Calcium is an important nutrient for your body and for your health. Calcium helps your heart, muscles, and nerves function. It is also important for bone health.

Buying and eating locally grown foods – foods that are produced near you or in Virginia – offer numerous benefits for you and your community.

A child grows about two to three inches and gains four to five pounds each year. Proper nutrition and opportunities to play and be physically active are critical to ensure that your child grows properly and adopts healthy behaviors for lifelong health.

There is no one healthy weight for all children. Children come in different sizes and shapes. Some children are naturally petite. Others have bigger builds, larger bones, or greater muscle mass that can result in a heavier weight. They also grow at different rates. Any weight that supports growth, learning, development, fitness, and well-being can be a healthy weight.

It is important to promote a positive body image among youth since it can influence their concept of self worth, as well as confidence.

If your child is overweight, he or she is not alone. Overweight is growing at epidemic rates among American children and teens. The rate has tripled in thirty years and is expected to rise.

Being underweight is not the same as being thin or slender. Some children have a naturally slight build and maintain it with a well-balanced diet and physical activity. This is normal and healthy. However, true underweight may be a sign of dietary, health, or emotional problems.

Los microbios o bacterias pueden ser benefíciales pero también perjudiciales. Los alimentos pueden tener microbios buenos y malos. Las bacterias “buenas” tales como las bacterias en el yogurt nos ayudan a digerir alimentos y la levadura que nos ayuda a preparar alimentos como el pan. Los microbios o bacteria “malas” pueden causarnos enfermedades. Para los niños pequeños, las bacterias malas pueden ser especialmente dañinas porque ellos todavía están formando su sistema de defensas o sistema inmunológico.

Iron is an important nutrient for your body and for your health. It helps your cells “breathe.” Iron works with protein to make the hemoglobin in red blood cells.

What consequences can electronic media use have on children? The consequences are wide-ranging and can be both positive and negative.

This fact sheet provides an overview of two of the most popular diets, along with the pros and cons of weight loss and health with these diets.

Germs can be helpful or harmful. Foods can carry both good and bad germs.

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a leading cause of death in the United States, with cholesterol being a major factor. Research has shown that high cholesterol can be the result of eating a diet with too much saturated fat and cholesterol. The latest research shows that another fat, trans fat (also called trans fatty acids), also raises low-density lipoprotein (LDL) or “bad” cholesterol levels.