We can take a lesson from California

Nothing can be done except little by little." Charles Baudelaire

As someone who is nutritionally aware; reads food packaging labels (and understand them), keeps the fridge and pantry stocked with healthy food choices (and the occasional treat), and tries hard to set a good example for my family (which means having balance and including the once-in-a-while trek to the local ice shoppe), I tend to notice food related nuances in the places I visit.

Just back from California (loved San Diego), often recognized for their health-conscious way of life, there are several "little things" the food industry has done there that could ultimately make a big impact on North America's overall obesity issue. Things like:

• Starbuck's had skim and 2% milk instead of homogenized (3.25%) milk, along with half & half (5%) cream instead of table (10%) or coffee (15%) cream
• Several more juice and smoothie options at fast-food type establishments
• Every coffee shop I passed has a bowl of fresh fruit or fruit cups for purchase
• Most quick-dine places I passed had salads on their menu, with dressings served on the side in a lot of cases

And I am sure there are others (but I was only there for a day so didn't get that much time to truly investigate).

So for a little math (I love crunching numbers). If you have 2 ounces of cream in your coffee/tea every day, and you drink on average 2 mugs of said beverage everyday, switching from coffee cream to 2% milk would save you 31,645 calories a year. That equals 9 pounds of fat. So by making that one little change and doing nothing else you could loose almost 10 pounds in a year. That seems reason enough to me to make a switch, but the added bonus of reducing your fat intake and being more heart-healthy is gravy (low fat gravy).

So think about the other little things you could do to make your and your family a bit more healthy; parking purposefully AWAY from the mall entrance, making a family walk after dinner part of your daily routine, switching to fresh (organic if you can stand the price) veggies and fruits when ever possible. All these little things add up to a much healthier lifestyle and more energized life. I know we have slipped a little in most of these areas and I plan on regrouping starting now.

Gotta go, Whole Foods is calling my name.