Good or Bad Nutritional/Eating Habits Developed Growing Up

urloved33 wrote: »

omg forced to eat that which your body completely rejects. clean yr plate clean yr plate clean yr plate.

Same here! I even had to clean my dessert plate when it was peaches and cottage cheese – – blecchh!! To this day I can't even look at cottage cheese. But I do clean my plate!

The good: We lived about 45 minutes from the nearest restaurant (including fast food) and grocery store so I learned early on how to plan and shop for a month's worth of groceries, how to store food to last that long, and how to cook.

The bad: We didn't really learn proper portion sizes and just had an eat until you're full mentality. Fortunately, we lived in a rural area and didn't have much in the way of tv channels or anything so we spend most of our time outside playing and swimming in the sound/canals (we lived on a small island off the coast of NC).

Good:
* Big garden, lots of fresh produce; wild foods (huckleberries, morels, some game meat/fish); fruit from you-picks that was frozen for winter. (I knew where food came from - lots of farmer relatives.)
* Mom did some canning and jelly making, so those weren't a mystery (and I've done some myself).
* Overwhelmingly home-cooked foods, mostly well-cooked. I learned to cook as age-suitable.
* Varied foods. My mom would try anything once. They required me to try things, but not to eat them beyond trying, if I didn't like them.
* No foods demonized.
* We didn't routinely drink soda/pop. It wasn't forbidden, just not routine - an occasional treat

Bad:
* Not much, really.
* Slight tendency to overcook veggies (not as bad as some)
* As an only child, I was indulged in being allowed to eat kind of odd things. (This was good in the "not demonizing" sense, but I do tend to be self-indulgent still ).
* Both parents had a tendency to eat somewhat too much. (It didn't catch up with my dad, who had a physical job, until post-retirement . . . but then, in his 60s, he actually went on "a diet" back to a healthy weight (self directed portion & food choice changes, not calorie counting - counting wasn't as do-able in the 1980s). Stayed at a decent weight for the rest of his life.

Interesting idea. My family and I have looked at a lot of our old eating habits when I was in in-patient for an eating disorder.

The good-
high quality food and a lot of variety
no shortage of food in the house


the not so good-
no one in my house cooked - almost all of our meals came from a restaurant. (hence the high variety of foods) To them, 150$ a day for us to eat was nothing compared to the inconvenience of cooking. But, I have very little knowledge now of how to cook anything.
funky attitudes towards good/bad food- my parents weren't keen on us eating things that they deemed as "junk." and the rules about food weren't always clear cut, which led to some sneaky eating by my brother and I.

the bad-
zero family interaction at meals- my parents both worked full time and were usually tired when they were off of work. We'd either eat separately or sit across from each other in restaurant on our phones. Usually zero conversation besides "are you ready to order?" and "are you finished."

Good: dinners as a family with vegetables always (also a meat and a starch). Some understanding of home cooking and what easy basic dinners would be. Appreciation for fruit and veg. The idea of snacks/desserts in moderation, not excess or always. We generally drank juice at breakfast, milk at dinner (for the kids), and water at other times. Pop was a special treat if we went out. Koolaid was common as a summer treat when I was a kid. Nothing was really forbidden so I didn't feel like I was trying to sneak anything (or going wild with it later), but eating between meals other than a planned dessert sometimes or small after school snack or Christmas cookies around Christmas wasn't common. I really telling my mom I was hungry and her saying "wait for dinner, it's not long" or "have some fruit." My mom had some weird ideas about dieting of the time (she definitely had the idea that fat wasn't great), but I don't think they were imposed on my sister or me, and neither of us had any weight issues as kids (my sister had a huge sweet tooth and loved sweet cereals as a kid, and has zero interest in sweets now).

Bad: nothing major, my parents definitely had the idea that dinners needed meat to be full dinners. I don't really see it as bad, but they indulged me in my weird food hatreds they saw no harm in (i.e., I was required to eat vegetables, or at least some of them for the few I really hated, but so long as I'd make my own breakfast and lunch I could refuse to eat cereal and sandwiches (I hated "sliced bread") and I did (and for a period of time this sometimes this meant my lunches and breakfasts left a bit to be desired -- I was lazy in the morning and as a teen would skip breakfast or have a powder-based shake of some sort, but I also ate lots of hard boiled eggs and fruit and such). I was required to be polite and eat what was offered me at someone else's house, which I think was a good thing, even though sometimes I'd be creative in trying to pretend I'd eaten when I didn't.

The Good:
We were always encourage to try new things. There was always a variety of food in the house. No food was "good" or "bad". Meals usually consisted of a veggie, a grain, and a meat. So balanced, more or less.
On dad's side, weight loss was talked about in an open and honest manner. Aside from the Atkin's fad of the day, no one tried losing un an unhealthy manner. I think this set up a healthy mindset for me in regards to weight loss.. Also, I was told to just keep an eye on my own weight. Not in a "Hey, you're getting fat!" way. But more of a " Hey, weight problems run in the family. I want you to be healthy and not have to deal with the stuff your grampa/aunt/etc. has had to. Just keep an eye on it." I know for a lot of kids that can be the setup for an ED. But since it was brought up in a gentle, and encouraging manner I think it set me up to have a healthy attitude about weight in general.

The Bad:
Portion control was not a thing. On my mom's side everyone was encouraged to eat seconds and thirds. We're growing kids after all! We could eat what we wanted, and how much we wanted. If I was trying to cut it back a bit, or simply not that hungry my mom would take notice and immediately be concerned. "That's all you're going to eat?? Are you okay honey?" Portion control is something I still struggle with.

The Ugly:
Nothing ugly! Just feeling a little Clint Eastwood-ey.
Although I do remember a few nights at my dad's when they were exhausted and didn't want to cook. Cereal and Ice cream were legit dinners. I have been known to do this once in a while still, lol. Mostly cereal. Not so much ice cream. (Mostly)

My mom always said all things in moderation.

Good things: We had no shortage of food, and my mother often cooked meals. We also cooked and ate together.

Bad: My parents didn't know or really care anything about nutrition, growing up my portion sizes were way too huge and they always gave me junk food like Happy Meals from McDonald's way too often. I was clinically obese as a child, but they really didn't do much about it. As I got older and starting noticing my problem with my weight, I changed my own self without their help (other than them buying the food), withthe guidance of a doctor.

I still love my parents though, they were also raised not knowing about moderation and stuff. I'm just really glad I corrected myself before it was too late, and they're proud that I am mindful of what I consume.

Things I think were good:

- Meals were eaten seated at a table, as a family, and very rarely in front of the TV. Maybe a half dozen times as a teen I took my plate into my bedroom to eat alone.
- Snacking wasn't a big thing.
- Sugary beverages were strongly discouraged. Kool-Aid was made with about 1/3 the suggested sugar and was a rare option in our house, unsweetened tea (even though we're close to the South!), full sugar soda was only for holidays or very special occasions, and juice was moderated (tiny glasses, not served often).
- Breakfast was considered important, eaten every morning and could be anything, even nontraditional stuff like a slice of cold pizza.
- Food wasn't talked about as being good/bad, no one felt "guilty" for eating certain things even though in my teens, my stepmom was often dieting, it really wasn't a huge topic of discussion.

Not so good:

- Second helpings weren't frowned upon at all.
- Vegetables were an afterthought and generally came from a can or were coated in butter.
- We went out to eat a LOT. Many times each week. After church, on Friday nights, etc. It was somewhat celebratory but also such a habit that it didn't seem special, just more of the same, to have fast food or steakhouse meals regularly.
- Dessert followed every lunch AND dinner. Sometimes small/light things like a bit of Jell-O, a small cookie, or pudding. Plenty of times full size slices of pie or cake, often a la mode. Dessert was considered as important as the main course in my house when I was growing up.

newmeadow wrote: »

Tang, Ovaltine, Hi C, Saltines, Skippy, Beefaroni, Cambell's Chicken Noodle, Caro Corn Syrup drunk directly from the bottle for a sugar hit, Hydrox, Underwood Devilled Ham, bologna, Cream of Wheat, Del Monte Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup .

What's wrong with cream of wheat? I always thought of that as an excellent, healthy, iron rich food.

Good: almost no processed food. My mom cooked lots of new recipes all the time from scratch and with whole ingredients.

Bad: I was a picky eater and refused to eat it and would sneak to the convenience store and buy candy.

Not my parents' fault! Totally mine. And this was from an early age. Anyone else do this as a child?

Good: We ate as a family most nights.

Bad: Vegetables were corn and potatoes and occasionally canned string beans. Never even tried broccoli until I was 24, at my then boyfriend's (now husband's) house.

Bagged school lunch was usually a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a three pack of Yankee Doodles.

Breakfast was usually Captain Crunch, Alphabet cereal or Fruity Pebbles.

My mother worked and my father, who was retired, was in charge of dinner. So, we had lots of sandwiches, Kraft Macaroni and Cheese, frozen dinners and pizza. When I didn't care for the meal, I would eat broken up graham crackers in milk.

There was never a shortage of candy, cookies, cake, ice cream and chips. Chips were actually our side dish many nights with our sandwiches.

It's amazing that me or my other siblings never had a weight problem.

artbyrachelh wrote: »

newmeadow wrote: »

Tang, Ovaltine, Hi C, Saltines, Skippy, Beefaroni, Cambell's Chicken Noodle, Caro Corn Syrup drunk directly from the bottle for a sugar hit, Hydrox, Underwood Devilled Ham, bologna, Cream of Wheat, Del Monte Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup .

What's wrong with cream of wheat? I always thought of that as an excellent, healthy, iron rich food.

Good: almost no processed food. My mom cooked lots of new recipes all the time from scratch and with whole ingredients.

Bad: I was a picky eater and refused to eat it and would sneak to the convenience store and buy candy.

Not my parents' fault! Totally mine. And this was from an early age. Anyone else do this as a child?

In my teen years I did that quite a bit with the candy. Treats were definitely not forbidden in my house but I still wanted more of chocolate & stuff. When I started driving, my friends and I made a pit stop every day before school at the convenience store and usually bought Lindt truffles or Reese's cups.

I do remember one summer I spent in the country with friends. They had a big family and not a lot of money. Their only meal options were plain oatmeal, ham or bologna sandwiches, and then whatever dinner their mom cooked and shared between 7 people the portions were pretty small. I was an only child from the city with extra pocket money and once a week we would go to a nearby town and I would eat like 4 Twix bars in a row and buy them for my friends and their brothers/sisters. I couldn't imagine a life without constant desserts and treats and it seemed crazy to me that they never had fast food. Such different lifestyles. I do think part of that was being WAY more active in the country, swimming, riding horses, helping in the garden...I was even hungrier than usual. Oddly enough my two friends (preteens) were just as overweight as I was despite their simpler lifestyle.

Good:
We ate as a family, had discussions during the meal, no distractions like TV.

Bad:
Meat was always well done and vegetables boiled into submission. I was in college before I learned you could eat broccoli, cauliflower etc. raw.

Nothing in the house that could be described as a treat. No pop, chips, cookies, sugar cereals, McDonalds or junk food of any sort. You want a snack? Eat a piece of fruit. I've read in other places that kids who grow up in no-treat houses go bonkers as soon as they get out on their own and that was certainly the case with me. Fortunately I was young enough that I burned it off, but my first year of college I basically lived on McDonalds, Coca-Cola, and barbecue potato chips.

Clean Plate Club, all the way, and my parents fixed plates in the kitchen and brought them to the table with frequently no consideration for the fact that I didn't have an adult-size appetite. No leaving the table until your plate is empty and absolutely no throwing food away because of my mom's post-WWII upbringing in Germany. I had to overcome a lot of programming to take a bite of something, think "yuck, I don't like this" and throw the rest in the garbage. For years I would reflexively look over my shoulder before I threw something in the trash, as if my mom is going to suddenly appear from 1500 miles away and yell at me.