Pediatrician nutrition questions

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kfitz10103
kfitz10103 Posts: 354
in Food and Nutrition
So I took my 1yo and 2yo to the pedi on Friday and had to fill out a questionaire for the 2yo.
1.) how many hours of tv does your child watch per day?
2.) how many servings of fruits and veggies does your child eat per day?
3.) # sodas/day?
4.) # juices/day?
5.) # times eat fast food per week?
6.) # times eats at the dinner table per week?

Really? Do you really need to answer these questions for 2 year olds? I'll admit my child only gets 1 serving of veggies and 1 serving of fruit, but thats because she doesn't eat much at all.

Replies

  • cardbucfan
    cardbucfan Posts: 10,423 Member
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    Sad commentary on our society there. My kids didn't know what a happy meal was until my husband introduced it to them. grrrr. They're teenagers now and would eat junk all day long if it was available.
  • tmiqueen
    tmiqueen Posts: 254 Member
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    Unfortunately, not many parents know what it takes to properly nourish their children. They grew up on junk so their kids grow up on junk. By doing these surveys, they can tell you where you might be able to improve.

    Mind you, my kid ate a huge volume of food according to the questionnaire, but they were shocked to see that he was underweight. They said "I don't think I've ever told a parent this before, but feel free to give your kid some junk food. He needs the extra calories."
  • Kazimira
    Kazimira Posts: 165 Member
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    I had to fill that out at my son's last check up, 15month. What is sad is the number of children that do have high numbers on the negative options on that form. I've been blessed with an active child with a voracious appetite, especially for fruits and veggies, who rarely even glances at the tv. He makes healthy easy. (at least for now)
  • mamashatzie
    mamashatzie Posts: 238 Member
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    That is really sad. We've always done our best to give our kid the healthiest choices, and stuff like ice cream and cake only on rare occasions.

    It makes me sad when I see parents filling a toddler's sippy cup with soda.
  • papa5280
    papa5280 Posts: 80
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    To me, it depends what they're doing with the answers. If they are using them as a point to start a dialog with the parent, I have no problem with it. Childhood obesity is a bad problem, and it starts young. And, I read somewhere that consumption of fruit juice is strongly correlated with obesity in young kids.
  • heathersmilez
    heathersmilez Posts: 2,579 Member
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    It makes me sad when I see parents filling a toddler's sippy cup with soda.

    Holy cow, people do that? Forget about the cals and chemicals, why on earth would you want to caffinate and ADD energy to a todler? CRAZY!

    It sounds like a GREAT survey to keep parents in check and at age 2 it will help prevent childhood obesity at the onset to prevent it.
  • grassette
    grassette Posts: 976 Member
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    It is good to get those questions. Did you know that too much TV watching affects brain development? The body is meant to have sensory input from all around us, but the TV concentrates that into a very small area, depriving the body of the sensory stimulus that it needs to grow well. Good to see that your pediatrician is monitoring the total wellness of your young children's environment.
  • kfitz10103
    kfitz10103 Posts: 354
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    All my answers were healthy ones except the fruits and veggies so the pedi gave me several option to get more veggies in her. I try to get at least 1 protein in her every day, but the pedi suggested I concentrate more on the fruits and veggies. That was good to know because I guess my focus was wrong there. Instead of trying to get her to eat chicken offer her chicken and carrots and let her choose. She will eat apples and peaches everyday, but truly dislikes ALL veggies. She won't even eat my turkey/veggie meatloaf that has more than 50% veggies in it and it is DELICIOUS! Even the 12 month old devours it.
  • AmandaCG
    AmandaCG Posts: 46 Member
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    I think that's awesome they have that! Looks like your pediatrician might actually be trying to educate parents on nutrition. I am sorry but a McDonald's Happy Meal is not a meal, for anyone, let alone a child, juice should be very limited, ZERO sodas, and sweet treats maybe a couple of times a week. And yes you have to start early, junk food is like a drug, a highly addictive drug. Once they have it, they will want more and more of it. My son had a hot dog at his pre-school (trust me I didn't want him to have it, but I didn't want him to be the weird kid either) for the first time and after that he talked about it for a week!
  • heathersmilez
    heathersmilez Posts: 2,579 Member
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    She won't even eat my turkey/veggie meatloaf that has more than 50% veggies in it and it is DELICIOUS! Even the 12 month old devours it.

    Oooooooo share this recipe please! Yea, as adults we are always thinking about protein, just look at the MFP boards, no one is complaining about not getting enough carbs, lol!
  • joyr1982
    joyr1982 Posts: 22 Member
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    Unfortunately, not many parents know what it takes to properly nourish their children. They grew up on junk so their kids grow up on junk. By doing these surveys, they can tell you where you might be able to improve.

    Mind you, my kid ate a huge volume of food according to the questionnaire, but they were shocked to see that he was underweight. They said "I don't think I've ever told a parent this before, but feel free to give your kid some junk food. He needs the extra calories."

    My daughter (now 4) has always eaten much more than the paperwork says that she should but is still only in the 30th percentile. The reason being: my husband owns a martial arts school so her life is in the gym, playing, running, etc. all day.
  • kfitz10103
    kfitz10103 Posts: 354
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    heathersmilez

    Here is the original recipe, but I do not use the glaze and I make this 2 loaves and freeze one. It will still taste great 2 months later.
    Vegetable Meatloaf with Balsamic Glaze
    Recipe courtesy Bobby Flay for Food Network Magazine
    Ingredients
    2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
    1 small zucchini, finely diced
    1 red bell pepper, finely diced
    1 yellow bell pepper, finely diced
    5 cloves garlic, smashed to a paste with coarse salt
    1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
    Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
    1 large egg, lightly beaten
    1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme
    1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
    1 1/2 pounds ground turkey (90 percent lean)
    1 cup panko (coarse Japanese breadcrumbs)
    1/2 cup freshly grated Romano or Parmesan cheese
    3/4 cup ketchup
    1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
    Directions
    Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Heat the oil in a large saute pan over high heat. Add the zucchini, bell
    peppers, garlic paste and 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes. Season with salt and pepper and cook until the
    vegetables are almost soft, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.
    Whisk the egg and fresh herbs in a large bowl. Add the turkey, panko, grated cheese, 1/2 cup ketchup, 2
    tablespoons balsamic vinegar and the cooled vegetables; mix until just combined.
    Gently press the mixture into a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Whisk the remaining 1/4 cup ketchup, 1/4 cup
    balsamic vinegar and 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes in a small bowl; brush the mixture over the entire
    loaf. Bake for 1 to 1 1/4 hours. Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
    Per serving: Calories 270; Fat 14 g (Sat. 4.2 g; Mono. 6.3 g; Poly. 3.1 g); Cholesterol 104 mg; Sodium
    451 mg; Carbohydrate 16 g; Fiber 1 g; Protein 20 g
  • Diary_Queen
    Diary_Queen Posts: 1,314 Member
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    Ive seen 1 yr olds wandering around aimlessly at a restaurant until their parents corral them and pour more SWEET TEA into their bottle then send them on thier way.... that's why those questions are being asked. First of all {From my example}, no child needs that darn much sugar... secondly, I question whether that child gets any milk for bones/teeth/health, etc.... thirdly, the caffeine in products like that inhibits children's absorption of iron. Guess the sugar crashes, lack of strength and energy that its little body spends trying to build bones keeps it complacent and out of the parents hair. FREAKING SADDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • mamashatzie
    mamashatzie Posts: 238 Member
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    It makes me sad when I see parents filling a toddler's sippy cup with soda.

    Holy cow, people do that? Forget about the cals and chemicals, why on earth would you want to caffinate and ADD energy to a todler? CRAZY!

    It sounds like a GREAT survey to keep parents in check and at age 2 it will help prevent childhood obesity at the onset to prevent it.

    Yep. One of my friends on FB comments things like "*Daughter* is extra hyper from all the Mt Dew and Skittles!" No *kitten*, maybe you shouldn't be giving your 2yo Mt Dew and skittles. And I see people at the gas station putting fountain drinks into sippy cups and handing it to 1-2yos.
  • christine24t
    christine24t Posts: 6,063 Member
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    I think the food pyramid is switching more over to a healthy plate, rather than a pyramid. Half of the plate should be fruits and veggies, 1/4 should be protein and 1/4 should be a grain. So I don't know if that means we're moving away from saying "okay, you should have X servings of veggies a day."

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