The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

21 · Wednesday, August 4, 2010 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.oakvillebeaver.com Kids + exercise = Better grades According to a recent study from West Virginia University (WVU), physically fit children do better in school than their peers who are less fit. The researchers evaluated the fitness levels and standardized academic test scores of hundreds of Grade 5 students in West Virginia. When they re-examined the same children two years later they found that academic performance dipped when the students' fitness levels declined, and increased when their fitness improved. "The take-home message from this study is that we want our kids to be fit [for] as long as possible and it will show in their academic performance," says the study's co-author, Lesley Cottrell, associate professor of pediatrics at WVU. At My Best, a national school-based children's wellness program developed by AstraZeneca Canada and Physical and Health Education Canada, is the perfect partner for your child's health and fitness. Each year, 1,000 At My Best toolkits are delivered free of charge to kindergarten to grade three classrooms across Canada. Visit www.atmybest.ca to request a toolkit for your child's school and find valuable resources, links and downloadable active games that will keep your kids moving and their grades climbing. www.newscanada.com Plan your way back to school Ready, set, plan! The race to get ready for back to school is on. Planning and organizing will create a smooth transition from the lazy days of summer to busy school schedules. Introducing routines, getting back to school shopping done early, and brushing up on last years lessons are three easy activities that will ease the transition. Stay organized with a family chores chart · Dividing chores between family members keeps households on track. Starting this routine towards the end of summer will also reintroduce kids to scheduled days. · One way to keep the whole family on task is by developing a monthly chart that outlines everyone's daily duties. To keep it interesting, switch up chores every month. · When planning your family's schedule, find a time for adult chores that won't interfere with valuable family time. Laundry, for example, can be done at night after everyone has settled. With Tide's stain-fighting power, there is no need to worry about forgetting to treat stains right away as Tide with Acti-Lift removes many stubborn dry stains as if they were fresh. Back-to-school budget basics · Be sure to do all your back-toschool shopping well in advance to avoid packed shopping malls and lengthy line-ups. · Create a back to school shopping budget to save money. From new pencils to a new wardrobe, kids will want it all. Reviewing the budget as a family helps kids understand the difference between needs and wants and can help avoid tantrums and tears. · Throughout the year, coupon clipping, buying sale items, and investing in quality products can help balance the books. Tide with Acti-Lift offers high quality cleaning and stain fighting power ­ which can help you protect your investment in your clothes. Time for a crash course! · It is easy for kids to forget some of their lessons from the year before after two months of summer relaxing. · A few weeks before school, dedicate about one hour a day to reviewing last year's curriculum. · Try some fun and engaging activities such as reversing the roles at storytime. Allowing your kids to read their own bedtime story can enhance their reading skills. With these three steps, parents and kids can be ready to go back to school with such little stress - it might even feel like summer never ended. www.newscanada.com Battling the bulge of childhood obesity with physical activity According to the Childhood Obesity Foundation, over 26 per cent (or 1.6 million) of Canadian children and youth are considered overweight or obese. Lack of physical activity and too much time spent watching TV, playing video games or in front of a computer increases the likelihood of a child becoming overweight or obese. Poor food choices can also have a great impact on a child's health. According to Health Canada, 59 per cent of children and adolescents consumed fruit and vegetables fewer than five times a day making them more likely to be overweight or obese than those who ate these foods more frequently. "Children need a steady stream of nutrients and calories to fulfill their body's energy needs," says Cara Rosenbloom, registered dietitian. "Packing a healthy lunch that offers something from each of the four food groups is a great way to make sure that children get the nutrients they need. Healthy meal choices not only decrease a child's chance of becoming obese or overweight, but also ensure better overall health." Parents can keep kids healthy by following these obesity-battling tips: · Mealtime: Children should always have breakfast ­ people who skip breakfast are more than four times more likely to be obese than those who eat breakfast daily. Packing a healthy lunch and snacks helps parents manage what foods and drinks children consume, as well as portion control. By purchasing healthy meal choices in bulk and then breaking them down to create meals throughout the week using reusable lunch products, parents can cut costs while also remaining environmentally-friendly. Yogurt and fruit are great options, but they also need to stay fresh until lunchtime. Products like Thermos' line of insulated FUNtainer food jars will ensure food stays fresh and safe all day from bacteria build-up. · Activate Activity: It is essential to have children participate in at least one hour of physical activity each day. Parents should set a good example by taking part in an activity and should also help facilitate it by either encouraging children to get out and play or by signing them up for a sports league or sports classes. · Healthy Hydration: There's no question that kids love their sugary juices and pop, but these drinks can contain anywhere from nine to 11 teaspoons of sugar. Parents should save these beverages for "special occasions" and make water the go-to drink for kids. A great way to get kids to drink more water is to pack a reusable water bottle with lunches. Insulated FUNtainer hydration bottles are BPA-free and will keep drinks refreshingly cold all day and also come in a variety of different designs to suit every child's taste. · Not so fast: Fast food meals offer little to no nutritional value for anyone. While it's nearly impossible to place an all-out ban on fast food, the amount consumed should be very limited. More information is available online at www.thermosbrand.ca. www.newscanada.com