Item: Eating These Foods Makes Me...
Rating: 5
Author: Gina

Eating These Foods Makes Me… by Kalifa Rodriguez | $15 Giveaway, Review, Guest Post, & Fun Activities

(A Children’s Non-Fiction available now from Tellwell Talent) (A book blog tour from Goddess Fish Promotions.)

Thank you to the author, publisher, and Marianne & Judy at Goddess Fish for providing me with the information for this tour.

What's in this post!

Book Details

Eating These Foods Makes Me... by Kalifa Rodriguez
Published by Tellwell Talent on 11/23/2021
Genres: Children's Picture Book, Educational, Juvenile Nonfiction
Format: Hardcover, Paperback
Pages: 28

Is your kid a picky eater? Do you want your child to enjoy eating a variety of foods? Reading can be a proactive way to introduce your little one to the amazing world of nutrition!

In this book, readers will explore healthy foods and learn how key nutrients benefit the body. These pages repeat positive affirmations that will empower and build your child's mindfulness about the foods they eat.

It is never too early to instill life-long healthy eating habits. Happy reading! Or should I say, happy eating!

Source: Goddess Fish Promotions, Received from the author or publisher for review.

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Excerpt from Eating These Foods Makes Me…

Excerpt provided by the author for authorized use in this book review.

Fun Learning Activities to Promote Healthy Nutrition

Using paper and crayons or coloured pencils, draw a rainbow, and then draw a fruit or vegetable that is the same colour as each colour of the rainbow. You can even use this book for ideas. Remember to eat a rainbow of fruits and vegetables (at least 5 servings) each day! How many have you eaten today?

Do you like to play any sports or games? Do you like to walk to the park? Help your parents choose and prepare an energizing snack before the next game or walk to the park.

Eat your water? That sounds silly! Did you know that some fruits and veggies such as celery are mostly made up of water and can also help to keep you hydrated? Can you think of any others? Now try adding those slices of fruit or even cucumber to your water bottle to give it some pizazz.

Try introducing interactive sensory play for preschoolers (age 3 and older). Gather a variety of beans, nuts, or seeds on a tray or in a bowl with a spoon. Under adult supervision, let the preschooler feel, grab, and scoop the legumes, nuts, and seeds. See if the toddler can separate them based on different colours, sizes, and textures while the adult names each food and talks about how these foods make us strong from the proteins and smart from the healthy omega fats.

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Purchase Links for Eating These Foods Makes Me…

Amazon – OneLink for every country

Bookshop/IndieBound Chapters/Indigo

The Book Depository Blackwell’s

Waterstones The Wordery BN

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My thoughts on Eating These Foods Makes Me…

Eating These Foods Makes Me… is a must-have for any caretaker of young ones, especially those picky eaters. The book includes affirmations that are easy for kids to remember and use to make food more fun.

The illustrations are vibrant and include actual photos of many of the foods to make them more recognizable.

The message is clear and understandable without going overboard into preachy. The author presents the facts as age-appropriate without distractions.

The children depicted in the story are multi-cultural and diverse. It’s always helpful for a child to visualize someone like themselves.

Overall, I recommend this book to caregivers, parents, grandparents, daycares, and libraries. I know a few adults who could benefit from the simple lessons and affirmations taught in this book.

I received a copy of the book for a blog tour. This review is my honest, unbiased opinion.

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Affirmations to Elevate Your Nutrition

Guest Post from Kalifa Rodriguez

The reason for the title of my new book Eating These Foods Makes Me… is due to the use of repeated positive affirmations throughout the book that aims to build self-esteem and self-confidence around making healthy food choices. While the book has an educational component which explores the nutritional aspects of food and the different ways they help our bodies grow and function, the use of positive affirmations aims to foster a healthy relationship with food at a young age.

In general, you may not suspect that daily mantras make much of a difference; however, neuroscientific studies are demonstrating how effective positive affirmations are at improving emotional well-being as well as teaching children to have a positive mindset and attitude that can indeed be life-changing!

As a clinical nutritionist working with an adult population, one of my primary roles is to support my clients in developing healthy eating behaviours, but I often wonder if they had developed nutritional intelligence and established a healthy relationship with food at a young age if they’d still be facing the same health challenges they do today.

So for this article, I thought I’d share with you my technique for staying motivated about making healthy food choices all throughout the day. Although it’s a really simple technique to apply once you get the hang of it, many people underestimate the power of positive self-talk… so I ask that you at least keep an open mind and give it a try to see how it works out for you. All right let’s get into it…

Using affirmations

The ultimate goal is to gain power over our nutritional habits so that we can be healthy and live an overall high quality of life. My philosophy is that practicing something called nutritional mindfulness and thinking and/or speaking positive affirmations to ourselves throughout the day, will ultimately bring the 3 aspects of our being (physical, mental and spiritual) into alignment. There is also MRI evidence that reveals brain changes and increased neural pathways in the prefrontal cortex when people practice affirmations over time.

Here’s what I like to do: I begin my day by praying or meditating and while I do this I say some gratitude affirmations. I give thanks for the food that I have eaten and the food I am about to eat this day. I also thank God (you can thank the Universe or whatever high power you believe in) for access to healthy and nutritious foods that nourish my body. Then throughout the day, I repeat quotes to keep myself feeling focused and motivated, such as: “My good health is the reward for the nourishing foods that I eat” or “I love my body and I chose to give it the best foods every day”.

On days when I’m finding it difficult to maintain my nutrition goals, I re-focus by repeating “eating nutrient-rich foods comes easy to me.” Or “I trust my body and intuition, there is no need to restrict foods I love.” The key is to speak things in the present tense as if you are living it out now, even if you aren’t because once you have a clear mental picture in your head, your subconscious mind cannot differentiate between what is a simple thought or reality… and with that, you’ll begin to notice a positive shift in your behaviours and relationship with food.

As I said, the more you practice this, the more comfortable you will get and the more naturally these kinds of positive affirmations will come to you. Remember this kind of practice may look different to everyone but if done correctly and consistently there is no questioning the kinds of mental and physical benefits that will follow. Use this tool to assist you with self-regulation, self-awareness, and self-confidence, and trust me, it will bring your nutrition game to higher heights!

Wishing you so much love and light as you practice this form of nutritional mindfulness today, stay blessed!

Kalifa Rodriguez M.Sc, RD, CBS

Author of Eating These Foods Makes Me…

KalifaRodriguezBooks.com

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I love my Amazon Kindle Unlimited Subscription. So many books, so little time!

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About Kalifa Rodriguez

Kalifa Rodriguez is a registered dietitian and certified breastfeeding specialist. She currently works as a clinical nutritionist in Montreal, Canada. After receiving her bachelor's degree in nutritional biochemistry, she went on to complete a master's degree in human nutrition and dietetics at McGill University.

Kalifa is passionate about promoting healthy lifestyle choices through nutrition, exercise, and mindfulness. She also hopes to leave a positive impact in the community through her work by giving nutrition education sessions to community groups and organizations.

Kalifa and her husband are parents to their delightful toddler, who is the inspiration for this book.