10 Healthy Snacks for Kids

Snacking is good for everyone -- especially kids! Healthy snacks are the key to meeting their nutritional needs each day. Most kids need to eat every two to three hours to get in all the nutrients and calories they need to sustain adequate growth. Think of your kids' snacks as small meals. This means they should be just as nutritious as the rest of the food you give them throughout the day. Think real food, not "snack" food, like chips or sweets.

When your child's tummy starts grumbling, you should use this as an opportunity to get in important nutrients that your child may come up short on in his or her meals. For example, if your child wasn't hungry at lunch and threw out half of his peanut butter sandwich, use his next snack as an opportunity to get in some protein. Try offering a whole-wheat tortilla spread with some mustard, rolled up with two slices of turkey. A good general rule: When choosing snacks for your kids, look for foods that have no trans fat or saturated fat, are low in sugar, high in fiber, and provide some protein or healthy fat. Proper snacks should contain at least high-fiber starch or lean protein or healthy fat.

Here are 10 healthy and tasty snacks your little ones are sure to love:

Cherry tomatoes with mozzarella string cheese

Apple slices and Barney Butter Peanut Butter 90 Calorie Squeeze Pack

Whole-grain crackers with low-fat cheese

Stonyfield Farm Organic Smoothie

Tribe's Hummus Snackers with cucumber slices

Air-popped popcorn (2 cups) sprinkled with cinnamon or Parmesan cheese

Seapoint Farms individual frozen edamame packs

Yummy Yogurt
Ingredients: 1 cup non-fat plain yogurt, 2 tbsp of unsweetened applesauce, 1 tsp chopped walnuts.
Direction: Stir the applesauce into the yogurt, then top off with walnuts for some crunch.

Apple Fries with Yogurt Dip
Ingredients: Small apples, non-fat plain yogurt, natural peanut butter
Directions: Mix 6 oz non-fat plain yogurt with 2 tsp of natural peanut butter until smooth. Cut an apple into thin "fries." Dip the fries into the yogurt dip.

Trail Mix
Ingredients: Whole grain cereal (e.g., Barbara's Bakery Puffins Original or Health Valley Oat Bran Flakes), peanuts, almonds, dried apricots, dried cranberries, dark chocolate.
Directions: Place the different ingredients in separate bowls and have your child assemble his/her own trail mix. For example, combine 3/4 cup of cereal, 2 chopped dried apricots, and ½ oz chopped dark chocolate and place into a ziplock bag.

Providing our kids with healthy food is more important than ever. Today, one-third of American children is overweight or obese. In February, First Lady Michelle Obama unveiled her Let's Move! partnership bringing together schools, parents, businesses and nonprofits to battle the growing epidemic of childhood obesity.

Do you have a question for Michelle about her plan? You can ask her on Tuesday, July 13 at 10 a.m. Eastern time during her first-ever live web chat on AOL Health. The first lady will be discussing the newly enhanced Let's Move! website and answering your questions live! To submit a question, send an email to askmichelleobama@aol.com (please include your name and town) between now until Monday, July 12th at 10:00 a.m.

Nationally recognized nutrition expert and published author of "The O2 Diet" Keri Glassman is the founder and president of Keri Glassman, Nutritious Life, a nutrition practice based in New York City. For years Keri has been a leader in advancing a "whole person" approach to health and wellness. She has dedicated her career to creating services and promoting education through her "Nutritious Life" brand.