Carrots and Pop Tarts
Food. You have to eat it every day. You need it to live. It can also kill you if you eat too much of it or the wrong things. The grocery store offers thousands of items for you to choose from, there are tens of thousands of blogs and websites with content on food and eating, and there are hundreds of thousands of recipes. Most people have a complicated relationship with food and a lot of emotions around what they should and shouldn't eat and what they will or won't feed their families.
In the beginning, you start your baby on homemade sweet potato puree, plain green beans, little cut up chunks of chicken. They've been drinking nothing but boring milk for so long that they are thrilled to taste anything else. But before long, they discover lollipops, fruit snacks, potato chips and cupcakes. And just like us they determine that these taste better. Then comes the complicated task of teaching of the importance of good food to make us strong and healthy, the dangers of too much sugar and fat, the idea of moderation. The funny part about these lessons, however, is that we haven't even learned them ourselves. I know I am not the only parent who has said no to a piece of candy from the candy bowl and then hid in the corner eating one myself.
Do as I say, not as I do! I am an adult, you are a child! The real reason is that we hope our kids grow up with better self restraint than ourselves. We want them to have healthy and strong bodies and to never battle with weight issues, health concerns, unhealthy body image or a difficult relationship with food. How do you strike a balance between "healthy" and delicious, easy or convenient?
Sure it's easy to say - breakfast should be oatmeal with fresh berries or nuts, or maybe eggs with vegetables and turkey sausage. But come on, what about bagels, donuts, delicious sugary cereal, frozen waffles, and 350 calorie lattes? What kind of a sad world to live in to never have any of that?
And come on - lunch and dinner of salad with grilled chicken or fish every day? Say bye bye to all the comfort foods. Where is the cheese?? Every meal is made better with cheese!!
I know that food is fuel for our body and shouldn't be used to make ourselves happy, but haven't you ever heard that food is love?
A friend asked me last night what I fed our baby, and I told her - she eats all sorts of fruits and cooked vegetables. She eats meat and cooked pasta. She also eats Goldfish, mac and cheese, turkey lunch meat and NutraGrain bars. She also had a cookie last night. And a lollipop last week. See how this is getting less healthy as I go?
Maybe I should be more strict with the kids diets, but the truth is that I would then have to be more strict with my own. And maybe I should do that too. But I know that the boys are at healthy weights and I find them eating bowls of carrots and apple slices often. I also find them begging for Pop Tarts in the grocery store, and occasionally I cave. They get McDonald's Happy Meal's every once and awhile and love them. I get McDonald's Happy Meal's every once and awhile and love them too. I even get a cool toy.
I have read plenty of articles about what I should eat to be as healthy as possible and I keep it in mind when feeding my family. But I just don't see the need to overanalyze every meal - isn't that inviting an unhealthy relationship with food anyway? I suppose my friend's question made me second guess myself whether I am doing the most I can to keep my kids healthy. Maybe I should grow a garden and start making my own bread at home. Or wait, maybe I'm not supposed to eat bread.
I think my job is to help my kids understand what healthy food is and foster a healthy appetite to eat those things. I also think it is my job to teach them moderation. If I withhold all treats and yummy things, it will just make them want them more, and have the reverse effect. As long as I continue to see lots of bowls of carrots and apple slices, I think the occasional Pop Tart is just fine too.
Thoughts for the day...
In the beginning, you start your baby on homemade sweet potato puree, plain green beans, little cut up chunks of chicken. They've been drinking nothing but boring milk for so long that they are thrilled to taste anything else. But before long, they discover lollipops, fruit snacks, potato chips and cupcakes. And just like us they determine that these taste better. Then comes the complicated task of teaching of the importance of good food to make us strong and healthy, the dangers of too much sugar and fat, the idea of moderation. The funny part about these lessons, however, is that we haven't even learned them ourselves. I know I am not the only parent who has said no to a piece of candy from the candy bowl and then hid in the corner eating one myself.
Do as I say, not as I do! I am an adult, you are a child! The real reason is that we hope our kids grow up with better self restraint than ourselves. We want them to have healthy and strong bodies and to never battle with weight issues, health concerns, unhealthy body image or a difficult relationship with food. How do you strike a balance between "healthy" and delicious, easy or convenient?
Sure it's easy to say - breakfast should be oatmeal with fresh berries or nuts, or maybe eggs with vegetables and turkey sausage. But come on, what about bagels, donuts, delicious sugary cereal, frozen waffles, and 350 calorie lattes? What kind of a sad world to live in to never have any of that?
And come on - lunch and dinner of salad with grilled chicken or fish every day? Say bye bye to all the comfort foods. Where is the cheese?? Every meal is made better with cheese!!
I know that food is fuel for our body and shouldn't be used to make ourselves happy, but haven't you ever heard that food is love?
A friend asked me last night what I fed our baby, and I told her - she eats all sorts of fruits and cooked vegetables. She eats meat and cooked pasta. She also eats Goldfish, mac and cheese, turkey lunch meat and NutraGrain bars. She also had a cookie last night. And a lollipop last week. See how this is getting less healthy as I go?
Maybe I should be more strict with the kids diets, but the truth is that I would then have to be more strict with my own. And maybe I should do that too. But I know that the boys are at healthy weights and I find them eating bowls of carrots and apple slices often. I also find them begging for Pop Tarts in the grocery store, and occasionally I cave. They get McDonald's Happy Meal's every once and awhile and love them. I get McDonald's Happy Meal's every once and awhile and love them too. I even get a cool toy.
I have read plenty of articles about what I should eat to be as healthy as possible and I keep it in mind when feeding my family. But I just don't see the need to overanalyze every meal - isn't that inviting an unhealthy relationship with food anyway? I suppose my friend's question made me second guess myself whether I am doing the most I can to keep my kids healthy. Maybe I should grow a garden and start making my own bread at home. Or wait, maybe I'm not supposed to eat bread.
I think my job is to help my kids understand what healthy food is and foster a healthy appetite to eat those things. I also think it is my job to teach them moderation. If I withhold all treats and yummy things, it will just make them want them more, and have the reverse effect. As long as I continue to see lots of bowls of carrots and apple slices, I think the occasional Pop Tart is just fine too.
Thoughts for the day...
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