Family Health Guide

9 Stay-healthy tips for busy families.

- Lisa Turner

'Keeping a whole family healthy takes some serious work —and when you’re strapped for time, it’s tempting to let things slide. But staying in tip-top shape is easier than you might think. Try these nine simple tips to keep your whole clan fit and happy. 1 BANISH SUGAR.

Seriously: it’s the fastest,easiest way for a busy family to improve overall health. If you can’t completely eliminate it, cut way back.

Drink less juice: one small glass has about 25 grams of sugar, as much as a soda; serve chilled hibiscus, apple, or blueberry tea with breakfast instead.

Beware of hidden sugars in products like peanut butter, nondairy milk, ketchup, and others; look for unsweetened versions. If you do buy packaged snacks, look at the sugar content, and stick to those with 10 grams or less per serving. And serve a small portion of a low-sugar dessert (berries with whipped cream, pears and dark chocolate, reduced sugar ice cream) with meals; it neutralizes the idea that dessert is a reward, and makes the sweet stuffless of a Holy Grail.

2 COOK SLOWLY.

Slow cookers are the fastest way to make a home cooked meal. While your coffee’s brewing in the morning, fill your crockpot with meat, beans, or both; add broth, sauce, or water and a handful of spices, and turn it on low. When you come home, stir infrozen vegetables; you’ll have a ready-to-eat meal by the time you set the table. Family-friendly suggestions: pulled chicken, barbecue brisket, turkey chili, pot roast, short ribs, tacos, black bean soup, and white beans with kale. Make way more than you need, and freeze extras for easy future meals.

3 MICROWAVE.