Halifax Regional is dedicated to providing the community with the knowledge and skills needed to empower its residents to lead a healthy lifestyle. This webpage will be updated monthly with information pertaining to healthy lifestyle topics, nutrition and activity tips, recipes, links to informational websites and local healthy lifestyle events. The webpage will also spotlight a member of the community who has made positive changes towards living a healthy lifestyle.

To snack or not to snack is always a topic of discussion. Snacks are not necessarily required for everyone, but can be a way to include healthy nutrients for our bodies. Young active children are more likely to need a small snack 1-2 times per day between meals to help them grow. Snacks are best for an adult when there is going to be a long period of time between meals or before/after vigorous physical activity. For example, if breakfast is consumed at 8:00 in the morning and you can’t eat lunch until 1:00, a snack at 10:00 would be a good time to give our bodies some healthy energy. Anyone can fit a healthy snack into their day when planning ahead to avoid going over their day’s calorie budget. Keep in mind we should avoid snacking when bored, stressed, or frustrated.

Nutrition Tips

We want to keep the food groups in mind for smart snacking. The 5 main food groups are Protein, Grains, Fruits, Vegetables, and Dairy. It is always a good idea to include 2 food groups for a healthy snack, but is not required. This way we are getting more vitamins and minerals and it may help us stay fuller longer. Try to plan and pre-portion snacks ahead of time so you will stick to your healthy choices and portion sizes.

• Foods from the protein group include peanut butter, nuts and seeds, beans, hummus, low fat meats, fish and seafood.
• Foods from the grains include whole grain crackers, whole grain bread, pop corn, whole grain cereals, and oatmeal.
• Foods from the fruit group include any fresh, frozen, or canned fruit and 100% fruit juice. Keep in mind to choose canned fruit “in its own juice” or in “100% fruit juice”, not the ones in heavy syrup.
• Foods from the vegetables group include any fresh, frozen, or canned vegetables. Fresh/raw vegetables make great snacks.
• Foods from the dairy include low fat or fat free milk, yogurt, and cheese. If desired, soy milk or almond milk can be used in place of cow’s milk.

Fitness Tip

Click the flyer below to view a list of Inexpensive or Free Summer Activities for Kids.