Kid Friendly

Back in the day when I was a girl, my mother provided three meals a day for our family.  She was able to stay at home to provide care for us, and she took her job seriously.  Planting a garden and canning foods, clipping coupons and working with a budget.  Time seemed slower, but maybe it was because I was a child.  I didn’t participate in group sports or many extra-curricular activities.  My brother and I played outside mostly.  It seemed simple when I think of today’s demands and activities.    

Fast forward to our modern life and fast-paced environment where both parents are rushing around to get children to youth sports, church events, and friend’s social gatherings.  In many households, both parents work which adds an additional stress to the family.  What a difference it makes when both parents are active in the children’s life compared to only one parent.  I seriously don’t know how a single parent copes with the demands necessary to raise a child without some type of help.

When it comes to nutrition, though, there has been a huge shift.  Fast food restaurants were not main stream, and my family rarely ate out.  I grew up eating what my mother placed in front of me and that was home-cooked meals.  As I got a little bigger, TV dinners were the “in” thing and processed foods became available and advertised as just as wholesome and nutritious and convenient.  It was a treat to have a frozen, prepared meal (of our choosing) with the aluminum foil placed over the tray and cooked in the oven as there were not microwaves yet.  We would carefully pull back the foil to expose the dinner awaiting inside.  Trays were placed in front of us in the living room, and we consumed our meal in front of the TV—hence why they were called TV dinners.  

This was probably the beginning of the terrible habits our culture have adopted.  Watching television instead of communicating at a table with all the family present.  What a valuable experience for those who participate in an event such as a meal together without the noise of television.  The table gathering provides a place to connect and reflect from the day’s events or discuss hopes of the future.  Food is essential in our health and eating together provides more than just nutrition.  Eating a meal together provides a connection and a relationship.

With the busy schedules of today, it’s difficult to plan wholesome meals for the family.  Often times, fast food options are chosen or quick meals that are microwaved come into play.  Parents choose foods that are “kid friendly.”  These foods are usually poor quality and full of fillers and bad fats.  Children need an abundance of nutrients to help their bodies grow and provide a strong foundation for their future health.  Good fats for brain development, good proteins for cell and muscle health.  It’s been estimated that this next generation will not outlive their parents due to poor dietary choices.  As a parent, it’s my job to provide the best base for my family, but how do you do that when we are inundated with so much information that seems to change weekly?  

We’ve become a society that provides different options of food for children and adults…why?  Why do children need to eat differently than adults? Yes, they require more of some nutrients like good, full fat for a growing body, but the “kid friendly” foods like chicken nuggets, hotdogs, pizza and macaroni and cheese, does little to provide any real nutrients.  Just high calories with bad fats.  Children may not like all the foods set in front of them but encouraging them to try new things will allow their brain and taste buds to acquire a taste for them.  Sugars take up too much space in our daily diets that then won’t allow children to be hungry for better food choices.  

It’s not necessary to grow your own food, but it is necessary to choose real food.  Often people will bring me something they are curious about and ask if it’s healthy.  My reply often is that if you can’t pronounce the ingredients, then you probably shouldn’t eat it.  Our body is designed to break down real food and use those real nutrients to repair and fight off infections, bacteria, and viruses.  If we don’t have what we need, we get sick.  Disease is dis-ease.  Eat real food.  Provide real food for your children.  Teach them the importance of good nutrition and why those “kid friendly” foods are not healthy options.  Yes, it’s easy, but is it worth the health consequences of the future?  It takes 10 -20 years for what we consume today to show up as disease.  Providing a strong foundation for our children should be a priority.  Children need adults to help guide them, we shouldn't always be the "hero" and work to get cheers of glee for chicken nuggets and pizza night.  We are the adults and it's our responsibility to lead.  We can be our children's friends when they are an adult! 

Health Bite:  Provide good nutritional options for children