Makes NO sense!!!

sashaverlene

I'm just going to point out that I have no kids, but there are a few things that I've been wondering about that I've seen parents do. PLEASE feel free to give your opinion on these things too, parent or not, yay or nay!

1. You wouldn't give a 10-day old, 10-week old, or 10-month old soda... so why give a 10 YEAR old some?

2. Many schools have P.E. so, children are obviously learning how to be active and get exercise, right? Well, shouldn't the schools offer a class or something that also teaches them how to eat healthy instead of giving them pizza, nachos, chips and burgers for lunch? Parents can teach them, but the whole point of school is to get an education. I think those things are important to learn at an early age instead of being an overweight adult trying to make lifestyle changes. (I don't know how it is with other schools, but I didn't see a salad bar until I was in the 11th grade of high school! Before that, it was disgusting options on the menu, and no one at home was eating healthier either.)

3. How many of you would actually be delighted if there was (or know of) a store that did NOT sell anything with preservatives or "additives" or any other horrendous chemicals, and instead sold only healthy things that you wouldn't feel guilty about eating 5 minutes later?

That_Girl

I believe that everything should be in moderation.

My 11 year old has a 7up when we go out to dinner....the 2 times a month we go out.

Sometimes we get random sodas because it just sounds good. They aren't in the house though.

School is for an education. As a teacher, I can say that there are health classes. I teach my students about nutrition and portion size, etc. I teach my daughters as well.

Also. as a parent, I make my kids their lunches. On rare occasion she gets pizza but that is a rare case. For the most part, I send them to school with their own food. Why? Because it's better for them.

Everything in moderation. My children are healthy and in the right range for weight according to their height.

luv2ash

I love question 3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am disgusted when I go to the store. End caps are never full of healthy stuff. And how about restaurants. Oh yea, lets load that dish with fat and calories so we can get fat and keep coming back for more!!!

Our schools do have some sort of program implemented in them (where I live) that makes sure all their hot meals meet certain requirements. However, when they get to middle school, kids have the option of choosing the balanced hot meal, or a la cart, which consists of pizza, burgers, cookies. That part I am not happy about. However, my children bring cold lunch to school every day.

Soda???? TABOO!!!!!

imperfectlyhere

I also agree kids CAN have soda in MODERATION...My kids rarely get soda but yes they have it mostly when we eat out which is rare. I see nothing wrong with them having it occasionally. I educate my kids on healthy eating and why we can't have mcDonalds everyday and why we must eat their veggi.I agree school lunches could be more healthy which is why my kids take their lunch most days and their school does have a salad bar but in my 5 year old words "mommy their salads just aren't as good as yours!" The school lunches have improved but need to be BETTER...

antipholous

I have at least one diet coke a day...at least.

NurseLocke

#1- It's all about education and financial situations. Where I live, a 2L costs $2.00 but a gallon of milk costs $4.25 and 100% juice costs the same. Parents don't think about the effects of that much concentrated sugar on their child's teeth. Chewing gum is another thing that kills me. While doing clinicals in a doctor's office for school, a woman came in with her 3 children because of tooth aches. She said she "limits their pop intake to 3 glasses a day" and followed that sentence by asking all 3 kids if they wanted some bubble gum for 'being good'. It's something that needs to be reinforced early.
#2- The food in schools is a hot topic for many schools for a while. It's cheaper to by easy crap than to buy fresh, local, healthy foods. That topic needs to be taken to your local school board meetings and addressed.
#3- There are such stores! They are called your local farmer's market!! So many people take for granted what they have in their own community! And kids LOVE going there!

It's nice to see people without children noticing!

ajbeans

You wouldn't give a 10-day-old soda because they're an infant. A 10-year-old's system is a bit more developed. I see nothing wrong with soda once in a while. All the time is a problem, and I wouldn't give them anything with caffeine, but a Sprite here and there is no big thing.

Most schools do cover healthy eating in health class. They don't always offer the healthiest options for lunch, but I had health class all through school until 10th grade, and they always talked about healthy foods. It didn't stick with me, but I learned it.

I would not actually like a store like that. Because it would probably be high-priced and snobbish. I can make my own decisions. A cupcake once in a while is not a bad thing in and of itself. And anyway, you can get unhealthy and overweight even eating nothing but "healthy" foods. So no, I would not appreciate a store like that. I'll stick with my friendly neighborhood supermarket and learn to read labels. That's what labels are for.

antipholous

Hrm...my "health" class was only a ruse to promote abstinence. We learned about every STD known to humankind, saw very detailed and gross pictures of said diseases, but never learned about healthy eating. In fact, I never learned how to eat healthy in school...not once. We did cover the food pyramid one day in the 3rd grade.

sashaverlene

Yes! I totally agree with you guys on packing their lunches for schools and working with them yourselves. It REALLY made me happy reading that. I think cafeterias should offer calorie menus or something- for those kids that get free lunch and have to eat food from the school. I know I am definitely going to be preparing lunches when I have kids. And restaurants TRY to offer their healthy menu, but it's not that healthy because all they tell you is the amount of calories. Not sodium, fat, or anything that we should really be paying attention to. I LOVE how Denny's and iHop have menus that tell you everything down the T about one piece of bacon. It's really helpful!

Wolfena

Regarding topic #2

My daughter is in middle school - she has a salad bar. The school only uses wheat bread and white milk. They've switched over a lot of the canned sweetened fruit they served and now serve fresh. They've drastically changed the menu over the past few years.... she's my youngest, my other two are in their early-mid 20's now, I'm very impressed with the school lunches these days as compared to what they used to be.

(She, however - hates them)

shaheerahs

I'm a mom of a 15, 13, & 11 year old.

1. I refuse to buy sodas. They are just a waste of calories, plus diabetes runs in my family and all that sugar is definitely not something they need.

2. I think having nutrition classes in school is a cool idea, so far mine haven't had one. School food here could definitely use a lot of improvement too.

3. I would love to find a store like that, for myself and my kids. I really don't know why it is necessary to put so many chemicals in food anyway. I guess for most companies its all about what will bring in the most profit.

sashaverlene

#3- There are such stores! They are called your local farmer's market!! So many people take for granted what they have in their own community! And kids LOVE going there!

When I lived in California, my Grandma took me to one called Larry's Farm when I was little, and I'd just play with the peacocks and piglets until they finished getting fruit! I LOVE farms... REAL farms. Unfortunately, I now live in Vegas, and the only "farms" around where I live are slaughter houses. I really have to do some research on finding a farm in this desert.

JABehler

I am a old grandma now. My kids are grown and have children of their own. Watching my children parent tells me I did a fairly good job. They monitor the amount of sugars and fats their children are allowed to have. I remember all the protesting I got from my kids growing up when they wanted cereals when sugar was one of the first three ingredients. That was a big no in our house. I was an at-home mom so many of our meals were home cooked with me knowing what ingredients went into what. We only ate out once a week and that was for pizza.
As a grandparent and teacher I need to remind you that parents are the FIRST teachers. You bear the first responsibility to teaching your child how to walk, to talk, to eat, personal hygiene, social skills, and making good decisions. Our school systems attempt to pick up where parents leave off. Our school teaches health, nutrition, manners etc. supplementing our parents lessons.Our schools responsibility also includes teaching the reading, writing, math, science and social sciences.
As more americans begin to realize that all those fast foods and convenience foods are full of chemicals, and not all that good for our bodies and our children, hopefully they will demand and buy more organic and fresh foods and cook at home.Unfortunately until more people come on board for many families with limited incomes will not be able to afford organic and fresh foods. Too many families live pay check to pay check and can't see into the future beyond spending what is now in their bank.
So I challenge you....teach your nieces and nephews if you don't have children of your own how to make good choices in eating habits. Set the example of buying locally grown foods where you know where it came from. If we all send the message that we want to eat healthy then hopefully the big food processers will back off the additives. Live wise.

auntiebabs

Excuse me if I come off like a zealot, but just let me say this.... SUGAR IS THE DEVIL!!!!!

Okay, okay I've calmed down what really bothers me is the AMOUNT OF SUGARS (under so many different names) I find in "REAL FOOD" or in food that the manufactures say are "HEALTHY"

Food Manufactures dump all sorts of sugars in to food because it increases the appetite and that increases sales. It's a lovely cycle which I think this is a major contributor to our obesity problem in this country. (not to mention that the Govt. subsidize the corn crops, that create the High Fructose Corn Syrup, thus encouraging the food manufactures. So on one hand they tell us about personal responsibility and to eat healthier, but on the other hand they're not willing to change their policies)

Years ago I figured out that sugar increases my appetite from my own body's reaction. The first time I asked a scientist about this I said "Am I crazy or what...?" I'm an artist and I keep forget the actual science behind this but I've asked reputable sources... biochemists, nutritionists and diabetics. Who all came up with the same explanation about how the pancreas works.

Turns out that many things I thought of as "REAL FOODs" have a ton of sugar. I know that NutriGrain Bars have 11 different types of sugars. Out of the 37g serving size 12g of that is sugar.

I had a lean cuisine meal the other day that 18g of sugars in it. That's TWICE as much sugar as my favorite cookies (9g for 15 cookies). Sure, the lean cuisine only had 320 cal, but I was starving all evening and that leave me with 2 choices... SUFFER or EAT MORE.

Personally, I'd rather have my real food be REAL FOOD and save the sugar to enjoy a TREAT now and again. When I came up in the 60s food was real and a RING DING or a HO HO was a TREAT. Yes, it's an unhealthy gooey sugarbomb. But it was not everyday food it was a special TREAT. I think it's a crying shame that kids can't (or shouldn't) have a treat any more because there is so much crap in "REAL FOOD".

Okay, I don't have kids, but as a former nanny, a former teacher, an aunt of 12 I'm quite opinionated about kids. And as someone who has battled a weight problem her whole life I'm quite opinionated about food too.

That_Girl

Hrm...my "health" class was only a ruse to promote abstinence. We learned about every STD known to humankind, saw very detailed and gross pictures of said diseases, but never learned about healthy eating. In fact, I never learned how to eat healthy in school...not once. We did cover the food pyramid one day in the 3rd grade.

You should have been in my class!! We talk about portion control, balanced meals, "real" vs. "created" foods, "diet" anything, smart choices AND moderation. Yes, you CAN have cheetos...no you CAN'T eat the whole bag in one day.



Oh, I promote abstinence too lol!! I hate to. Where I teach, kids start having sex in the 6th grade. One of my previous students just had a baby. She's 13. Guess she didn't listen in class ...LOL!

ginlizbeth

I noticed you live in Vegas. I do too. There is a farm! Gilcrease Orchard. It is open May-December. 7800 N Tenaya Way. 702-645-1126. There are a few crops like Zucinni but tons of fruit trees and a pumpkin patch in the fall.

sashaverlene

I noticed you live in Vegas. I do too. There is a farm! Gilcrease Orchard. It is open May-December. 7800 N Tenaya Way. 702-645-1126. There are a few crops like Zucinni but tons of fruit trees and a pumpkin patch in the fall.

Thank you SO much! Address and everything, perfect! ... now to wait until May... haha

dwarfer22

I have 2 kids and the only time I buy soda is for special occasions as a treat because, yes, it is evil, and yes, it is yummy. Second, you (and when I say "you" I mean "parents") can go online or sometimes kids bring home a calendar of food for the month. If it's not that horrible, they can eat it, if it is awful, I pack a lunch. Schools unfortunatly are there to educate kids basically to get them to pass standardized tests. THe better the scores, the more money they get from the gov. It is a crappy system we have but it's our current reality and we have to deal with it. So no, they are not going to teach our kids portion control, and the evils of sugar, or that processed foods will lead them to a life of obesity and disease. They teach math, science, english, history. Period. At my son's school, music is GONE! no music class. Gym is once a week for less than an hour. We as parents need to take the bull by the horns and do it ourselves. To be honest, I don't think most parents of urban public school kids even know what all their kids do at school on a daily basis. I am quite blessed in that my son is super intelligent and loves to learn about everything and he also likes to pass along that knowledge so I am always in the loop.

I guess all we can do is be the best role models we can and make sure that a: we stay informed about their education and b: we fill in the gaps on our own and teach them to be healthy adults.

fitnesspirateninja

#3- There are such stores! They are called your local farmer's market!! So many people take for granted what they have in their own community! And kids LOVE going there!

When I lived in California, my Grandma took me to one called Larry's Farm when I was little, and I'd just play with the peacocks and piglets until they finished getting fruit! I LOVE farms... REAL farms. Unfortunately, I now live in Vegas, and the only "farms" around where I live are slaughter houses. I really have to do some research on finding a farm in this desert.

Here's a list of Farmer's Markets in your area:
http://www.localharvest.org/search.jsp?map=1&lat=35.994630&lon=-115.118970&scale=9&ty=-1&nm=&zip=89044