Bite Size Buzz

Wait, video games are good for us?!

by Andrew on Mar 29, 2012 • No Comments

In the childhood obesity sphere we hear all the time about the importance of limiting screen time and video games, so when Jason came along saying how great they were, I was intrigued...

The 5 Best Tips For A Health Halloween

by Andrew on Oct 27, 2011 • No Comments

We've gone through all the Halloween articles out there and picked our 5 favorite tips for a healthier Halloween!

Exercise / Family

CicLAvia comes back to LA!

by Andrew on Oct 6, 2011 • No Comments

CICLAVIA is back!!! The 3rd annual block party will take place this Sunday, Oct. 9th, and this time they’ve increased it to a full ten miles of street closures. As you can see in the map above the closures will run from East Hollywood into Downtown and Boyle Heights. CICLAVIA...

Exercise / Technology

New iPod Nano Focuses on Fitness

by Andrew on Oct 4, 2011 • No Comments

Overshadowed by today’s announcement of the new iPhone 4S was the introduction of an updated iPod Nano. The new nano dropped its price to $129 and now includes a built-in pedometer. This addition means that the Nike+ app and web service work automatically with the device. Your runs, walks, jogs, etc....

Exercise / Health

Exercise: Insane In The Brain

by Josh on Oct 3, 2011 • No Comments

We all know that exercise is good for our muscles, but the New York Times has reported that a new study from the University of South Carolina indicates that it could be really great for our brains as well. While past studies have shown that exercise can lead to neurogenesis...

Bite Size Update / Food / Gardening

The Woes of Gardening (aka I have a black thumb)

by Andrew on Sep 28, 2011 • No Comments

So a while back we posted about how excited we were to start our own Bite Size Garden. Since then we’ve had to transplant, and lost a few plants along the way (sorry there just wasn’t space for 4 huge bibb lettuces!). So our garden moved in to some nice...

Cooking / Diet / Food / Tips and Tricks

Are You Due For An Oil Change?

by Andrew on Sep 26, 2011 • No Comments

Our bodies are far more like cars than we realize. Food is like fuel. Calories give us the energy to power our engine. And every so often, we need an oil change… cooking oil that is. In fact, using a variety of cooking oils in the kitchen is the perfect...

Diet / Food / Health

Harvard vs USDA: Plate to the Face

by Josh on Sep 26, 2011 • No Comments

Eat this USDA! If it weren’t already clear that the USDA is a pawn of the agricultural lobby, Harvard has declared their most recent MyPlate campaign yet another propagandist pile of ambiguous misinformation, i.e. cafeteria mashed potatoes. Earlier this year, the USDA released MyPlate, its revision to the largely-criticized food...

Cooking / Food / Recepies

Meatless Monday: Goat Cheese, Lentil and Brown Rice Rolls

by Andrew on Sep 19, 2011 • No Comments

I was watching Giada DeLaurentiis yesterday and saw her make these for a viewers-choice: vegetarian show. The show had 2 other dishes that looked great as well, so check it out (it’s playing again today at 4:30 ET/PT, and on Sept 28 at 1:30 ET/PT). I figured they’d be perfect...

Children / Cooking / Diet / Family / Food

Kids Can ChopChop Their Way to Healthier Recipes

by Bridget on Sep 14, 2011 • No Comments

Children’s cookbooks are nothing new; they’ve been around a long time trying to get kids to start experimenting in the kitchen. But the foods these kids usually make? Mac & Cheese, PB&J sandwiches, spaghetti and meatballs, etc. These recipes can get pretty repetitive, and, most often than not, are not...

Exercise / Technology

Fitness Headphones from New Balance and iHome

by Andrew on Sep 12, 2011 • 1 Comment

iHome and New Balance have announce that they are now shipping a new set of headphones (the NB639B)that feature a heart rate monitor, pedometer, and stop watch. The headphones are quite small and designed with fitness in mind. They retail for $99.99. It’s always good to monitor your heart rate...

Cooking / Food / Recepies

Zucchini Parmesan Crisps

by Andrew on Sep 12, 2011 • No Comments

I found this recipe for baked zucchini crisps and had to share. Growing up I always LOVED fried zucchini, so this recipe was a no brainer for me. It’s pretty simple and straightforward, and of course you could really make it with any vegetable that could stand up to baking....

Food / Sustainability

I’m Goin Back To The Start…

by Andrew on Aug 30, 2011 • No Comments

Our friend Birke Baehr (who’s in our teaser video) sent this awesome video our way! We feel it sums up the progression of our food system pretty well and the necessity for more farmers to “go back to the start.” There are hundreds if not thousands of articles, including our own, about...

Children / Diet / Food / Health / Media / Obesity / Politics

A Better Idea For The “New” Chocolate Milk

by Andrew on Aug 24, 2011 • No Comments

The Milk Processor Education Program (or MilkPEP) known for the “Got Milk?” campaign has announced that there’s a new chocolate milk hitting the stores (and more importantly… our schools). The milk supposedly contains 38% less added sugar and only 31 more calories than its plain alternative. The changes come as a...

Children / Exercise / Family / Health

Better Health and Better Grades? Bike To School!

by Andrew on Aug 24, 2011 • No Comments

In 1970, 48% of children in the US walked or biked to school. Today, that number has slumped to only 12%. Yesterday we talked a bout a new trend of using Walking School Buses to get kids more active, today we’ll talk about biking to school. Studies from the University...

Children / Exercise / Obesity

The New School Bus in Town

by Bridget on Aug 23, 2011 • 2 Comments

Move over Magic School Bus, and make room for the Walking School Bus, a new program that tries to get kids to exercise on their commute to and from school. With this new program, kids of all ages ride their bikes or walk to school, while parents and other adults...

Uncategorized

Don’t Let False Labels Steal Your Money!

by Andrew on Aug 22, 2011 • No Comments

We’ve all been there, we hear something about the cruelty of hen farms or GMO, anti-biotic ridden beef, and so we go to the store and spend extra on “cage-free, vegetarian fed eggs” or “grass-fed beef.” The problem is, half the time the claims we search for are unregulated...

Exercise / Tips and Tricks

Getting Back in the Pool: Swimming Tips

by Andrew on Aug 18, 2011 • No Comments

Before summer leaves us, take the warm weather as a good excuse to get back in the pool! Swimming is fantastic exercise that strengthens practically every muscle in your body, and provides great cardiovascular exercise as well. Swimming is also a great tool for people who have been injured...

Diet / Fast Food / Food / Health / Media / Obesity

Subway Fortifies Their New Bread

by Andrew on Aug 5, 2011 • 1 Comment

Following McDonalds Happy Meal news last week, it seems Subway felt they had to up their nutritional anti. The sandwich maker announced that they are introducing a new bread recipe that will be fortified with calcium and vitamin D to 30% and 20% of the daily value respectively. This news...

Diet / Family / Health / Obesity / Politics

Fixing the Food Stamps Program

by Bridget on Aug 4, 2011 • No Comments

When the government is feeding people who can’t afford to feed themselves–aka the food stamp program–pretty much everyone thinks it’s a good idea. I disagree. Kind of. While the idea of a food stamp program is appealing and well-intentioned, the execution isn’t really helping people stay healthy. Yes, food stamps...

Health / Obesity / Politics

Soda Companies Fight Anti-Obesity Campaigns

by Bridget on Aug 2, 2011 • No Comments

Even if we might not want to admit it, we all know that eating sugar isn’t good for us. We don’t really need scientific proof to know that we shouldn’t be consuming extra sugar during the day (especially through drinks like soda), we just know that it’s unhealthy–like smoking. Most...

Children / Food / Gardening / Health / Obesity

Whole Foods Committed to Making Whole Kids

by Bridget on Jul 28, 2011 • No Comments

Everyone knows that Whole Foods has a reputation for providing healthy and sustainable foods to people all over the country. But Whole Foods isn’t just for grownups, they are extending their services to the youngest generation as well. The Whole Kids Foundation, Whole Foods Inc.’s new venture, is aimed to...

Children / Exercise / Health / Obesity

Recess Gets Active with Peaceful Playgrounds

by Bridget on Jul 26, 2011 • No Comments

When I was a kid, I loved running around at recess playing foursquare, hopscotch, and kickball. So it surprises–and saddens–me when I hear that so many young children are not getting enough, or even any physical exercise at all during their lunch breaks or recess. Take, for instance, one Florida...

Bite Size Update / Food / Media

Bite Size Presents – Transfarmers: Dark of the Spoon

by Andrew on Jul 26, 2011 • 1 Comment

Summer typically means three things: vacation, barbeque, and movie blockbusters. 2011 was no exception. Despite mixed audience and critic reviews, Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon was my personal favorite movie of the summer season. The eye-popping 3D and mind-melting CGI showcased in the trailer was astonishingly polished, leaving me...

Food / Health / International

The Olympics Food Desert: Sponsored By McDonalds

by Bridget on Jul 21, 2011 • 1 Comment

The 2012 Olympics in London are just around the corner with one year to go. The biggest and best known world competition puts a premium on being in shape and being healthy, so why is McDonald’s, a fast-food chain that let’s just say isn’t well known for having healthy menu...

Food / Gardening / Relationships / Sustainability

A Community Garden With a View

by Bridget on Jul 19, 2011 • No Comments

There’s been a lot of talk recently about the benefits of growing your own food and starting a community garden. Not only is the food local (and therefore better for the environment and usually healthier for you), but it also garners a sense of community–either within your family or within...

Exercise / Health

How to Survive Carmageddon

by Bridget on Jul 14, 2011 • No Comments

So the world didn’t end in May, but it’s still really dangerous out there with the impending Carmageddon ready to strike this weekend. For those of you who don’t know, Carmageddon is the closure of the 405 freeway for fifty-three hours this weekend in Southern California that’s going to cause...

Children / Media / Obesity / Politics

Foodmakers Fight to Keep Junk Food TV Ads

by Bridget on Jul 13, 2011 • No Comments

It’s bad enough that most children in this country are replacing exercise with sitting in front of TV sets, computers, and video games for hours each day. However, it’s even worse that while these kids are plugged in, they’re being bombarded with advertisements for sugary and fatty foods and drinks,...

Children / Exercise / Health / Obesity

Summer School To Prevent Obesity?

by Bridget on Jul 7, 2011 • No Comments

Ahhh summertime. Beautiful, sunny weather, no school–so there’s plenty of time for activities and exercise. And yet, summer is the time of the year when children gain the most weight. Surprised? I definitely was. However, after reading an article on summer programs from the Huffington Post, it made a lot...

Children / Family / Health / Obesity / Relationships

UK Celebrates National Childhood Obesity Week

by Bridget on Jul 6, 2011 • No Comments

While the name “National Childhood Obesity Week” could be better (but come on the Brits couldn’t even spell program right), the sentiment behind the week – MEND UK’s second annual – is exactly what we all need: a focus on a healthy active lifestyle with whole foods and exercise. The “celebration”...

Health / Obesity / Sustainability

Everyday Chemicals Causing Obesity?

by Bridget on Jul 6, 2011 • No Comments

We’ve been told that our current obesity epidemic is being caused by a lack of exercise and a diet packed with processed foods that are high in sugar, fat, and empty calories. While true, this may not be the only factor affecting our weight gain as a country: studies are...

Diet / Health / Relationships / Tips and Tricks

3 Ways To Tell Your Friends They’re Killing Themselves

by Andrew on Jul 5, 2011 • 1 Comment

The 4th of July has come and gone, and one thing I’ve been left wondering is: how do you tell your friends that they’re killing themselves? Do you say something and risk being deemed the “Health Betch” and potentially ruin the fun mood, or do you not say...

Diet / Health

More Reasons to Cut Out Soda

by Andrew on Jun 29, 2011 • No Comments

A lot of people know that soda is bad for them, so they have diet soda instead… that’s better right?! Well, to be blunt – no. Research has shown diet soda to be just as bad as its sugary counter-part. In fact, many new studies have shown that diet soda...

Diet / Health / Technology / Tips and Tricks

Butylated Hyrdo-What?!

by Andrew on Jun 28, 2011 • No Comments

These days it’s hard not to find a long list of crazy unpronounceable ingredients on food labels. In fact, these chemicals have become so pervasive in our food, that most people pay no attention to them, nor do they have any idea what they do, or if they are completely...

Children / Exercise / Politics

Legislation to Add Physical Education Classes

by Bridget on Jun 28, 2011 • No Comments

Although it’s been officially summer for about a week now, it’s never too early to begin discussing how to improve our schools for the next school year. Children spend on average about thirty-five hours a week at school during the year, and almost one in three young people are...

Health / International / Obesity

US Diabetes Cases Nearly Triple

by Andrew on Jun 27, 2011 • No Comments

The number of diabetes cases worldwide has doubled over the past 3 decades to 347 million from 153 million in 1980. What’s even more troubling is that in the same time period, the number of cases in the United States have nearly tripled to more than 24 million people. Diabetes...

Children / Health / Politics

California Ban on Violent Video Games Rejected

by Andrew on Jun 27, 2011 • No Comments

The Supreme Court today rejected in a 7-2 vote the California law that banned the sale or rental of violent video games to children. The court found the law to be un-constitutional as it violated the 1st Amendment. With children spending an average of more than 10 hours a day...

Cooking / Food / Recepies

Refreshing Black Bean, Strawberry, and Quinoa Salad

by Bridget on Jun 23, 2011 • 2 Comments

On one of the hottest days of the summer so far, I came home thinking I didn’t really want to cook up a big dinner, and I most definitely didn’t want to use the oven or eat anything hot. So I decided to create a cold black...

Food / Health / Tips and Tricks

3 Replacements for Soda

by Andrew on Jun 22, 2011 • 2 Comments

Sugary beverages are the leading cause of childhood obesity, and it’s pretty obvious why: the typical 20 oz bottle of soda contains over 200 calories! Sure you could go for the diet version, but you’re still ingesting chemicals that have been linked to Cancer, ADHD, and myriad health problems… so...

Children / Diet / Family / Health

Diet During Pregnancy Affects Child’s Weight

by Bridget on Jun 21, 2011 • No Comments

It’s often thought that concern for a person’s health begins when they are born: are the parents feeding kids the right kinds of food? Is the child getting enough exercise? Is the child over or under weight? However, in a recent study conducted by researchers in the United Kingdom, New...

Bite Size Update / Cooking / Food / Recepies

Bite Size BBQ

by Andrew on Jun 20, 2011 • No Comments

Nothing sizzles like a grill in June. Across America, summer is the perfect opportunity to fire up the barbecue for a picnic or a pool party. But before you throw the typical brown patties and beige burger buns on the grill, consider bringing a little more color to your special...

Children / Exercise / Family / Health / Tips and Tricks

Spotlight: CrossFit Kids

by Andrew on Jun 18, 2011 • No Comments

Who says working out can’t be a family affair? CrossFit LA Kids (CFLA Kids) hosted their first CFLA Kids “Family Feud”! The event involved seven different families competing in an array of interval training type exercises: 80 Burpees, 160 sit-ups, 240 squats, and a 1mile run. Each family was able...

Food / Health / International / Media

New Report Finds Roundup Extremely Harmful

by Bridget on Jun 16, 2011 • No Comments

Hidden scientific reports, a chemical that’s extremely dangerous, the public is being hoodwinked, big industry coverup. It sounds like an intriguing fiction novel or a big blockbuster mystery/thriller. Unfortunately, it’s reality. Last week, a new report–titled Roundup and birth defects, is the public being kept in the dark?– surfaced...

Exercise / Food / Health / Technology

Best Free Apps to Stay in Shape

by Bridget on Jun 15, 2011 • No Comments

If you’re getting in shape and want to log your exercise or what you eat, technology, especially on your mobile device, can be a big help. However, with hundreds–if not thousands–of apps out there for your phone or digital tablet, it can be hard to choose which ones...

Exercise / Health / Technology

If the Shoe Fits…

by Josh on Jun 13, 2011 • 1 Comment

Have you noticed any runners lately who seem to have forgotten to put on their shoes? Perhaps they are wearing what look like fingered gloves on their feet, or maybe they have nothing between their skin and the ground. You ask yourself, how can that possibly be a good idea....

Children / Exercise / Health / Obesity

Are Tires the Mark of the New Gym?

by Bridget on Jun 10, 2011 • No Comments

Do we really need high-tech gadgets and sophisticated machinery to workout at the gym? One man in Arizona says absolutely not. Amen Iseghohi has started his own type of gym–called AmenZone–in Scottsdale, Arizona with nothing but car tires and a few punching bags. Why does this gym not have...

Cooking / Food / Health / Recepies

Teriyaki Noodles with Asparagus and Edamame

by Bridget on Jun 7, 2011 • No Comments

Whenever I think of summer, I always think of bright, colorful meals. This usually does not mean complicated recipes and obscure ingredients; in fact, it is often the most basic foods with the simplest instructions that make the best meals. Take, for instance, this dish from Mark...

Health / Obesity

Is Driving to Work Making You Fat?

by Andrew on Jun 7, 2011 • 1 Comment

A new study shows that long commutes can lead to obesity, added stress, and even divorce.

Diet / Family / Food / Health / Media / Politics

MyPlate Replaces Food Pyramid

by Bridget on Jun 2, 2011 • 3 Comments

The food pyramid, which has been the symbol of food and nutrition for the last few decades, has been replaced. The new graphic icon, MyPlate, unveiled Thursday June 2 by Michelle Obama, the Surgeon General and the Agriculture Secretary in conjunction with the USDA, is an updated version of the...

Exercise / Family / Health / Obesity / Tips and Tricks

The Pet Solution

by Bridget on May 31, 2011 • 2 Comments

Want to get exercise and do your pet a favor? The solution is to start walking. Paralleling the growing rates in human obesity, pet obesity is also on the rise with pets gaining weight around the middle and getting little exercise. To stop this trend and to help you get...

Bite Size Update / Exercise / Family / Health

Take A Hike!

by Andrew on May 27, 2011 • No Comments

Last weekend my best friend Jennie and I decided it was a beautiful day for a hike. We drove down the PCH to where I thought there was a trail for Temescal Canyon. Well, I was wrong. Yes, that’s right, I admitted it. I was wrong, but only kinda… there...

Children / Cooking / Family / Food / Health / Obesity / Relationships / Tips and Tricks

Eat, Play, Love: Raising Healthy Eaters

by Bridget on May 26, 2011 • No Comments

Although most obesity conversations begin with tips on what people–especially kids–should be eating, the participants in Eat, Play, Love: Raising Healthy Eaters webinar, aired last week, argue instead that we should be focusing on how kids and families eat. This hour-long webinar, hosted by the Dairy Council of California, included...

Exercise / Health / Media

Make It Doable and You Will Want to Do It

by Greta on May 24, 2011 • No Comments

Dr. James A. Levine, a Mayo Clinic expert on nutrition and endocrinology says that diets are fleeting, but exercise is something that really sticks, that is if you like what you’re doing. Research shows that doable exercise for obese people is crucial to their weight loss and overall health success. One of the...

Children / Health / Obesity / Relationships / Tips and Tricks

Using Creativity to Battle Obesity

by Bridget on May 24, 2011 • No Comments

Childhood obesity is most notably a physical condition, but what we often ignore is the emotional trauma caused by such a physical problem. If children are obese, they usually suffer through feelings of isolation, low self-esteem, and even depression, which propagates eating unhealthy food as a way to combat these...

Bite Size Update

Bite Size… Frame by Frame

by Josh on May 24, 2011 • 3 Comments

Bite Size kicked off the first day of production today as our team of animators settled into their cubicles, stretched their fingers, laid pen to paper… er stylus to screen. Frame by frame, they will be bringing 20 minutes of our film to life over the next 12 weeks, telling...

Cooking / Food / Recepies

Dinner For One: Roasted Chicken

by Andrew on May 23, 2011 • 1 Comment

To celebrate National Bike Month, I biked to and from the gym on Friday, and somewhere climbing the hills of Westwood (ew Bruin territory, I know) and having already worked out, all I could think about was the roasted chicken I was about to make for dinner. Now, I absolutely...

Diet / Food / Tips and Tricks

And It Was That Easy….

by Greta on May 19, 2011 • No Comments

I have always thought easylunchboxes.com was a great idea for hurried mothers with picky children, something I wish my mom and dad had had when I was growing up, but I never really considered that lunch is truly a stressful meal for anyone. It is in the middle of the...

Cooking / Food / Recepies / Tips and Tricks

New Summer Favorite: Spicy No-Mayo Coleslaw

by Bridget on May 19, 2011 • No Comments

As summer approaches, we turn to our favorite warm-weather foods to celebrate the return of the season. But now, you can re-create old favorites in a new, healthier way. Take, for instance, this spicy no-mayo coleslaw: it has the same basic idea of your regular coleslaw (cabbage...

Exercise / Health / Sustainability

Ride Your Bike To Work Day

by Andrew on May 19, 2011 • 1 Comment

May is Bike Month and today (Thursday, May 19) is Ride Your Bike to Work Day here in Los Angeles. So we encourage you all to ride your bikes, whether it’s to work, errands, or to the fro-yo shop down the street for a treat, leave the car keys at...

Children / Exercise

The Circus: The New Gym for Kids?

by Bridget on May 17, 2011 • 1 Comment

When you think of the circus, you probably think: big tent, popcorn, jugglers, cotton candy, flame-throwers even. What you don’t usually think of is physical fitness and childhood obesity, right? That’s where Christina Zagarino comes in. As a graduate student at Tufts University studying child development, Zagarino has created a...

Food / Sustainability

Sustainable Farming Can Sustain the World. Weird.

by Josh on May 16, 2011 • 2 Comments

One of the greatest lines of misinformation the food industry has fed us over the past few decades is that organic, sustainable farming can’t feed the world. Clearly, however, neither can our “conventional” industrial food system. The global food price index is at an all-time high, an equal number of...

Diet / Exercise / Health / Media / Tips and Tricks

‘It’s Your Time’: Celebrating Women’s Health

by Greta on May 14, 2011 • 1 Comment

Today marks the end of National Women’s Health Week, a week long observance of women’s health coordinated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office on Women’s Health. This year’s the theme was “It’s Your Time.” While every year Women’s Health Week empowers women to make their health...

Food / Health / Sustainability

Chicken Disaster

by Bridget on May 12, 2011 • No Comments

While everyone knows how the devastating tornadoes last week affected the people and their homes in Alabama, not many people know that this natural disaster may affect their eating habits. Alabama is the third largest chicken capital in the country, responsible for about 12% of total US production (over 1 billion...

Children / Politics

Save The Catherine Ferguson Academy!

by Andrew on May 11, 2011 • No Comments

Catherine Ferguson Academy is a school in Detroit founded in honor of a former slave, Catherine Ferguson, who was bought out of slavery and dedicated her life to sheltering lost kids. The Academy specifically exists for sheltering and helping pregnant girls in Detroit and provides support through farming in their...

Diet / Food / Health / Politics

Forget Osama, Are You Safe From Your Food?

by Josh on May 10, 2011 • 3 Comments

China has once again been in the news recently for a series of crackdowns on food producers found adding things like ink, dye, bleach, wax, and toxic chemicals to their products. Consumers have found that their eggs were made out of glycerin and dye, their pork glowed in the dark,...

Health / Tips and Tricks

10 Easy Ways to Relax

by Andrew on May 6, 2011 • 3 Comments

Studies have shown that stress makes weight loss and maintaining health more difficult, so we thought we’d share this Harvard Health list of 10 simple steps to help de-stress. Frequently late? Apply time management principles. Consider your priorities (be sure to include time for yourself) and delegate or discard unnecessary...

Food / Health / Sustainability

The New “Agrarian Urbanism”

by Bridget on May 5, 2011 • 2 Comments

While community gardens are great new ways to make sure your food is fresh and sustainable, the next step may push this idea even further. In its April issue, Landscape and Architecture magazine proposed combining the struggling markets of both architecture and agriculture to make even more sustainable and forward-looking...

Health / Obesity

Extra Weight Can Lead to Dementia??

by Greta on May 4, 2011 • 1 Comment

While most people are aware of how extra body fat can lead to diseases like Type II diabetes, stroke, and hyper tension, not many know that carrying extra weight midlife might boost the risk of dementia. In a study conducted in Sweden, researchers found that being overweight (not even obese),...

Children / Diet / Exercise / Family / Health

The “5-2-1-0″ Rule

by Bridget on May 4, 2011 • No Comments

While there is plenty of media in circulation that scolds for watching too much TV and not eating enough vegetables, we wanted to give you some simple guidelines on how to create a healthier lifestyle, without all of the punishment. Here’s a quick tip we found that hopefully helps guide...

Bite Size Update / Food / Gardening / Sustainability

Bite Size Gets Dirty

by Josh on May 4, 2011 • 2 Comments

About a month ago, we at Bite Size decided we had spent enough time sitting around talking, and it was high time we rolled up our sleeves and got our hands a little bit dirty. So we planted a garden. Luckily, right in my back yard (literally) we found 60...

Children / Food / Media

Will Tony the Tiger join Joe Camel?

by Greta on Apr 30, 2011 • No Comments

Could Tony the Tiger be as lethal as Joe the Camel was? The government thinks so. This past Thursday the federal government proposed new guidelines for how companies market soda, cereal, snacks, restaurant meals, and other foods to children. Within the past decade, childhood obesity has become a huge problem...

Exercise / Health / Technology

Apple Working on Exercise App?

by Andrew on Apr 28, 2011 • No Comments

Patent documents discovered by Patently Apple reveal that Apple has plans to produce an application for the iPhone geared toward motivating and facilitating exercise. While gym apps are nothing new, the interesting part of the app is its use of social networking to motivate people to be more active. Competitions...

Diet / Food / Health

Americans Are Consuming More Calories Than Ever

by Andrew on Apr 27, 2011 • 5 Comments

USDA data collected over the past 40 years has shown that American Calorie consumption has increased 18% from 1978 to 2008. Even more alarming, consumption of added sugars increased 11% and consumption of added fat increased an alarming 34% over the same period. The data essentially show that Americans have...

Children / Exercise / Health

Don’t Forget About the Children

by Bridget on Apr 26, 2011 • No Comments

Who wouldn’t want to watch little children have fun all day and help fight against childhood obesity at the same time? This was certainly the dream for Arizona couple Lee and Diana Collins, who have started and developed their own children’s fitness program, Amazing Athletes. Amazing Athletes is a traveling...

Diet / Health

The Benefits of Sleep and Relaxation

by Bridget on Apr 21, 2011 • No Comments

When people say they want to lose weight and adopt a more healthy lifestyle, they usually don’t start by sleeping more and stressing less–but that may be just what the doctor ordered. A new study conducted by Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research took about 500 adults who were considered...

Bite Size Update

Rock Out To Help Us Get $500!

by Andrew on Apr 20, 2011 • No Comments

As many of you may already know, Bite Size has teamed up with an organization called OURewards which provides us with a percentage commission every time you use their link to do your online, everyday shopping. Like donations and ad-revenue from our YouTube videos, we use this money to get...

Food

Don’t Always Trust the Label

by Bridget on Apr 19, 2011 • No Comments

People love to think that they are eating healthy–I mean who wouldn’t want to eat food that is labeled “organic” as opposed to food that is not? No longer just a myth, graduate student at Cornell University, Jenny Wanchen Lee has proven that people blindly believe in the “organic” label,...

Bite Size Update

Check Out Our Newest Video!

by Andrew on Apr 13, 2011 • 2 Comments

Bite Size has released our latest video! Check it out here and visit our Channel on YouTube to share it with your friends! Thanks for your support!!! Want more Bite Size news? “Like” us on Facebook!

Children / Family / Food / Obesity / Sustainability

April: National Minority Health Month

by Bridget on Apr 12, 2011 • No Comments

April is National Minority Health Month, and this year, it’s getting a lot of attention. From Chicago to Cleveland, people are not only noticing, but promoting National Minority Health Month. Everyone knows that both child and adult obesity rates have risen dramatically in recent years, but it is sometimes overlooked...

Food / Media / Obesity

Can You Pass The “Salt Shocker?”

by Bridget on Apr 7, 2011 • No Comments

What’s tasty, unhealthy, and disguised in many common foods? No, it’s not sugar; the answer may not be what you think. LA County Department of Public Health has begun a new initiative: a salt awareness program through their project RENEW LA County. Through short media clips–called “Salt Shocker” videos–this program...

Children / Food / Technology

Cafeterias Go High-Tech

by Bridget on Apr 5, 2011 • No Comments

Technology is an integral part of our everyday lives, but what if it could empower our children to become healthier as well? In various parts of the world, elementary and middle schools are beginning to use swipe card technology to monitor what children buy in the cafeteria. Parents can load...

Politics

Why FDA Menu Mandates Won’t Help

by Josh on Apr 4, 2011 • No Comments

When President Obama signed the new health care legislation just over a year ago, buried deep within was a small measure requiring large restaurant chains to add calorie numbers to their menus. The legislation gave the USDA and FDA one year to delineate these new regulations. Now, right on schedule,...

Uncategorized

ACTIVE Life’s Demand Healthy Week

by Bridget on Mar 31, 2011 • No Comments

Join ACTIVE Life during the first week of May (May 2-8) in their Demand Healthy Week, a week-long, national program that promotes building healthy communities through eating nutritious foods and participating in groups focused on creating healthy living habits. ACTIVE Life is a non-profit, Austin-based organization whose mission is to...

Bite Size Update / Family

Family Dinner

by Greta on Mar 30, 2011 • 1 Comment

Within the past 10 years research on the effects of family dinner show that families who eat together are not only happier, but healthier on the whole. At Bite Size we decided to implement our own weekly family dinners and try out new recipes to share with all of our...

Children / Food / Obesity

Larger Snack Portions Don’t Help Anyone

by Bridget on Mar 29, 2011 • No Comments

Everyone does it–it’s not quite lunch anymore and it’s not dinner yet, but you’re still hungry (or bored) so you eat a snack. Snacking has become a huge–and largely unhealthy–phenomenon around the country, one that is helping raise the obesity rates in America. In a recent study from the University...

Obesity / Politics

Obesity Threatening National Security?

by Bridget on Mar 23, 2011 • No Comments

If you want to know just how serious the campaign against obesity is, ask the United States military: they’re calling obesity an “epidemic that threatens national security.” Recently, a group of retired military officers gave congress a report titled “Too Fat to Fight”, outlining the problem that many doctors and...

Food / Politics / Sustainability

How to Feed the World

by Josh on Mar 22, 2011 • No Comments

Organic farming cannot feed the world. Or so we are told. In a recent New York Times article, writer Richard Bernstein quotes Nina Fedoroff, the science advisor to the secretary of state, as proclaiming that “if everybody switched to organic farming, we couldn’t support the earth’s current population – maybe...

Food / Politics

Sedgwick, Maine Takes A Stand

by Andrew on Mar 18, 2011 • No Comments

Sedgwick, Maine has declared its “food sovereignty” this week as the town unanimously passed an ordinance that gives its citizens the right “to produce, process, sell, purchase, and consume local foods of their choosing.” Not only does the ordinance allow locals to produce, sell, and buy foods such as raw...

Diet / Food

Ten Metabolism Boosting Foods

by Greta on Mar 16, 2011 • No Comments

Among the mess of fad diets that promise excessive weight loss and “a new body”, there lie commonplace foods in the grocery store that naturally boost your metabolism. Next time you want to fuel your inner furnace and burn more calories, make a meal with one of these foods: (**in...

Obesity / Relationships

Paws for Reflection

by Andrew on Mar 15, 2011 • 1 Comment

A shocking new statistic reveals that more than fifty percent of American pets are obese or overweight. Obese pets run high risks of developing many of the same obesity related diseases that plague humans such as diabetes, high blood pressure, arthritis, and kidney disease. In keeping their animal’s plump and...

Bite Size Update

Check Out Our Animation!

by Andrew on Mar 14, 2011 • No Comments

Here’s a little taste of Bite Size and part of what we’ve been working on. Please take a second and share this with your friends, and check out the newly redesigned Bite Size website!

Exercise / Obesity

Ultra Runner Runs For Childhood Obesity

by Greta on Mar 12, 2011 • No Comments

A 75-day run across America? It sounds insane, but for runner Dean Karnazes it’s just another one of his highly insane, utterly impressive, inspiring feats of human strength and endurance. Karnazes’ running resume includes a 135-mile ultramarathon across Death Valley in 120-degree temperature, a marathon to the South Pole in temperatures...

Food / Obesity

Learning to Listen to Our Bodies

by Bridget on Mar 12, 2011 • No Comments

While most people might think that if you take longer to eat a meal, you won’t feel the need to snack later, but this, in fact, is not true. Researchers at Maastricht University in the Netherlands found that it doesn’t matter whether you have a two hour, four course meal...

Children / Diet / Food / Obesity

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Takes A Bite Out Of Obesity

by Andrew on Mar 9, 2011 • No Comments

We all have fond memories of Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Now, thanks to The Alliance for a Healthier Generation and the American Academy of Pediatrics, children will now also remember the book for its lessons on healthy eating. Starting this month, these organizations will team with We Give Books...

Obesity

The Very Real Dangers of Type 2 Diabetes

by Bridget on Mar 7, 2011 • No Comments

While we all know that both obesity and diabetes are “bad” for you and harmful to your health, what do they really mean for our bodies? In a recent study by the New England Journal of Medicine, a 50-year-old with Type 2 diabetes will take an average of six years...

Exercise

Are Video Games the Next Exercise Trend?

by Bridget on Mar 1, 2011 • 1 Comment

In gym classes across the country, exercise is getting a new name: exergaming. Instead of playing traditional games of tag or basketball, kids are now exercising through the Wii video game program. Although video games and exercising seem like mutually exclusive activities, Wii and Wii Fit Plus bring together the...

Cooking / Diet / Food / Recepies

5 Easy, Healthy Meals in Under 15 Minutes

by Andrew on Feb 25, 2011 • 3 Comments

During a busy week it often seems like there’s no time to make a healthy meal, but really there are dozens of easy ways to create tasty, healthy meals in just minutes. Cooking at home can not only be a fun way for the family to do something together, but...

Food / Obesity

Family Dinners Lower Risk of Obesity

by Bridget on Feb 22, 2011 • No Comments

In a recent talk at TEDx Manhattan, a conference focused on changing the way we look at and eat food, Laurie David–author and co-producer of An Inconvenient Truth–argued for the importance of family dinners in reducing the risk of obesity and other health problems. As an opening to her speech,...

Food / Politics

Why American Farmers Don’t Grow Real Food

by Josh on Feb 21, 2011 • No Comments

As so simply stated by the lunatic farmer, Joel Salatin, the food we eat determines the quality of our health as it “becomes the flesh of our flesh, bone of our bones, and mitochrondia of our cells.” For that very reason, we are taught to eat a diet consisting mostly...

Food / Obesity / Politics

Tackling America’s Addiction To Soda

by Andrew on Feb 18, 2011 • No Comments

When examining the causes of obesity, one of the first things that nutritionists and health experts point to is Americans’ addiction to soda. According to the California Center for Public Health Advocacy, the average American consumes 50 gallons of soda or sweetened beverages each year. With each 20-ounce serving containing...

Exercise / Obesity

New CDC Report Shows Most Americans Not Exercising… At All

by Bridget on Feb 17, 2011 • No Comments

In a new report by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about two in ten Americans get exercise at the recommended levels during the day. Although this number is staggering, experts say it may be even lower than research has shown. According to Dr. Antronette Yancey a professor...

Diet / Food / Obesity

Nutrition Labels Would Mean More if Children Knew How to Read Them

by Greta on Feb 16, 2011 • Comments Closed

A study released today by the International Journal of Obesity shows that posting nutrition facts at restaurants has not made a difference in what foods children and teenagers order. The study tracked a group of 349 children ages 1-17 who visited restaurants like KFC, McDonalds, and Wendy’s, with their parents...

Diet / Food

The Cost of Eating

by Josh on Feb 15, 2011 • No Comments

Why do most people eat fast food? The answer is simple: value. A fast food meal seemingly offers the greatest reward, in terms of taste and quantity, for the least expenditure of time and money. The majority of Americans believe that it is in fact cheaper to buy a fast...

Diet / Exercise / Technology

Spotlight: Humana Fit

by Andrew on Feb 11, 2011 • No Comments

MapMyFITNESS and Humana insurance have teamed up to create a new fitness centered social network. Dubbed “HumanaFit” the website and accompanying apps provide a place for people to plan, monitor, and share their fitness goals and activity. The website contains sections to map out training routes and point out other...

Diet / Food / Technology

3 Tools for Healthier Living

by Josh on Feb 3, 2011 • No Comments

Here are a few tools we like from around the web to help us be healthier: Fooducate iPhone App Not only is Fooducate.com a fantastic resource for discovering new health information. They take the guesswork out of grocery shopping with their iPhone app that let’s you scan barcodes in the...

Diet / Food

USDA Releases 2010 Dietary Guidelines

by Greta on Feb 3, 2011 • No Comments

The American diet has been ambushed by salt, fat and sugar within the last decade, so the U.S. Department of Agriculture is fighting back. Late Sunday, the USDA released the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the federal government’s “evidence-based nutritional guidance to promote health, reduce the risk of chronic diseases,...

International / Obesity

Obesity Outside our Borders

by Greta on Jan 28, 2011 • No Comments

Americans love to brag about international assimilation of Western Culture, but when it comes to the nation of Naru, they might eat their words. Literally. In November 2010, using data from the World Health Organization, the Global Post website labeled Naru as the most overweight country on earth. The culprit?...

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