choices an everyday pattern for all. Offer a variety of foods or ingredients at meals and snack time, and highlight new and different foods as an exciting addition to the meal. If children are present, include them in the food preparation process. Knowing how to prepare food is a wonderful skill to have, and children can start learning by helping with simple tasks! Some easy jobs children can do include choosing recipes, helping with grocery shopping, washing fruits and vegetables, stirring pots, throwing away trash and scraps, and putting food on the table or back in the refrigerator. By being included in the cooking process, children are more likely to want to eat the food they helped make.

Mealtimes Are Better Together Making an effort to eat most of your meals with others may be a challenge with busy schedules or if you live alone. Research shows that sharing meals with others may reduce the risk of poor nutrition and health-related illnesses, help to reduce skipped meals and increased snacking by allowing for accountability, and provide a more enjoyable meal experience. Have fun with meals together and try adding interesting twists with ideas like meal themes and “ingredient highlights”.

Connect with those around you and make healthier choices together!

Recipe of the month: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzcWzU6UrS0&t=15s

A healthy, balanced lunch is important to help us focus and perform our best at school, work, and throughout the day. Sometimes it can be a tricky meal to plan. It is all too easy to forget to make lunch and instead reach for snacks, eat out or simply not eat until dinner. Eating a healthy lunch can also help us avoid cravings and low-energy crashes. Nutritionally balanced, energizing lunches that are easy to take on the go can make all the difference!

https://blt.tamu.edu/2024/08/01/low-maintenance-lunches-to-go/

July marks the beginning of the 2024 Summer Olympics. Not only are the Olympics fun to watch, but they can inspire some great physical activity. However, you don’t have to be an athlete or join a gym to participate in them. Have fun and do what moves you!

Food safety is an important part of the cooking process, and safe cleaning practices can help prevent foodborne illness. Cleaning up as you prepare and cook food not only reduces the chance of bacteria spreading from one food to another (known as cross-contamination), but also means you will have less to clean up when you are done cooking!

During this episode, we break down the Core Four Practices to learn more check out these great resources:

https://www.fightbac.org/food-safety-basics/the-core-four-practices/

https://www.foodsafety.gov/food-safety-charts

https://www.foodsafety.gov/keep-food-safe/4-steps-to-food-safety

Join us as we discuss some helpful “secrets” for creating tasty, flavorful dishes using herbs, spices, fruits, vegetables, and other ingredients. Salt is commonly used to enhance the flavor in foods; however, reducing sodium intake can decrease the risk of chronic disease.

Check out the recipe of the month for Elote (Mexican Seasoned Corn).

Learning how to save and store seeds from fruits and vegetables can be very useful in starting or continuing to grow a flourishing produce garden. It can also save money on seeds and transplants for the following planting season!

For more information: https://blt.tamu.edu/2024/04/02/seeds-and-harvest-saving-the-right-way/

Aggie Horticulture reference: https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2013/09/EHT-075.pdf

Welcome back to the Better Living for Texans Podcast! March is National Nutrition Month, and this year’s theme is “Beyond the Table”. There is a lot more that goes into food than just eating it. Many of us get food from the grocery store. But how did it get there? On today’s episode we spend some time talking about where to learn about where our food comes from.

Episode highlights include farmers’ markets or community gardens, starting your garden, a favorite vegetable (OKRA!), and a delicious gumbo!

To learn more about National Nutrition Month, visit https://www.eatright.org/national-nutrition-month! Celebrate healthy eating at the table and beyond!

For gardening resources mentioned in the podcast, visit Aggie Horticulture at https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/.

For more information on the Better Living for Texans program, visit us at https://blt.tamu.edu/

#betterlivingfortexans #txextension #celebratebetterlivingtx #SNAPEDworks

We are back! The Better Living for Texans program is excited to be back, and on today's episode, we share tips for healthy eating habits and how healthy eating can be easier with a plan! For more information and to view this month's recipe visit:

https://blt.tamu.edu/2024/01/03/making-healthier-choices-with-a-plan/