Here are a few healthful products, Calorie Bargains, for your babies, toddlers and children.

Yotta bars (Cherry)

The Why: How hard is it to get your kids to eat healthfully? It’s not always easy, and these bars by Undercover Vegetable Co. are well designed and tasty. There are seven vegetables in each bar (tomatoes, asparagus, sweet potatoes, carrots, red bell peppers, beets and corn). And even your 7-year-old can pronounce all the ingredients.

The Health Bonus: Only 120 calories per bar, certainly lower than your typical energy and/or candy bar, which usually has 200 to 300 calories. The bars are an excellent source of vitamin A and vitamin C and a good source of iron, and they are low in fat and sodium with no refined sugars or preservatives.

What We Liked Best: That the ingredients are all natural and that kids seem to love them.

What We Liked Least: Kids still need to eat real fruits and veggies, but if they’re going to eat an energy bar or a candy bar, this is certainly a much better alternative. Also, there was a bit of an aftertaste — nothing too bad — and the kids didn’t notice it at all. Oh, and no one liked the Apple Cinnamon flavor, only the Orange and Cherry.

What It Replaces: Candy, and all the other unhealthful kid (and adult) snacks.

The Price: $14.49 for 12 bars.

Other Offerings: Orange and Apple Cinnamon.

Where to Buy: Whole Foods, www.undercoverveg.com/buy.html

Nutritional Information: (1 bar, cherry) 120 calories, 1g fat, 26g carbs, 1g fiber, 2g protein, 40mg sodium.

Ingredients: (Cherry bar): Baby oats, brown rice syrup, honey, pear juice concentrate, dehydrated vegetables (tomatoes, asparagus, sweet potatoes, carrots, red bell peppers, beets, corn), rice, rolled oats, evaporated cane juice, dried apples, natural flavors, canola oil.

Yoplait Kids Yogurt Drinks (Strawberry)

The Why: This drink, specifically designed for toddlers, has less sugar than typical yogurt drinks, the ingredients aren’t as bad as many kids’ yogurts, and it has Blue's Clues, Dora the Explorer, Nick Jr. and Go, Diego, Go! characters on the packaging. It’s reasonably low in calories and has a smooth texture (for safety). Plus, according to a few of our very young taste testers, “It’s good.”

The Health Bonus: It contains 16 milligrams of naturally sourced omega-3 DHA, which has been known to help brain development. Additionally, there’s calcium (20 percent of daily needs), vitamins A and D and 2 grams of protein.

What We Liked Best: Decent ingredients, and the fact that Yoplait is moving in a better direction healthwise when it comes to young children.

What We Liked Least: Still too much sugar.

What It Replaces: Yogurt with more sugar and artificial ingredients.

The Price: $2.79 for a six-pack of 3.1-ounce bottles.

Other Offerings: Banana, Mixed Berry and Strawberry Banana.

Where to Buy: Supermarkets nationwide.

Nutritional Information: One bottle (91 milliliters) 70 calories, 1.5g fat, 11g carbs (10g sugar), 2g protein.

Ingredients (Strawberry): Low-fat yogurt (cultured pasteurized Grade A reduced-fat milk, sugar, modified corn starch, kosher gelatin, tricalcium phosphate, pectin, vitamin A acetate, vitamin D3), water, strawberry puree, grape juice concentrate, omega-3 DHA algal oil, natural flavor, colored with beet juice concentrate.

Itsy Bitsy Yoga for Toddlers and Preschoolers: 8-minute Routines to Help Your Child Grow Smarter, Be Happier, and Behave Better by Helen Garabedian (Da Capo, 2008)

The Why: Yoga is great for toddlers and preschoolers. They take to it quickly and easily and enjoy the fun of doing and holding the poses. The author, Helen Garabedian, is a certified hatha yoga instructor who created this program to fit easily into a young child's day.

The Health Bonus: According to the publisher, teaching yoga to your 18-month to 5-year-old child can help to ensure: “Fewer tantrums, better and longer sleep, increased motor coordination, improved listening and ability to follow directions, better self-expression, higher self-esteem and easier relaxation.” We agree that it can help with all these, but that doesn’t mean the children will be perfect.

What We Liked Best: The instructions on how to position your children and exactly what to say to them. It’s also simple to read and do.

What We Liked Least: We could use more photos and a DVD.

What It Replaces: Sitting and watching television.

The Price: $16.95.

Other Offerings: Itsy Bitsy Yoga: Poses to Help Your Baby Sleep Longer, Digest Better, and Grow Stronger (Fireside, 2004).

Where to Buy: All bookstores, including Barnesandnoble.com and Amazon.com.

Ingredients: Features more than 50 simple yoga poses and games. The chapters include Wake n’ Stretch Yoga; Patience Please Yoga; Run, Rock n’ Roll Yoga; Building Balance Yoga; Tantrum Taming Yoga; Strong n’ Sweet Yoga; Coordinated n’ Confident Yoga; Quiet Time Yoga.

HappyBaby Grrreat Greens and Easy Going Greens

The Why: Looking for a great food to feed your child? No time to make your own baby food? These are just the ticket. HappyBaby is a wonderful company that offers fresh-frozen organic baby meals. All you have to do is take a peek at the ingredients, and you’ll feel comfortable and confident that you’re giving your baby the best. The company worked with Robert W. Sears, M.D., noted pediatrician and author, to develop the products and even has a nutritionist on staff. They also donate a portion of their proceeds to Project Peanut Butter to feed children in Malawi.

The Health Bonus: They’re made with organic foods. Plus, they contain DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), an omega-3 essential fatty acid. DHA is a main structural component of brain and eye tissue and is required for optimal development of these tissues.

What We Liked Best: The combination of sweet pears, mango and spinach is off-the-charts good (Grrreat Greens) ­— whether you’re 7 months old or 45. The Easy Going Greens is not bad either. (They come packaged together.)

What We Liked Least: They’re not available everywhere.

What It Replaces: Regular baby food.

The Price: A package of 12 cubes for $5.20.

Other Offerings: Eight different varieties with 14 distinct flavors, including meat, grains, fruit and vegetables. Simple Purées for tots 6 months or older: Yes Peas + Thank You Carrots; Smarter Squash + Wiser Apple; Sweeter Potatoes + Purer Pear. For those 9+ months: Baby Dhal + Mama Grain; Chick Chick; Gobble Gobble + Paradise Purée; Super Salmon + Regular Prunes.

Where to Buy: Whole Foods and many Super Targets, but check their site: www.happybaby.com and click on the Where To Buy tab.

Nutritional Information: Grrreat Greens: Three cubes (3 ounces), 38 calories, 0g fat, 8g carbs, 2g dietary fiber, 2g protein, 34mg sodium, 272mg potassium.

Easy Going Greens: Three cubes (3 ounces), 80 calories, 0g fat, 17g carbs, 3g dietary fiber, 3g protein, 40mg sodium, 80mg potassium.

Ingredients: Grrreat Greens: Organic pears, organic spinach, organic mango, DHA algal oil. Easy Going Greens: Organic green beans, organic peas, water necessary for cooking, organic barley, organic brown rice, DHA algal oil.

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CHARLES STUART PLATKIN is a nutrition and public health advocate, founder and editor of DietDetective.com, the health and fitness network and author of The Diet Detective's Calorie Bargain Bible (Simon & Schuster, 2007). Copyright 2008 by Charles Stuart Platkin. All rights reserved. Sign up for the free Diet Detective newsletter and iTunes podcast at www.DietDetective.com.