Please stop feeding my child junk!!
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When DD started eating solids, she did not like pureed baby food and I was not going to force her to eat it - I sent in her food to daycare. We reached an amicable decision on what shapes, sizes, types of food we would provide and which met their guidelines - we got DD's doctor to write a letter that she was fine with this approach too. Things like cooked carrot fingers were OK, blueberries were not, even though we had no problem with them at home. The daycare centers we choose had menus published every week and they were definitely on the healthy side, BUT they had clear guidelines on what their food policy was and they were accredited by the NAEYC (in the US), a large part of whose accreditation process includes respecting the culture of the family and wishes of the parents.
As for friends/family - this is a tough one, but since the OP provides the odd treat at home, I'm sure her child will have no problem eating the odd treat elsewhere. We have had occasions when treats happen too often, and we just stepped in and said "no, she's had enough". Sure you might get a tantrum, but you stick with it, and when they get older it's easier to teach about healthy eating and respecting their bodies.
Quite frankly, the time you get to completely influence what your kids eat is so short, you want to do your best to provide them with the best start in life. I applaud the OP for wanting to do this.2 -
Kimberly_Harper wrote: »You do realize that your whole grain bar has more calories than an Oreo, right?
And your honey oat cereal probably has close to the same amount of sugar as the 'sugary loaded cereal' you're speaking of.
Also, I can't even start to think about how unhealthy it is to prevent your daughter from having a cookie if everyone else has one... Just wow...
Just going to say the same thing as that wise person before me... 'good luck with that'.
I think all of these judgement comments about the oreo are missing the point. The oreo was an example of someone blatantly disregarding/not comprehending the OP's wishes immediately after she had just explained it.
I think a clarifying question "what if everyone else is having an oreo, do you want me not to give it to her?" makes total sense, as that could be an awkward situation/make the child feel different or like she was being left out.
Actually offering her an oreo then (if that's what was happening, it didn't seem clear) or waving it in front of her face to make a point or something just seems weird and, sure, objectionable.2 -
You do realize that your whole grain bar has more calories than an Oreo, right?
And your honey oat cereal probably has close to the same amount of sugar as the 'sugary loaded cereal' you're speaking of.
Also, I can't even start to think about how unhealthy it is to prevent your daughter from having a cookie if everyone else has one... Just wow...
Just going to say the same thing as that wise person before me... 'good luck with that'.
This is where context and the overall diet comes into play - as we know, comparing two foods side by side really doesn't tell you anything.
So the Oreo has less calories, but it likely also has fewer nutrients than the whole grain bar. Is the child going to be getting a treat later in the day, or did they have one recently? If so, maybe the Oreo isn't the right choice. If not, perhaps it's ok. It's not just about calories. Same for the cereal and the sugar content.
I disagree that it's unhealthy for her daughter not to have a cookie if everyone else is having one. There are plenty of instances where I've said "no" to a treat when all of the other kids around are getting one (ice cream truck comes to mind) - everything in moderation, right? It seems like the OP moderates by frequency of treats, and that's a perfectly acceptable way to do it.
Given the number of posts we see in this community about problems with food pushers and people who won't respect other people's boundaries with food, there seems to be a bit of value in teaching children that you don't need to have a treat just because everyone else is having one, and not every activity has to involve treats.7 -
I don't think it's inherently unhealthy (and didn't say it was) for a child not to eat an oreo when everyone else is, but it's a difficult situation for the caregiver and needs to be addressed if she's handing out oreos to all children but one. A very young child who hasn't been explained the reasons would likely feel like she's being treated differently BY THE CAREGIVER. That's a very different situation than one mom saying no when other moms say yes.
If I were the caregiver I'd certainly ask about it and want to make sure the mom explained it to the child if the answer was no (and I'd think that some moms would say that in that situation -- especially if rare, as with the oreo day another poster mentioned -- oh, yeah, one occasional oreo is fine).
Doesn't change the fact that waving or offering the oreo during the conversation is odd and inappropriate and would have bothered me, if it happened as described.
Francl's point that many pretend healthy treats like whole grain bars aren't much more nutritious than a cookie and may well have more sugar is true. But depends on the treat, maybe it's a super healthy homemade bar, of course.0 -
Studies regularly show that kids who are denied junk food tend to have problems with overeating when they make their own food decisions on their own. I can personally relate to this as it's exactly what happened in my household. Instead of demonizing the junk food, teach her how to consume it in moderation. The minute something becomes off limits and has an emotional element associated with it, that's when it becomes part of a psychosis.
It's great that your child likes to eat a variety of foods and enjoys trying new things. Many children are raised on kool-aid and chicken nuggets, and won't even look at a vegetable. You can't avoid the junk food though and it's best to just teach her that there's nothing special about it, it's just food. My experience with kids is if to use junk food as an opportunity to learn about consequences. "If you eat this oreo now, you can't have <insert name of other tasty treat kid likes> later. Do you want this oreo now or <tasty treat> later?" Which is pretty much what I have to do with myself now!!
Good luck!! 1 -
SarcasmIsMyLoveLanguage wrote: »First child?
Listen, I commend what you're trying to do but you might need to relax the grip a little. Your job is to teach your child healthy habits which will serve her well in the long term. If you put your child in a bubble, you risk her going hog-wild once she's old enough to realize she can make her own choices when you're not around. Children are smart, she will understand the difference between healthful foods and the occasional treat. Just the other day I asked my 5 year old son if he wanted to go for a slurpee....he responded no thank you. What five year old does that? One who has been taught what foods are healthy for his body and help him grow, and what is okay to eat as a treat once in a while, and that he doesn't need to stuff his face with treats whenever the opportunity presents itself. I currently have a bowl of easter treats (including his fave, chocolate) sitting openly on the counter which hasn't been touched in weeks. It's not taboo, therefore not interesting.
Oh and by the way, all bets are off when the munchkins are at the Grandparents' house. That's just part of the deal of having kids, the grandparents do whatever they want without consequence
What she said.
And BTW, once organized sports start, your child will likely get a junk food treat after each game. Always found that ironic, but I guess as long as its within their calorie count....0 -
Studies regularly show that kids who are denied junk food tend to have problems with overeating when they make their own food decisions on their own. I can personally relate to this as it's exactly what happened in my household. Instead of demonizing the junk food, teach her how to consume it in moderation. The minute something becomes off limits and has an emotional element associated with it, that's when it becomes part of a psychosis.
It's great that your child likes to eat a variety of foods and enjoys trying new things. Many children are raised on kool-aid and chicken nuggets, and won't even look at a vegetable. You can't avoid the junk food though and it's best to just teach her that there's nothing special about it, it's just food. My experience with kids is if to use junk food as an opportunity to learn about consequences. "If you eat this oreo now, you can't have <insert name of other tasty treat kid likes> later. Do you want this oreo now or <tasty treat> later?" Which is pretty much what I have to do with myself now!! Good luck!!
I take this information with a grain of salt; it doesn’t apply to everybody and based on my own experience it is bogus. I never ate junk food as a child or as a teen and not even as an adult, and I am not interested in doing it now, and I didn’t really have a weight problem either. Please don’t generalize just because it applied to you; it may apply to same people but it will not apply to everybody.
Some of those "studies" are based on retrospective data, and we all know that that kind of information will be incomplete and probably bias.3 -
Thank you for those who are on the same page that took the time to comprehend the ENTIRE context of my post without even needing to elaborate with a "play-by-play"of her entire daily food offerings. Maybe I should have rephrased the title to say EXCESSIVE junk. I also accept that some might disagree, but I'm a little bit thrown off that some of the responses I've received have been rather presumptuous in nature.
Now to attempt to clear up some of the common misconceptions...
I don't know how many times I need to clarify that my child is not deprived of, just limited the amount and frequency of junk...I feed her way better then I do myself because I don't want her to end up like me ( I am also simultaneously taking steps to work on myself so I can lead by example ) either way I am the parent and I am responsible for what she eats and it would be an injustice to her to knowingly implement poor choices for her.
-My daughters pediatrician said that she is beyond impressed with what she eats. She actually went as far as saying that most parents either don't know or just don't care what their children eat and commended me for my efforts. I consider her a very REPITUBLE SOURCE. All the studies that I find where kids get unlimited junk get dependent on it. They will not eat a vegetable, they do not like apples or any fruit because they only know apple pie, or fruit snacks. When presented with food in its natural form they think it's disgusting! When medically advises to go healthy, they can not stick to eating real foods because all the processed foods ruined their palets for life! I refuse to accept a Facebook article saying that: "Kids who eat unlimited junk grow up to not want junk." It is someone's job to ensure that Nabisco stays in buisness and half those articles are probably written by an employee. Aka someone who does not have children's best interests in mind. Anyone can make up psycho-babble and present it as fact.
To those who criticized the fact that my child does not get UNLIMITED junk, what exactly do you feed your kids?!? If you offer them a raw vegetable as a snack would they happily eat it? Why are you so offended that my kid likes both veggies and cookies but gets more veggies then cookies in her meals? I did not know that a child regularly eating her fruits and vegetables is considered a negative thing? **These are rhetorical questions by the way!!
-The particular "Oreo" that keeps on getting referenced in the comments WAS indeed SYMBOLIC! My daughter and husband share a cookie (or two) every few days. I FORGOT to mention that I did not want her having open access to that day cares entire bowl of cookies, donuts, or cheese puffs every day like the other kids there do. I know if I chose this daycare that she would have ignored my wishes due to her own convenience! Coincidentally, Some of those kids appeared very unhealthy and I did not want to subject my child to that environment.
- I WOULD NOT CARE IF my daughters SNACK BAR HAS MORE CALORIES then the Oreo! I never said that I cared about her calories and will not NOT control her calorie intake /portions at age 1. When fed properly they learn to regulate on their own when they are done eating. (F.Y.I. Rationing a young child's calories can be considered a FORM OF CHILD ABUSE) Limiting unhealthy SOURCES is what I practice with her. (I read the labels of almost every packaged and boxed snack and cereal in the store and for her daily meals pick the ones that have the least amount of sugar, hydrogenated, and processed ingredients. I'd rather have my daughter eat 200 calories of natural peanut butter then 150 calories of ice cream! ---Which she does have in moderation!!)
I definitely think this topic is an area agree to disagree. I will happily ignore any further commentary that uses sarcasm and insults. In contrast, after reading all of the supportive comments I'm so glad that I am not the only one who feels that my children should be eating healthy snacks6 -
I'll leave this here:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=iH9IO6iMO78 0 -
Thank you for those who are on the same page that took the time to comprehend the ENTIRE context of my post without even needing to elaborate with a "play-by-play"of her entire daily food offerings. Maybe I should have rephrased the title to say EXCESSIVE junk. I also accept that some might disagree, but I'm a little bit thrown off that some of the responses I've received have been rather presumptuous in nature.
Now to attempt to clear up some of the common misconceptions...
I don't know how many times I need to clarify that my child is not deprived of, just limited the amount and frequency of junk...I feed her way better then I do myself because I don't want her to end up like me ( I am also simultaneously taking steps to work on myself so I can lead by example ) either way I am the parent and I am responsible for what she eats and it would be an injustice to her to knowingly implement poor choices for her.
-My daughters pediatrician said that she is beyond impressed with what she eats. She actually went as far as saying that most parents either don't know or just don't care what their children eat and commended me for my efforts. I consider her a very REPITUBLE SOURCE. All the studies that I find where kids get unlimited junk get dependent on it. They will not eat a vegetable, they do not like apples or any fruit because they only know apple pie, or fruit snacks. When presented with food in its natural form they think it's disgusting! When medically advises to go healthy, they can not stick to eating real foods because all the processed foods ruined their palets for life! I refuse to accept a Facebook article saying that: "Kids who eat unlimited junk grow up to not want junk." It is someone's job to ensure that Nabisco stays in buisness and half those articles are probably written by an employee. Aka someone who does not have children's best interests in mind. Anyone can make up psycho-babble and present it as fact.
To those who criticized the fact that my child does not get UNLIMITED junk, what exactly do you feed your kids?!? If you offer them a raw vegetable as a snack would they happily eat it? Why are you so offended that my kid likes both veggies and cookies but gets more veggies then cookies in her meals? I did not know that a child regularly eating her fruits and vegetables is considered a negative thing? **These are rhetorical questions by the way!!
-The particular "Oreo" that keeps on getting referenced in the comments WAS indeed SYMBOLIC! My daughter and husband share a cookie (or two) every few days. I FORGOT to mention that I did not want her having open access to that day cares entire bowl of cookies, donuts, or cheese puffs every day like the other kids there do. I know if I chose this daycare that she would have ignored my wishes due to her own convenience! Coincidentally, Some of those kids appeared very unhealthy and I did not want to subject my child to that environment.
- I WOULD NOT CARE IF my daughters SNACK BAR HAS MORE CALORIES then the Oreo! I never said that I cared about her calories and will not NOT control her calorie intake /portions at age 1. When fed properly they learn to regulate on their own when they are done eating. (F.Y.I. Rationing a young child's calories can be considered a FORM OF CHILD ABUSE) Limiting unhealthy SOURCES is what I practice with her. (I read the labels of almost every packaged and boxed snack and cereal in the store and for her daily meals pick the ones that have the least amount of sugar, hydrogenated, and processed ingredients. I'd rather have my daughter eat 200 calories of natural peanut butter then 150 calories of ice cream! ---Which she does have in moderation!!)
I definitely think this topic is an area agree to disagree. I will happily ignore any further commentary that uses sarcasm and insults. In contrast, after reading all of the supportive comments I'm so glad that I am not the only one who feels that my children should be eating healthy snacks
The bolded part: kids follow examples. I know, I wish it was different. "Do as a I say not as I do" is something I really really wish would work and I obviously guilty of attempting it in all aspects of parenting. It does not work.
You can control such things only with a very young child and then it always fails. Change your family's eating habits, or all these efforts will be for nothing. I 100% understand and like what you are trying to do, but it cannot work like this. You need to get your family to eating healthy food, including healthy versions of treats, not ration the treats and not have different rules for different family members. If your diet at home is balanced, if your child sees you make good choices for everyone and share the same healthier versions of treats, show by example what is a normal portion etc, then she will be fine with the occasional treat. If you have special meals for her, eat different treats etc, the whole thing will fail.
Also, since it looks like healthy eating is very important to you, I would strongly encourage you to try to prepare more things at home. No matter how carefully you read labels, your child is still seeing a packaged treat and gets used to this eating style. Since you do not want her to see e.g. oreos as a daily snack, this will not work if she daily has cereal bars. Regardless of whether they are healthier (which I seriously doubt) your child cannot see a difference. It is something sweet,processed and comes from a box, just like an oreo. If you want to control nutrients and get her used to making "cleaner" choices, try making things at home: a homemade icecream for example or homemade cookies can be both eaten daily, and not necessarily in small quantities, depending on the ingredients.3 -
That is a helpful perspective that I am actually working on... Just this week I began to make her homemade snack bars, and smoothies to replace a lot of her prepackaged stuff especially at home. We usually use the packaged stuff to keep on hand for situations where it is not ideal to have the fresher counterparts
it was a bit difficult for a while because I was contending with severe pregnancy nausea for the past 3 months so I compromised the best I could. It's finally starting to go away now and I can now be in the kitchen without running to the bathroom to (ahemm) vomit.
Thank you for those who are on the same page that took the time to comprehend the ENTIRE context of my post without even needing to elaborate with a "play-by-play"of her entire daily food offerings. Maybe I should have rephrased the title to say EXCESSIVE junk. I also accept that some might disagree, but I'm a little bit thrown off that some of the responses I've received have been rather presumptuous in nature.
Now to attempt to clear up some of the common misconceptions...
I don't know how many times I need to clarify that my child is not deprived of, just limited the amount and frequency of junk...I feed her way better then I do myself because I don't want her to end up like me ( I am also simultaneously taking steps to work on myself so I can lead by example ) either way I am the parent and I am responsible for what she eats and it would be an injustice to her to knowingly implement poor choices for her.
-My daughters pediatrician said that she is beyond impressed with what she eats. She actually went as far as saying that most parents either don't know or just don't care what their children eat and commended me for my efforts. I consider her a very REPITUBLE SOURCE. All the studies that I find where kids get unlimited junk get dependent on it. They will not eat a vegetable, they do not like apples or any fruit because they only know apple pie, or fruit snacks. When presented with food in its natural form they think it's disgusting! When medically advises to go healthy, they can not stick to eating real foods because all the processed foods ruined their palets for life! I refuse to accept a Facebook article saying that: "Kids who eat unlimited junk grow up to not want junk." It is someone's job to ensure that Nabisco stays in buisness and half those articles are probably written by an employee. Aka someone who does not have children's best interests in mind. Anyone can make up psycho-babble and present it as fact.
To those who criticized the fact that my child does not get UNLIMITED junk, what exactly do you feed your kids?!? If you offer them a raw vegetable as a snack would they happily eat it? Why are you so offended that my kid likes both veggies and cookies but gets more veggies then cookies in her meals? I did not know that a child regularly eating her fruits and vegetables is considered a negative thing? **These are rhetorical questions by the way!!
-The particular "Oreo" that keeps on getting referenced in the comments WAS indeed SYMBOLIC! My daughter and husband share a cookie (or two) every few days. I FORGOT to mention that I did not want her having open access to that day cares entire bowl of cookies, donuts, or cheese puffs every day like the other kids there do. I know if I chose this daycare that she would have ignored my wishes due to her own convenience! Coincidentally, Some of those kids appeared very unhealthy and I did not want to subject my child to that environment.
- I WOULD NOT CARE IF my daughters SNACK BAR HAS MORE CALORIES then the Oreo! I never said that I cared about her calories and will not NOT control her calorie intake /portions at age 1. When fed properly they learn to regulate on their own when they are done eating. (F.Y.I. Rationing a young child's calories can be considered a FORM OF CHILD ABUSE) Limiting unhealthy SOURCES is what I practice with her. (I read the labels of almost every packaged and boxed snack and cereal in the store and for her daily meals pick the ones that have the least amount of sugar, hydrogenated, and processed ingredients. I'd rather have my daughter eat 200 calories of natural peanut butter then 150 calories of ice cream! ---Which she does have in moderation!!)
I definitely think this topic is an area agree to disagree. I will happily ignore any further commentary that uses sarcasm and insults. In contrast, after reading all of the supportive comments I'm so glad that I am not the only one who feels that my children should be eating healthy snacks
The bolded part: kids follow examples. I know, I wish it was different. "Do as a I say not as I do" is something I really really wish would work and I obviously guilty of attempting it in all aspects of parenting. It does not work.
You can control such things only with a very young child and then it always fails. Change your family's eating habits, or all these efforts will be for nothing. I 100% understand and like what you are trying to do, but it cannot work like this. You need to get your family to eating healthy food, including healthy versions of treats, not ration the treats and not have different rules for different family members. If your diet at home is balanced, if your child sees you make good choices for everyone and share the same healthier versions of treats, show by example what is a normal portion etc, then she will be fine with the occasional treat. If you have special meals for her, eat different treats etc, the whole thing will fail.
Also, since it looks like healthy eating is very important to you, I would strongly encourage you to try to prepare more things at home. No matter how carefully you read labels, your child is still seeing a packaged treat and gets used to this eating style. Since you do not want her to see e.g. oreos as a daily snack, this will not work if she daily has cereal bars. Regardless of whether they are healthier (which I seriously doubt) your child cannot see a difference. It is something sweet,processed and comes from a box, just like an oreo. If you want to control nutrients and get her used to making "cleaner" choices, try making things at home: a homemade icecream for example or homemade cookies can be both eaten daily, and not necessarily in small quantities, depending on the ingredients.
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I had originally avoided responding to this because honestly, I can rationalize both sides. I agree that people should respect your choices as a parent and they shouldn't be trying to give your child food you don't want her to have. However, I can also see their point and can see how it may look like you over react when you get mad if they offer her something. Over reaction or not, they should not be going against your wishes, especially if they are a direct caregiver. Hope that makes sense lol.
While I don't have kids (yet) I do worry that someone would offer my child something they shouldn't have. I have to keep a strict gf, wheat/barley/oat free home since I am deathly allergic, even if I just touch it (have had such bad reactions that I stopped breathing). I am going to have to ensure that any future kids don't bring that stuff home/are not offered it outside the home. I have a feeling that I will also meet resistance with that.
Good for you for standing your ground.3 -
If it were me I would continue doing what you're doing at home, it's important at their age that you introduce them to a wide range of foods, however do be prepared for her to get fussier as she gets older! My daughter who would previously eat everything I gave her has got a lot more selective as she gets older and won't eat meat at all now. Find a childcare setting that you're happy with and as far as family goes I would have a word saying you would prefer her not to eat too much sugary food but let them treat her as well, it won't hurt her to have treats when she's at grandparents as long as she eats well the rest of the time. You really do need to pick your battles when it comes to family and your children. Most importantly try and relax a little bit, otherwise your anxiety about food will rub off on her. Best of luck x1
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You do realize that your whole grain bar has more calories than an Oreo, right?
And your honey oat cereal probably has close to the same amount of sugar as the 'sugary loaded cereal' you're speaking of.
Also, I can't even start to think about how unhealthy it is to prevent your daughter from having a cookie if everyone else has one... Just wow...
Just going to say the same thing as that wise person before me... 'good luck with that'.
This is where context and the overall diet comes into play - as we know, comparing two foods side by side really doesn't tell you anything.
So the Oreo has less calories, but it likely also has fewer nutrients than the whole grain bar. Is the child going to be getting a treat later in the day, or did they have one recently? If so, maybe the Oreo isn't the right choice. If not, perhaps it's ok. It's not just about calories. Same for the cereal and the sugar content.
I disagree that it's unhealthy for her daughter not to have a cookie if everyone else is having one. There are plenty of instances where I've said "no" to a treat when all of the other kids around are getting one (ice cream truck comes to mind) - everything in moderation, right? It seems like the OP moderates by frequency of treats, and that's a perfectly acceptable way to do it.
Given the number of posts we see in this community about problems with food pushers and people who won't respect other people's boundaries with food, there seems to be a bit of value in teaching children that you don't need to have a treat just because everyone else is having one, and not every activity has to involve treats.
Your logic is messed up. There's a big difference between someone passing on something that he doesn't want, and telling someone that no, even he wants it, he can't have it, even though everyone else is having one. I know that if everyone in my kids' class was having a cupcake and my kids were offered a granola bar instead all the time, they'd end up with a pretty screwed up relationship with food (and of themselves too, wondering what must be wrong with them that they can't eat like everyone else).
Nice burden to give to your kids, if you ask me (not).
Obviously, if the kid would rather eat a granola bar, it's totally different. But I don't see OP even mentioning her kid's opinion there.8 -
All I'm really taking from this thread is that I can't believe granola bars are still being marketed and sold. Didn't they devolve into fodder for 1970s parody along with EST training seminars, Dr. Scholls and Erogenous Zone authors?
Lol! I love granola bars. Too many calories for me to have often though.0 -
Diabetes, heart attack, hypertension obesity and other diet related illnesses run in mine and my husbands family, so ever since my daughter started solid foods, I've been feeding her predominantly balanced and healthy food choices. Her diet includes lots of fresh fruits, veggies, cheeses, eggs, nuts, seeds, beans, yogurts whole grain bread/pasta/cereals I give her a mix of both lean and fatty cuts of meats because children NEED a certain percentage of animal fats in their diets. For beverages either whole milk, or home/made vegetable smoothies. She gets the occasional cookie or cracker every now and then, and we let her eat whatever she wants at birthday parties, holidays and special events. We might even go out for ice cream once every few weeks or so, but it is not an every day occurence The problem we are having is that whenever she is someone else's care or around other people despite having her own food people offer her JUNK! They know she loves to eat a banana dipped in peanut butter or a cup of yogurt with some raspberries and would intentionally give her a bag of cheese curls or a plate of cookies instead! She has a nice whole grain honey-oat cereal but has been given a commercial sugar-loaded bowl of junk. Of course after eating junk food for a day she has a bit of resistance when returning home and is offered a healthy dinner. I just don't understand why it gives people so much pleasure to feed my child junk food when she is accustomed to and LIKES her healthy eats?!? I recently interviewed a potential child care provider for when I return to work full-time and even after I just got done explaining to her that I like my daughter to eat healthy, she waved a cookie in my daughters face and asked if ok to give my daughter an Oreo along with the other kids...I thought it was a joke!! But absolutely nothing I said sunk in. I kindly said (as I pulled it out of the diaper bag) "I'd rather her have this whole grain snack bar instead"
Any tips on how to politely and effectively suggest that certain people stop doping up my kid on the junk food, or at least limit it?!
Tell them Flat out please do not give her the junk food, I have provided snacks! That simple good luck1 -
I know that if everyone in my kids' class was having a cupcake and my kids were offered a granola bar instead all the time, they'd end up with a pretty screwed up relationship with food (and of themselves too, wondering what must be wrong with them that they can't eat like everyone else).
very well put0 -
extra_medium wrote: »I know that if everyone in my kids' class was having a cupcake and my kids were offered a granola bar instead all the time, they'd end up with a pretty screwed up relationship with food (and of themselves too, wondering what must be wrong with them that they can't eat like everyone else).
very well put
I agree with this. We, as parents, can teach our children about nutrition and help them eat a healthy diet without denying them the feeling of belonging to the group. It's getting more difficult as our fellow Westerners sit on their *kitten* more and more and shovel in the chips, but there is a balance and I'm not sure it's where we feed our kids granola bars at birthday parties.0 -
Have you looked into center-based daycares? (Think Bright Horizons, etc) they have more tightly controlled "snacks" etc vs an in-home daycare. Someone who runs an in-home daycare most likely buys snacks at big box stores that are more cost-effective, hence Goldfish and Oreos, and will also offer your child the same snacks they are giving everyone else, just because that's what you do, right It can be frustrating because you feel like you're not being heard, but unless you are providing her with enough of a snack you approve to offer all the kids, she will probably continue to offer your child what she does to all the others.
This will only be a problem for you for a couple of years - once your kids are in school you have to provide the snacks, so unless you let them buy the school lunch you have control over what you pack. (Alas, no control whether they trade with a friend!)2 -
SkinnyGirlCarrie wrote: »Have you looked into center-based daycares? (Think Bright Horizons, etc) they have more tightly controlled "snacks" etc vs an in-home daycare. Someone who runs an in-home daycare most likely buys snacks at big box stores that are more cost-effective, hence Goldfish and Oreos, and will also offer your child the same snacks they are giving everyone else, just because that's what you do, right It can be frustrating because you feel like you're not being heard, but unless you are providing her with enough of a snack you approve to offer all the kids, she will probably continue to offer your child what she does to all the others.
This will only be a problem for you for a couple of years - once your kids are in school you have to provide the snacks, so unless you let them buy the school lunch you have control over what you pack. (Alas, no control whether they trade with a friend!)
^This.0
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