Michelle Obama produces and stars in the new Netflix series “Waffles + Mochi”. The show was born from a partnership between Barack Obama, Michelle Obama and Netflix, with the purpose to educate children, in a funny and kid-friendly way, on the importance of eating healthier. It is a children’s program presented by two puppets, Waffle and Mochi – both are traditional foods, respectively from the U.S. and Japan – who explore the world and show the public each country’s food. With a simple and engaging speech, it has already caught the attention of a lot of kids and, with the presence of multiple famous guests, of adults as well. March 16th was the release date of the first season, containing 10 episodes.
- But why is it so important to know where your food comes from?
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The answers may vary, but health is an internationally-known reason, and it shouldn’t be neglected, especially when talking about children. According to WHO (World Health Organization), the number of childhood malnutrition is increasing rapidly, and it might lead to several different diseases, including psychological ones. With the production of more industrialized food and the usage of chemical compounds, children’s diet has become more and more unhealthy. A show made for children, that can entertain and teach them that eating better does not mean eating things that don’t taste good, is helpful when it comes to introducing kids to the idea that eating healthy can be delicious. Furthermore, along the way they’ll respect and learn about new cultures.
Tamiris dos Santos Oliveira, 33 – a clinic nutritionist – told us a couple of reasons why it is important to know where our food comes from:
1. It’s easier to receive safe and complete information about what we’re eating.
2. The closer the food comes from, the fresher they are. And the pollutants from transportation are reduced.
3. Knowing if what we’re about to eat is natural or industrialized, or if it has been contaminated by pesticides or food preservatives, is really important to our health.
- Since children’s health is such an important matter, Tamiris answered a few of our questions regarding this subject.
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1. Why is it important for children to eat in a healthier way?
Educating from an early age with good eating habits, quality foods, avoiding excess, balancing quality and quantity, can prevent diseases, like diabetes, obesity and heart problems. In addition to that, it helps to reduce levels of irritability, anxiety and improve intellectual growth.
2. Do they need to stop eating candies and snacks to be healthy?
To have a balanced diet it’s necessary to include sugar and fat. However, the excess of sugar, gluten and fat will affect the well-being and can turn the person into an addict. If these products are introduced later to a kid, their healthy food acceptance, such as fruits and vegetables, will be better. There is only a restriction when a chronic disease or an intolerance case is noted. We must not forget that many adults have a childish taste because of the lack of balance, since this type of food can make people addicted, it can make it difficult to reeducate eating habits.
3. What are other ways to keep a healthy lifestyle besides a good diet?
Dance, theater, and sports are good ways to keep a healthy lifestyle. Making the kid’s routine more active makes them spend more energy, have more discipline, exercise the brain, and accelerate the metabolism.
4. What are the effects of a poor diet?
It’s related to the development of chronic diseases, as well as obesity, cancer, and type 2 diabetes. Eating in an unhealthy manner for a long period of time increases body inflammations, which can be apparent through symptoms like bad breath, hair shedding, weak nails, intestinal constipation, low immunity, fatigue, lack or excess of appetite, and apathy.
This is why programs like “Waffles + Mochi” are so necessary, it shows kids – and adults – that a healthy lifestyle can be delicious, in a fun and educational way. And this is something really important to start practicing, as we can see from everything Tamiris told us!
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The article above was edited by Laura Okida.
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