One of the biggest challenges of raising children is getting them to eat right.

But it’s also one of the most important roles we play as parents, because the foods we give them now will establish dietary habits that they’ll follow the rest of their lives.

Think about that next time you consider skipping a real meal for a quick stop at the Golden Arches.

I know it’s easier said than done. Many parents say their kids simply won’t touch healthy foods even when they’re right in front of them. I’ve had a few of those moments myself.

But a new study shows that children are more open to healthy foods than we think. And some parents, it seems, make too many assumptions about what their kids will and won’t eat.

The study, sponsored by the American Society for Nutrition, followed children ages 5-12 at an Arkansas summer camp. These kids, and their parents, all said beforehand that they weren’t very likely to eat healthy foods.

But then, more than half of them tried nearly all of the 16 different fruits and vegetables given to them at camp in place of their normal junk-food snacks. Many of the kids had never even seen some of these vegetables before, but let’s give them some credit – they tried them just the same.

Now, I’m sure the environment played a role in these kids’ choices, and the study didn’t really touch on that. Children might be more inclined to try something new when they see other kids doing it. They might also be more willing to eat these fruits and veggies because, at camp, they know they can’t just raid the fridge after the meal.

But I’m still encouraged by the results. The bottom line is kids can and will eat healthy food if we give it to them.

In some cases, youngsters just don’t have access to good food. One study found that families in impoverished areas tend to shop in convenience stores, which have no produce sections, rather than supermarkets.

But there’s a lot more at stake than shopping habits. Establish good eating now, and kids can avoid what I call the high-carb Torture Chamber Diet so many of us fall victim to here in the United States.

I can think of one other reason to give your children more fruit and veggies. We tend to eat whatever we make for the kids.

So if they’re eating better, you will too.

Aspirin may be one of those drugs that you take without thinking – but you might want to think again the next time you reach for that pill bottle.

A new study finds that elderly patients who take low doses of aspirin to deal with their heart disease have higher instances of very small bleeding in the brain.

These “microbleeds” are so small they can only be seen with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology, but their very presence is alarming enough.

The researchers say their study, published in the Archives of Neurology, raises questions such as whether these microbleeds can lead to more severe brain hemorrhaging, and if aspirin plays a role in that.

Microbleeds are more common in elderly people in general, regardless of whether they regularly take aspirin. But this study also makes me wonder if a lifetime of pill-popping has helped lead to the condition as well.

Aspirin is one of those drugs too many people take far too often. And even at low doses, regular use of aspirin can lead to gastrointestinal problems such as nausea, vomiting and bleeding ulcers, as well as other side effects.

Yet many people eat them like jellybeans at the slightest symptoms of pain. Folks who battle arthritis often need aspirin just to get through the day.

If you’re in that group, you don’t need to tell me how often you hit that bottle. Chances are, you buy the jumbo-sized tubs of aspirin from a warehouse store.

But you don’t have to live that way. I put together a three-step plan to reverse arthritis in the May issue of Health Revelations, and you can subscribe now to get complete access to the archives by clicking here.

Other folks just decide that some pains are simply from the bumps and bruises of life. They pop a few aspirin and move on.

The fact is, nothing could be further from the truth. Many of the aches and pains we deal with are not conditions of their own, but signs of something else going on. When you take an aspirin, you might mask the pain – but the underlying condition remains.

If your pains are being caused by something other than arthritis, then it’s time to put down the pill bottle and pay a visit to your doctor. Everything from frequent headaches to muscle aches can be symptoms of conditions ranging from missing nutrients to undiagnosed injuries.

If left untreated – and no, aspirin doesn’t count as treatment – many of these conditions are likely to get worse over time. The best thing you can do for yourself is stop popping pills and find out what’s really causing you pain.

It may seem like common sense that you should keep kids away from cigarette smoke. But it’s easier said than done in a home where mom or dad is a smoker.

A new study finds that when asthmatic kids have less exposure to tobacco smoke, they have fewer flare-ups and spend less time in the emergency room.

That should give any parent a little extra motivation to kick the habit.

The study, published in the journal Chest, looked at 290 asthmatic kids with an average age of 11, and it found these kids benefit greatly when their exposure to smoke is reduced, even when it’s not eliminated altogether.

And that makes perfect sense. Tobacco smoke is an allergen for many people, including children. It can trigger asthma, so reducing your exposure to it will reduce the number of episodes.

The lesson here isn’t just to keep kids away from secondhand smoke – although you certainly should. The real lesson is that our environments are often filled with allergens, whether we recognize them as such or not.

Conditions such as asthma are triggered or made worse by exposure to these allergens. Less exposure means less asthma, as these kids have learned.

If you’re a smoker and there’s an asthmatic in your home, you might need to give up your habit – or at the very least start to smoke outside – if you want to see the condition improve.

If you’re an asthmatic, the important thing for you to understand is what triggers your episode. Sometimes, it’s not as obvious as a cloud of tobacco smoke in the living room.

Get yourself tested for allergens, but make sure your doctor does it right. Most will test only for the allergies that cause a rise in IgE antibodies, as opposed to both IgE and IgG antibodies.

Here at my practice, I’ve had tremendous success reducing and even eliminating asthma by simply giving my patients the more thorough tests they deserve.

You deserve the same, so make sure your doctor gives you all the tests you need. Once you identify your allergens, you can remove them – and breathe better.

Obese folks considering weight-loss surgery might feel reassured when they choose a hospital that’s been labeled a “center of excellence.”

The truth is, these hospitals are no better than any other when it comes to complications and even deaths, according to a study published in a recent issue of the Archives of Surgery.

The study looked at 19,363 patients, 5,420 of whom had their procedures done at those so-called bariatric surgery “centers of excellence.” This is a label slapped on hospitals by a group called the Surgical Review Corporation after the place meets the group’s guidelines and sends out a check for the privilege.

Researchers found that 0.17 percent of the patients in these centers of excellence died, versus 0.09 percent in the other hospitals.

They also found 6.3 percent of the patients in the centers of excellence developed complications, versus 6.4 percent in the supposedly non-excellent hospitals.

If those numbers don’t look all that different, it’s because they’re not. It’s a statistical tie. Yet many insurers will only pay for procedures in hospitals given the “centers of excellence” designation.

The simple fact of the matter is you don’t need to choose between these different kinds of hospitals. Gastric bypass surgeries and similar procedures are potentially dangerous and often traumatic.

And in the end, the patient will need to learn the same sensible eating habits that would have kept him out of the operating room in the first place.

When it comes to weight loss, there is one recipe for success, whether you need to drop a spare tire or a whole car.

It means re-learning what you think you know about food. I have come to call it the Torture Chamber Diet. It is filled with low-fat foods that are high in carbs (sugar). These foods will, in the long run, only make you fatter and less healthy – and if you need any proof, just look around you at what a couple generations of “low-fat” dieting has produced.

Too often, people who opt for weight-loss surgery step out of the operating room and right back into “the torture chamber.”

Instead, focus on eating better and getting more exercise. Avoid those carbs, processed foods and “low-fat” foods. Eat sensible portions in balanced meals that include healthy fats and proteins along with fresh vegetables.

Keep at it, and you’ll lose the weight. I can guarantee it. Not only that, but you’ll learn a better way to live too.