Laura Bush Quotes

With the chronic obesity in America, it's more important than ever to not only feed kids healthy foods but to teach them how to make healthy choices on their own.

When it came to healthy eating, my parents did their best to set me on the right path. At school, my friends ate McDonalds at lunchtime, but I had a packed lunch that my mother made for me. I hated it at the time, but looking back, I'm glad.

To amplify our efforts, USDA is joining with First Lady Michelle Obama in aggressively promoting the 'Let's Move' campaign, which will combat the epidemic of childhood obesity through a comprehensive approach that builds on effective strategies, and mobilizes public and private sector resources.

I don't like to be a preacher or anything, but the one thing that I've learned is that you truly are what you eat.

We eat pretty healthy foods, and I've taught my kids since they were little about knocking out trans fats.

You are going to be what you put in your body, so I try to teach that to my kids, and the kids around me.

If your kids see what you eat, they will probably eat it, too. I'm not going to use the old-school policy of what my mother did and say to my kids, 'Well, if you are hungry enough, you will eat what I put on the table!' I think my kids have an understanding that if they see what their parents do, they should follow, too.

When you're the conscious captain in your kitchen, you'll feel better mentally and physically.

I pay a bit more than lip-service to health: I don't eat chips or pre-prepared food, and it might be a comedy sacrilege to admit I do like vegetables, fruit and salad and stuff.

I'm very lucky because I love fruit and to this day, that has saved me because I'd much rather have fruit than cookies.

I have a beautiful platter of various fruits as my computer screen saver. It's a constant reminder to eat healthy! It helps me to make healthier food choices throughout my day.

Everyone would be healthier if they didn't eat junk food.

What we've learned is that if you can make the right decision in the supermarket aisle, it's a heck of a lot easier to make a good decision when you reach in your cupboard when you're craving a snack at eight o'clock at night.

As I get older every year, I'm eating better. As a kid, who can turn down chips and candy? But I'm getting better.

It's important for moms, but also dads, to recognize that they're role models when it comes to their kids' physical health, when it comes to working out, and when it comes to nutrition.

Health messages are simply overwhelmed, in volume and in effectiveness, by junk-food ads that often deploy celebrities or cartoon characters to great effect. We may know that eating fruits and vegetables is good for us, but the preponderance of the signals we get - and especially the signals children get - push us in the direction of junk food.

I am very picky about my food, and I'm very healthy-oriented, so I always try to cook.

At one point, Sarah Palin sent her husband instructions to stock up on 'fresh fruit and veggies' for the kids, and 'as little processed foods as possible.'

I know what feels good to eat and what doesn't. I try to err on the side of choices I know will leave me feeling more energized and ready to go, because it's always better to feel healthy.

Most kids will not volunteer to eat veggies. At times you must step up to the plate and enforce the rule of authority as a parent.

Everyone's going to die, and everyone's going to get sick at some point. But I do believe that there are choices you can make in life that will make you as healthy as possible.

I'm trying to teach my daughter about healthy eating.

School is where children spend most of their time, and it is where we lay the foundation for healthy habits. That's why New Jersey is the first state to adopt a comprehensive school nutrition policy that bans candy, soda, and other junk food.

I try to eat sensibly. I cheat, but for the most part, I eat in a clean way.

It's an uphill battle to help our kids learn to make good food decisions - particularly when they are too often presented with an a la carte lunch room choice of french fries or yogurt.