Using a food scale in front of your kids

Lounmoun

haibu wrote: »

just looking for some opinions/thoughts here (particularly from mothers of daughters). I've been thinking about getting a food scale to help me with this last stretch (the vanity pounds).

That said, I'm currently at a healthy weight and size. And, well, I'm kind of hesitant about using a food scale in front of my kids and having to explain why...does that make sense? Like, my body is a healthy weight and, at this point, I'm just working on composition and, well, looks/vanity. Do I really want to get into that with my kids? I guess I'm afraid I'll project some unhealthy ideas about food and body image.

I don't know how old your kids are but I would just approach it as wanting to eat the right portion size and that while you like yourself you want to make just a few changes. if you don't make using a kitchen scale a big deal or say negative things about your body/weight then I doubt they will think, "Mom is weighing her food. Everything she says is a lie. I must be fat and ugly."

My dd is 15. I have been open with her about my weight loss and it has not been an issue. It is just something I do. I want to be at a healthy weight. I want clothes to fit better. I want to be more fit. That doesn't mean that I hate myself, that I'm starving myself, getting surgery or exercising 5 hours a day. I'm just eating a bit less and moving more.

rowlandsw

I don't see the problem, it's no different than using a measuring cup. In fact they suggest you weigh ingredients when baking.

JAllen32

I have had no problem using mine in front of my family. It is an example of a healthy lifestyle. If you want to learn proper portion sizes, it is a necessary tool. I want my daughter to know that there are proper portion sizes.

KC5115

fish2find wrote: »

I agree with the "recipe" comparison. 35 plus years ago I worked at a Hagaan Das (sp) and Round Table and we measured everything. RT just wanted consistent pies and HD it was a budget deal. I think many weigh for many reasons and your kids see it everywhere. I think these are the habits our kids see that are really good for them to see. (IMO)

I think that's a great idea! There is nothing wrong with being taught how to fuel your body properly.

Wiseandcurious

victoria_1024 wrote: »

I'm just honest about what I'm doing and I tell my kids that it's for figuring out the correct servings sizes. They notice that I use it and notice that daddy doesn't

This is the case with me, too. Have explained to my 9yo daughter, who thankfully has a normal appetite and body and is sporty like her father, that I got the way I am - overweight and unfit - because I don't have the skill that she and her dad have of judging their portions so I am learning it and the scale is a tool to help me. And because I didn't use to move a lot, but now I do. She finds it all rather reasonable and hasn't given it a second thought.

Also, here (Quebec) they get a lot of initiatives at school to learn good nutrition, for example she monitors her own food to include three different food groups at every meal or almost and really enjoys that, so to her I guess it's natural that good nutrition is something you learn and some people didn't learn it well as kids so have to try to learn it later in life, like her mum.

Need2Exerc1se

rowlandsw wrote: »

I don't see the problem, it's no different than using a measuring cup. In fact they suggest you weigh ingredients when baking.

Who is "they"? I've never weighed ingredients for baking. I used to bake regularly when I had children at home and never used my scale or had a recipe that gave ingredients in weights. But then, I sometimes measure by eyeballing amount if I don't want to dirty up all the measuring cups/spoons (e.g. just fill the 1 C measuring cup 1/3 for 1/3 C, etc.). My 'from scratch' baked goods always turned out fine.

I have had a kitchen scale for many years but I mostly use it for canning because the wrong acid level can mean spoiled food.

shmulyeng

I_Will_End_You wrote: »

I use mine in front of my 13 year old daughter. I just told her I like to be aware of what I'm consuming, so I know I'm getting the proper amount of food for my body.

There's nothing wrong with being accountable and careful about the amounts you're eating.

JPW1990

Need2Exerc1se wrote: »

rowlandsw wrote: »

I don't see the problem, it's no different than using a measuring cup. In fact they suggest you weigh ingredients when baking.

Who is "they"? I've never weighed ingredients for baking. I used to bake regularly when I had children at home and never used my scale or had a recipe that gave ingredients in weights. But then, I sometimes measure by eyeballing amount if I don't want to dirty up all the measuring cups/spoons (e.g. just fill the 1 C measuring cup 1/3 for 1/3 C, etc.). My 'from scratch' baked goods always turned out fine.

I have had a kitchen scale for many years but I mostly use it for canning because the wrong acid level can mean spoiled food.

Professional bakers. Recipes from mom blogs or sites like food network don't always provide weights, but once you get into serious baking, like variations on sour dough or craft breads, all the recipes are in weights. Some are only in ratios.

kshama2001

wizzybeth wrote: »

DeguelloTex wrote: »

lthames0810 wrote: »

DemoraFairy wrote: »

Whenever I cooked with my mum we always used scales, how else do you accurately follow a recipe? Also used scales in cookery classes at school.

In the US, recipes don't have weights, but rather measuring cups and spoons. We don't commonly have scales in our kitchens. The vast majority of people don't weight their food for the purpose of limiting portions, so it is often viewed as eccentric or disordered behavior.

You're using the wrong recipes.

Nearly every cookbook and recipe I've come across..uses measuring cups and spoons, here in the US.

Including the MFP blog recipes >.<

America's Test Kitchen recipes use cups and ounces.

kshama2001

JPW1990 wrote: »

Need2Exerc1se wrote: »

rowlandsw wrote: »

I don't see the problem, it's no different than using a measuring cup. In fact they suggest you weigh ingredients when baking.

Who is "they"? I've never weighed ingredients for baking. I used to bake regularly when I had children at home and never used my scale or had a recipe that gave ingredients in weights. But then, I sometimes measure by eyeballing amount if I don't want to dirty up all the measuring cups/spoons (e.g. just fill the 1 C measuring cup 1/3 for 1/3 C, etc.). My 'from scratch' baked goods always turned out fine.

I have had a kitchen scale for many years but I mostly use it for canning because the wrong acid level can mean spoiled food.

Professional bakers. Recipes from mom blogs or sites like food network don't always provide weights, but once you get into serious baking, like variations on sour dough or craft breads, all the recipes are in weights. Some are only in ratios.

Yup. First time I saw a scale used in baking was when I volunteered at the kitchen at the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health.

haibu

Thanks for all the responses everyone, it's been super helpful to get a lot of perspectives on this and hear how other people handle it.