Students get a smooth(ie) lesson in nutrition Dietician teaches kids about healthy eating, makes fruit smoothies BY KATHY CHANG Staff Writer PHOTOS BY SCOTT FRIEDMAN Rajeev Ghoshal goes to grab some strawberries for his smoothies as he learns about good nutrition and healthy eating habits from registered dietician Teresa Grasso at the Woodbridge Community Center YMCA on Aug. 17. WOODBRIDGE - Twenty-five preschoolers attending the Early Adventures Camp at the Woodbridge YMCA received a lesson on healthy eating last week. The lesson was made possible by a recent donation of $250 from Wegmans Food Market. "We decided to use it for a healthy breakfast with the Early Adventures camp," said Nancy Drum at the YMCA. "Wegmans has always been so generous and kind in our efforts to accomplish our YMCA mission of building strong kids, strong families and strong communities." Teresa Grasso, the registered dietician who came to talk to the children on Aug. 17, said it was a good idea to start teaching healthy eating habits while the children are still very young. Grasso is a dietician at Saint Peter's University Hospital, New Brunswick. "They are at the stages where they are like sponges and will take the information home to their parents," she said. "We also have a handout of the smoothie recipe for them to take home." Four-year-old classmates Matthew Getz, Rajeev Ghoshal and Gabriella Dilone enjoy their fruit smoothies as they learn about good nutrition. The children - ages 3 to 5 - learned how to make banana, blueberry and strawberry smoothies with some fat-free vanilla yogurt, crushed ice, and lime juice during Grasso's visit. Some children even mixed all three fruits together to make a banana-blueberrystrawberry smoothie. Grasso, who has been a dietician for 10 years and regularly comes to the YMCA to give talks on nutrition, asked the children if they had eaten breakfast. Many raised their hands, and answers of oatmeal and cereal were yelled out. Then Grasso informed the children of the food guide pyramid. The U.S. Department of Agriculture [USDA] changed the pyramid in the spring of 2005 to add a physically active side to the pyramid. "It's also important to exercise along with eating healthy," said Grasso. Many kids said they already exercise through football, baseball and swimming. The six different colors on one side of the pyramid represent different food groups. Orange represents grains, green represents vegetables, red represents fruits, yellow represents fats and oils, blue represents milk and dairy products, and purple represents meat, beans, fish, and nuts. Most of the children, like Matthew Getz, 5, who had a strawberry smoothie, and Ashley Vivanco, 3, who had a blueberry and strawberry smoothie, said they liked the smoothie and would make them at home with their parents.