The Texan mothers/teachers join us again (read their previous post on high school food) to detail the food environment in their daycare, which appears to be neither healthy nor safe. See: Daycare Nutrition Program and Chokable Foods
An Unstable Foundation
I’m new to this parenting gig, and I readily admit that I don’t know everything about raising a child. I am learning as I go – reading books, looking up information online and asking questions of those who are more experienced. I don’t know everything, but I do know that my 15 month old needs to eat, and for now, he is dependent on me getting his food to him.
He had breast milk for eight months and then we began transitioning to formula, baby foods, whole milk and solid food. I have been diligent in trying to provide him with fresh, healthy food because I am building his nutritional foundation, and I want it to be a healthy one. I was astounded when I was provided with the menu of foods served at his day care.
Let me begin by saying, he has had wonderful teachers who have cared for him well, and overall, I have been happy with the school… but who gives a 12 month old an ICE CREAM SANDWICH for a snack? Call me picky, but babies have not yet developed the taste for processed sugar… why introduce it so young?
To be fair, ice cream sandwiches are soft, so they could be eaten by a baby with a couple of teeth… unlike, say, a HAMBURGER and French fries. I am sure the teacher cut the hamburger in little pieces, but in my head, I was envisioning my baby sitting at his lunch table with an entire hamburger sitting in front of him wondering, “What is this and how do I get it in my mouth?”
Some of the other “high points” of the menu include: Little Smokies in barbecue sauce, franks and beans, beefy Sloppy Joe, frosted cake, corn chips, hot dogs and bologna and cheese roll-ups. All processed meats accounted for… check!
After seeing the menu, I made arrangements to send my child with his lunch and snacks every day and the teacher has been more than accommodating in feeding him what I send. I also shared the menu with some of the other parents and got some support (although minimal) for working to change the menu.
When spoke to some of the parents I was shocked by their response. They said things like:
- I don’t like everything on the menu, but I do like the variety.
- I wouldn’t mind healthier options, but when I looked at other daycare’s menus, they were worse.
- I’m just glad he eats anything because he is so picky.
- It’s not great, but we try to eat healthy at home to make up for it.
After a letter writing campaign, I am happy to say that the daycare has opted to change some of the snacks to healthier options like carrot and celery sticks (although I am still not sure how babies with little teeth pull off eating these). Parental awareness is definitely needed. Do parents even know what children are given to eat by their schools and should/do they care?
I think most parents send their children to school with the assumption that they will be well cared for, and many of them are just grateful their children will be receiving something to eat each day. We have to do better than this. We shouldn’t focus on how the school menus “could be worse”. We need to focus on how to make them better. As a society we have to begin to recognize the importance food plays in our health and do a better job of educating and providing our children with fresh vegetables, fruit, whole grains and lean meats. Our children are worth it.
NOTE: all guest bloggers have contacted me of their own free will, have given consent, do not know me personally, and are not receiving compensation.
wow! that is shocking! those foods dont sound very toddler appropriate. i am curious though about what kinds of foods you pack in his lunch.
I'm new to comment on this blog but I'm an avid reader. I had to comment onto this post because I have a 2-1/2 year old and am constantly getting slack for not giving her ketchup/mustard/ranch dip as accessories to her meals and for not providing cookies/chips/chocolate as snacks. I have always, since she was a small child, provided for her fresh fruit and veggies even though I'm not the healthiest eater myself. It was fun for her to make trips to the Farmer's Market and get to pick her own snacks.
First I have to say that I don't have kids, yet. I am a teacher and I want to have a baby at the end of next year (which as all teachers know is next April/May). I am adamant about making my child healthy. My best friend's daughter is in day care and I can't believe the menu there either. It's basically the same as what was described above. There is no reason that yogurt can't be given instead of ice cream! Cheerios and other whole grain cereals are excellent toddler snacks. Unsweetened apple sauce is great too. If we need things that the kids can pick up on their own they could have pieces of cut up chicken (real chicken) and steamed peas or carrots. It would be easy to serve plain hamburger meat and a veggie instead of a sloppy joe. As for variety, I'm 28 and I eat the same thing, basically,every day for 180 days. I don't think we'll hear any 15 month olds saying "chicken and veggies again, what kind of show are they running here?" They honestly don't know the difference and as evidenced by the poor menu choices will, unfortunately, eat whatever is given to them.
P.S, Love this blog. I don't think I've commented before but I read every day.
I am an occupational therapist who used to be the director of a daycare and worked hard to meet dietary guidelines and exceed them where possible. While I did serve a fair amount of processed foods, I also hired a cook (80 yrs old at the time, and she's still working) who told me, "It's not hard to make chicken pot pie from scratch". I left that job to work solely as a therapist, and I still go to that daycare to work with children (toddlers), primarily with feeding issues. Last week's menu was: half a hamburger, hash brown patty and cheetos. That was it. No fruit. I guess the hash browns were a "vegetable". Not sure what food group the cheetos were in. It makes me so sad to see the decline of what I had worked so hard to build.
That's just disgusting. I don't have children yet, but I don't need any to know that those foods are not healthy for such young children. I wouldn't eat any of things myself on a regular basis and so they shouldn't be part of regular meals for small children. Absurd!
I am assuming, however given the poor choices of foods offered these young children from a nutritional standpoint, that the hot dogs, little smokies, and the franks in the beans and franks are cut into toddler friendly pieces as all of those foods are choking hazards.
Although nutritionally better, the carots and celery sticks also seem like a choking hazard in the toddler room. Wow!
A couple thoughts…
While canned fruit is indeed still fruit, more often than not, it's packed in sugar syrup rather than fruit juice (which also packs a sugar rush to the system) and usually provides less fiber and nutrients than fresh.
Kids also need fat in their diet (that's what your brain is predominantly made of!) but getting it from processed foods is about the worst way to get it…some natural cheese slices, peanut or almond butter (natural, not the stuff with high fructose corn syrup in it), a chicken drumstick with the skin on – are all great ways to incorporate it while still being healthful.
This blog has been a huge eye-opener and given me a lot of things to think about if I ever have a child!
It is strange that anyone would think that an ice cream sandwich is an appropriate snack. It's a dessert!
For young babies and toddlers, it seems like they could pick things that help the childre work on their fine motor skills and are healthy. Things I used to feed my girls:
–Any kind of canned bean. They are soft and easy to pick up.
–Dried fruits
–Diced cheese
–Canned pears or peaches are soft and you can get the kind in juice so it is all healthy
Then for teaching older toddlers to use a spoon:
–Applesauce (the kind without added sugar)
–Yogurt
And for a really fun treat, my girls loved to have smoothies. I used plain yogurt and fruit and milk. It taught them to sip through a straw and it was like getting a milkshake (I froze the fruit so it would be a little slushy).
Now why is this so hard for a daycare to come up with if we can? Scary.
My girls are in Pre-K now and I pack their lunch. When I was in school (a really long time ago), school lunches were good and not so processed. My children will never eat a school lunch after reading this blog (thanks, it is amazing) and watching Jamie Oliver's show. Keep up the good work!
It is strange that anyone would think that an ice cream sandwich is an appropriate snack. It's a dessert!
For young babies and toddlers, it seems like they could pick things that help the childre work on their fine motor skills and are healthy. Things I used to feed my girls:
–Any kind of canned bean. They are soft and easy to pick up.
–Dried fruits
–Diced cheese
–Canned pears or peaches are soft and you can get the kind in juice so it is all healthy
Then for teaching older toddlers to use a spoon:
–Applesauce (the kind without added sugar)
–Yogurt
And for a really fun treat, my girls loved to have smoothies. I used plain yogurt and fruit and milk. It taught them to sip through a straw and it was like getting a milkshake (I froze the fruit so it would be a little slushy).
Now why is this so hard for a daycare to come up with if we can? Scary.
My girls are in Pre-K now and I pack their lunch. When I was in school (a really long time ago), school lunches were good and not so processed. My children will never eat a school lunch after reading this blog (thanks, it is amazing) and watching Jamie Oliver's show. Keep up the good work!
Breaking news: A Colorado teacher crusades openly about bad school food and gets stomped by the school administration: http://tinyurl.com/ycad5nn
I had no idea day care food was so bad too! Ahhh! This is so scary. No wonder our kids health is so bad. I wonder how many adults think they can serve this stuff at home because they assume "well at least they got good meal(s) at school." I was so shocked to see on episode #2 of Food Revolution how many kids had had pizza and chicken nuggets at home the night before and were getting them at school the next day! I have had to learn NOT to serve frozen pizza and nuggets at home because I see how often they get it at school.
I was also astounded at the lunch cooks on the show completely believing that high-fat processed foods are healthy to serve and that they didn't need to change. So many people feel like "what's going to happen is going to happen" and think change is too hard. It's sad. Because we can make a difference. How many people don't realize how much better you feel when you start eating better?
Kudos to you to speaking up at the day care and trying to raise awareness. That's the first step for us all.
I am a dietitian for 5 pediatric specialty care clinics. I am in charge of making the menu twice a year. This is a new job for me and I have definitely had my eyes opened to possibly why certain foods are and are not served at daycares and schools. We are very limited by USDA and the food distributor we use on what we can put on the menus. My son actually attends one of these clinics and I was myself horrified when I picked him up one day and they told me he ate ALL of his hamburger, tater tots, and peaches. He is 12 months old! At that point I really thought hard about sending a packed lunch with him, and I was the one that made the menu! So I guess I am saying all this to say that we as dietitians would love to put heathier options on the menu but are very limited by the company's budget, USDA regulations, and food distributor selections. We also serve kids who sometimes don't get fed at home and the teachers become very concerned if the kids don't eat at school because it is something they are unfamiliar with which is the more healthier food options.
I have an 14 month old and have battled the same things at the daycare my child attends. They are feeding waffles with syrup in the morning and cake with icing in the afternoon for snack. Juice and milk are offered at both breakfast and snack, but no fresh fruit or vegetables. I had to get a Doctors note stating that my child could not be served juice, only fresh fruit and water – juice was the "fruit" for that meal and by not serving it to my child, they were "violating" the food program rules. I now bring fresh fruit for my child every day and snacks for the afternoon. I don't understand why the directors can't realize we are setting up our children for failure – juvenile diabetes, obesity and heart disease. Kids are growing and need real food for them to be healthy. I am glad I am not the only parent who cares!
Where are all the veggies? Where are the fruits? Where are the whole grains?
Admittedly, I am a new parent too. I'm learning as I go. But my instincts are not to give a child sugary juices when i can give her fruit and water. Not to giver her processed meats when she can get her proteins from beans and tofu.
My 11 month old loves her whole grain porridge (ground and boiled organic whole grain rice and lentils) with tons of veggies mixed in. For her finger food, she eats beans and fruits and cereal O's or puffs (not cheerios)
We're not a vegetarian family, but after seeing Food Inc. I'm struggling with giving our baby meat until I find a grass fed cow or a non-genetically modified chicken…
Luckily, we found a DayCare in NYC that partners with an organic food cooperative so all her food there is organic and meat free… Sometimes the older kids have fish…
Side note: Is everyone watching Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution with hope that we can accomplish change on a national scale?
Reading about the foods being served at the centers is tuly horrifying.
The sodium and sugar content alone is through the roof. And the nutritional value? Well, is there any?
It's not hard to serve children healthy foods. Great suggestions mentioned above like yogurt, applesauce, cheese cubes, etc.
Breakfast could be a peanut butter and apple butter sandwich on whole wheat, raisin or oatmeal bread. Apple slices or banana chunks, milk.
If they have the ability to cook food at the facility, eggs and toast, peach slices or something similar would work.
Lunches could be grilled cheese, pureed soup (sip from a cup), grapes. Or chicken noodle casserole with extra vegetables tucked into it, cherry tomato halves, healthy sandwiches, etc.
One thing is certain- the USDA regulations definitely need to be revised.
To anonymous @9:25a:
While I wholeheartedly agree that the school lunch program is disastrous and needs changing, you are incorrect in saying that we are setting our children up for juvenile diabetes. Juvenile diabetes is otherwise known as type 1 diabetes, or insulin-dependent diabetes. This has no obesity related link, but is instead an autoimmune problem.
However, we ARE setting our children up for early onset type 2 diabetes, which IS the weight related diabetes that is frequently controllable with diet.
Wow, so your child can choke on hot dogs, li'l smokies, carrot sticks, AND celery sticks? I mean, the meats can be cut into little pieces (are you SURE the teachers are cutting them small enough?), but raw carrots and apples are a choking hazard until the child is at least 3 or 4 and has the molars to chew them properly . .
This isn't really related to the current post, but I just read in the Chicago Sun Times that the CPS has decided to change up the lunches starting in June.
I did find it funny/off that they are making "dark green and orange veggies" mandatory, why not all veggies is what I say. That should at least make your lunch experience a "bit" more pleasant next fall.
This is really hard because although we may all agree foods for preschoolers should be minimally processed, we are dealing with a huge age/maturity range so it's hard to say "xyz is an appropriate snack for a daycare". A 4 year old can eat carrot and celery sticks dipped in natural peanut butter…a 1 year old? Not so much. IMO, this is what makes creating a menu for a daycare which is participating in a USDA food program so tough. Not only do you have to satisfy the feds and your budget but you also have to make sure all children receive food that is developmentally appropriate.
Love how there is no protein in the USDA breakfast requirements, even for adults. Insanity. My kids would be famished by 10am.
@k.emily The things I pack for him vary from day to day but always consist of at least one fresh vegetable, at least one fresh fruit and either chicken or a pasta/grain. Today his lunch was steamed broccoli, squash, and Lima beans with chicken "nuggets" (I make these myself out of chicken breast and whole wheat flower)and a clementine orange.
For snacks I send freeze-dried or fresh fruit, freeze-dried peas, whole grain teething biscuits or organic cereal puffs.
I usually try to prepare his lunches for the week on Sunday afternoon. I make extra veggies and such and freeze them so I have them ready and am not prepping every evening.
I am by far not perfect at this… suggestions would be appreciated!! Thanks for reading.
This is my first time to comment, and I have been reading this blog for a while… My parents had similar issues with the pre-k I went to a very long time ago. They fed us nothing but sugary stuff, and often, I came home with a headache, felt dizzy and was sick to my stomach. They took me to the dr., who proceeded with a glucose test. Fortunately, I was not diabetic, but was diagnosed with hypoglycemia and my parents had to change my diet significantly. (Reading up on hypoglycemia now, I'm not sure this is what I had, but eliminating sugar from my diet seemed to fix things) They were furious with what we were being fed, and I cannot blame them at all.
Now that I am older, married and wanting to have children of my own in the near future, I am extremely concerned with the issues you are bringing up on your blog. While I know we will probably be sending lunch with our children when they are older, I also want to make sure they will be eating properly at a young age as well.
I just wanted to say thank-you to you and your guest bloggers. Reading your blog has definitely been eye opening for me. It's sad that not everyone seems to care for their children's health and well being.
My daughter just turned 2 and has been in a daycare facility for the past 6 months. I was not pleased with the menu they serve but also realize that as she got closer to 2 she wanted to eat what everyone else is eating.
I have told them no juice for her, milk or water, and I bring her snacks, yogurt, fresh fruit. What I found with their snacks is they are almost all crackers and cookies. Like cheeze it's, and gold fish. She is happy to have her apples and cheese, yogurt, banana chips, grapes etc.
I have talked to them about their foods and they are trying, they don't serve too many sweets since the director is diabetic so she is aware of those issues. Getting the teachers to remember my daughters snacks can be hard.
It is so refreshing to find mothers, like myself, who actually care about what our children eat. It amazes me how that subject gets put on the back burner and from such an early age. Convenience has become America's middle name but it shouldn't mean we have to sacrifice our families health because of it. With a little pre-planning, it's very easy to make wiser choices.
I have a 2 1/2 year old who eats better than most adults. We have always eaten a variety of food and that has been his only choice. As someone else stated, they don't know the difference until you introduce them to it. He loves nearly every fruit and vegetable you put in front of him and it hasn't been difficult to maintain that.
He goes to a Mothers Day Out program once a week and while they don't provide lunch, it is sometimes difficult to find healthy lunch items that don't have to be reheated. We typically eat leftovers for lunch the next day and although I bought him a Thermos, I don't think the teachers have the time or desire to actually make sure the kids are eating. We now pack dried fruit (unsweetened), almond butter on wheat crackers or bread, cut up veggies, and some type of finger-sized fruit. I feel like he needs more of a variety but he never turns it down. I guess he is only having it once a week.
I'm fairly new to your blog but I couldn't be more behind you! Your poor stomach for having to injest suce terrible lunch fare but we all appreciate you taking one for the team. Hopefully with Jamie Oliver, there will be more of us to stand up and speak out!
Wow! I used to be an in-home daycare provider. I cooked healthy meals on a regular basis! I provided a variety of foods too! We have lived in Hawaii and are well versed in the food of many different cultures. It takes some thought, but it is not hard to serve tasty, healthy food in a daycare setting. We had many trainings from our food program people tool. Cook books were handed out as well. There is no excuse for a daycare to be feeding kids poorly!
I feel a little miffed at times that our daycare doesn't provide meals, but this makes me feel better. Yes, it's extra effort (and money) to send fruits/veggies, "real" food, etc., but looking at the state of school lunch, I figure it's good to get in the lunch packing habit now with a one year old. The thing I find disheartening is what the other toddlers have in their "bins" and what they're eating for breakfast during drop off. Cinnamon rolls, donuts, fruit loops. I'm not holier-than-thou, I know working parents are often busy within and inch of their sanity, and these are convenient things to bring. But if it's not a priority for parents to provide healthier options, how will we ever see change at a social or governmental level? It's a battle we all fight every day (I had five-minute internal struggle in front of the canned fruit at the grocery store the other night!) but we have to be diligent, or what hope do we have?
i'm not surprised by this. i used to work at a daycare center here in downtown pittsburgh. the daycare had the same breakfast and lunch schedule as the public schools, and the food was terrible. it looked a lot like mrs q's lunches. the food, served to the kids over 12 months, was mostly hotdogs, hamburgers, pizza, and chicken nuggets. the closest the kids got to vegetables was corn and tator tots. and, yes, they also had "breakfast pizza" every so often. the food was delivered the day before, kept frozen overnight, then reheated in large toaster ovens.
the only kids that did not eat these meals were a handful whose parents objected for religious or dietary reasons. those parents had to provide their own food and a note explaining why they were opting out of the provided meals. the kitchen staff resented having to take time and fix special food for these kids.
as if this is not bad enough, the woman who was the senior supervisor for the infant room regularly gave the older infants (10-12 months) cheese curls and wafer cookies in between meals. that made me so angry, especially since i could not complain, since she was the supervisor in the room. luckily, i know that she has since retired.
actually, the meals given to the students were no worse than the snacks most of the parents provided. there was a convienence store next door and multiple fast food places within blocks of the daycare. it was sad to watch toddlers show up with bbq potato chips or french fries as their morning snack day after day.
It's been noted on this blog in the past that many parents think their kids will "only eat" certain foods (typically the overly processed, no good foods you are describing or else fast food). I don't have kids, but I know that my mom always gave us a wide variety of foods to eat, and as a result both my sister and I eat and enjoy a variety of foods. It may be naive, but as parents I think you have the responsibility to choose what your children are served. Whether they like/eat it is another issue, but if you only give them junk, of COURSE they are "only going to like" junk. I've given the example of my sister in law whose children 90% of the time ate McDonalds, or else bologna, hot dogs, and spaghetti. That is it. One of them said to me while we were babysitting, "We need to go to McDonalds". "No we don't" I replied. "Yes, I havent been there yet today" he informed me. It was pretty pathetic. However, I have also seen these kids turn down a candy bar their mom offered them and ask for an apple instead. I think a lot of parents either don't care, or are too lazy to give their kids healthy options. It's not surprising then that the school/daycare systems do the same. If kids aren't given the option to eat healthy, and a variety of foods they are going to learn and keep these bad habits throughout their life. I have a friend whose mom only ever fed him pizza and chicken nuggets, and as an adult that is pretty much all he will eat. I'm glad to see there are parents who truly care that their children eat well, and I hope to see that things change for the better in schools and daycare.
I've been reading the blog for a while now. There are many things that are disappointing about the school lunch system.
As a parent though, I think we must be cautious in judging the choices of other parents. I am currently trying to transition our family to more whole foods and less processed/convenience foods and it is not easy. Unfortunately the best food for us often costs more money. Also, the prep time can be overwhelming, especially in homes where both parents work (I'm lucky enough to stay home). I'm not making excuses or saying parents shouldn't give their best, but just reminding everyone that it is not always a cut and dry issue.
We need to look at what kind of food is covered by WIC or Food Stamps. We need to look at what kind of food/agriculture is subsidized by the government. Until those things change, many parents will continue giving their kids less than desirable food.
I'm watching Jamie Oliver's show, and I hope he gets into the politics and regulations behind our school lunch system and the funding issues, because that is a key component of changing how things are done.
I just found the motivation I needed to cook a GOOD supper tonight. Thanks!
hi! i worked in childcare throughout college and after for a few years. it sounds like your child's daycare does have a lot more variety than the company i worked for. we actually went through drastic budget cuts for the meal plan (60% off the original budget) which made portions tiny (3 chicken nuggets and -1/4 cup of fruit and veg…). i always thought it was sad how many reheated burritos, burgers, hot dogs and chicken nuggets were on the menu…not to mention what counts for a vegetable. i think it is incredibly important for parents to speak up…it really seems to be the only way to get change in these sorts of scenarios.
It's so hard for me with my toddler and his day care. I feel like the owner/teacher (it's a small place) is an extension of my family but boy am I not a fan of what she feeds the kids. Pop tarts, white bread, apple juice, canned veggies. On the flip side I do see sometimes fresh apples, raisins, and of course plenty of milk. I don't know how to handle it. I don't want my toddler son to feel he can't enjoy the same foods his peers do, but at the same time couldn't he have whole grain white bread vs. white (just one example). This time in our small children's lives is their nutritional foundation. We are setting their taste buds and body mass for the future.
For me, to make matters worse, his lovely grandparents and great aunt always want to take him out to eat. Where do they go???? Fast food of course. At times I feel like my son is going to suffer because I feel I can't control what he eats.
I'm very grateful for this little bit of serendipity when we were choosing a daycare–the one we liked didn't provide food and we had to pack DD's lunch every day. At the time, we saw that as a drawback compared to all the other centers that DID provide food, but we liked the place so much more that we sent her there anyway. Little did I know how lucky that decision was, because she's a very healthy eater. It's been challenging at times to figure out what kind of food to send cold in a lunch box, and that's much easier now that she's 3.5 and can eat anything. Here were some of our favs:
Infants eating solid food: canned green beans, frozen peas, petite baby carrots slightly steamed first (this method works for pretty much any veggie–you can cut them small and steam them, then pack them cold), bell pepper slices, cottage cheese, cheese slices, yogurt, deli meat slices, tortillas, crackers, banana, melon pieces, pear slices
Toddlers: above plus peanut butter crackers, peanut butter sandwiches, hummus and crackers or pita or tortilla, cheese and lunch meat roll up, tortilla roll up with cream cheese and lunch meat or hummus, baked lays, mini bagel with cream cheese or peanut butter. When my DD was a toddler, the main thing was to provide a large variety of fruits and veggies so that each day is a little different. I'd slice up kiwi, strawberries, orange sections, or do a whole plum or pear, etc. And for veg I'd rotate bewteen things like sliced cucumber, sliced pepper strips, grape tomatoes, baby carrots.
It takes a little bit of effort to be organized for packing lunches, but it pays off in that DH and I also pack ours now (might as well, since we're doing hers). So we ALL eat healthier! Now that she's older, I ask DD each morning what she wants in her lunch and she changes it up a bit.
I read this with tears welling up in my eyes, thinking about my own 15-month-old son who is also in daycare. Thankfully, he's at an in-home daycare, where meals are not included, so he goes there with his own packed lunch, but from time to time, I've been aware that he's been given other foods, such as sugary cereals and juices, which doesn't make me happy. But, he's happy and safe and well cared for there, so I'm not sure it's a battle worth picking. Still, it sort of pains me that I don't know all that he's eating, and that once he's in public school, I'll lose even more control.
Thanks for this post — and also for this blog. It's been extremely eye-opening, and I wish more parents and educators would read it.
I can't believe they are serving "fast food" to toddlers! No wonder we have such a food problem in this country… Like the author said- these young children have not even developed the taste for refined sugars and processed foods- We as humans, were not programmed to eat this stuff.. So why introduce it at such a young age? Doing so will effect their diets for the rest of their lives- which will only be encouraged by the fast food supplied at the schools.
If we start our kids off right- eating whole foods- lots of fruits and veggies- then that's what they'll have a taste for.
I've been watching Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution (I'm sure most readers of this blog are too) and the biggest challenge he's had in the elementary school is to get the kids to eat their veggies. The staff had to really encourage the kids to eat the foods they weren't familiar with (real chicken, pasta, veggies, real food).. But y'know, once they did, they liked it! Yes, you'll always have a few nay-sayers in the crowd, some kids wont eat anything.. but the majority liked the food once they were familiar with it.
Let's get our kids familiar with real, healthy foods from the youngest age, and really start them out right.
Great post- really opened my eyes to how pervasive this problem is.
I've read a lot of comments from people stating that they feed their children healthy vegetables from cans. I would just like to bring to light that the lining of many canned goods is plastic containing BPA. While the adverse affects of BPA are not wholly verified, Canada has banned them for use in baby and toddler products like bottles, and the US FDA is now putting the chemical under more scrutiny.
I personally would avoid exposing a young child to BPAs as much as possible – that means no canned goods and avoiding highly scented shampoos and soaps, which use BPAs to help scents stay on the skin.
There are many things to consider in trying to keep the next generation safe and healthy! Unfortunately, it seems important information sometimes gets lost in the din!
Actually, I've seen a lot of dismay being expressed here about the amount of plastic packaging and its affect on the environment. However, heating plastic enables chemicals like BPA to better leach into food. There are many potential side-effects being studied now for exposure to BPA – and the affects seem to be most prominent in children. I think that might be a good topic for this blog to discuss – perhaps as a guest piece or maybe in the news roundup?
I am a first-time mom to a 14 month old and in my brief experience, I have found that my son prefers the healthy foods we give him. We recently had a lunch date with a friend of mine and I was horrified at what constituted the "Kids Menu" — not a green thing anywhere!
I went ahead and ordered a grilled cheese for him that came with french fries. I figured it was the first time so maybe it would be like a special treat. As a back up, I ordered a veggie wrap for myself and knew that he could eat from my plate if he didn't like what was on his.
When the food came, he wouldn't touch the grilled cheese or the french fries instead giving them a suspicious look and shaking his head no (mind you, this is a child who likes to grab everything and then try to put it in his mouth.) He opted instead to eat the cucumber chips and tomato slices that came with my meal.
I was both delighted and a little surprised because I thought that ALL kids loved that sort of stuff. But rather than eat something that was strange and foreign he chose to eat that which was familiar.
I too have been reading your blog for a while now and I hope that by the time he and I are confronted with school lunch or brown bag that he does in fact have a choice because both options are as healthy and appealing as one another. Thank you for your sacrifices!
As a college student who works at a daycare as an assistant teacher during the summer and winter breaks, I am happy to say that for the most part, the food is pretty good.
Snacks vary from age-to-age, for example 2 and under tend to get softer, easier to eat snacks such as cheerios and other cereals, various (mostly whole-grain) crackers, and occasionally animal crackers. From 2 to "school age" the children get wheat thins, goldfish, corn chips and salsa, graham crackers and peanut butter (skippy's natural kind!), string cheese, seasonal (fresh!) fruit (such as melon, bananas, apples, etc), and occasionally cookies (usually of the healthier variety, such as oatmeal with dried cranberries).
Lunch is "homemade" at the daycare daily, and ranges from pizza (homemade with whole grain crust), chicken breast, lasagna, spaghetti, pb&j (handmade, not the awful smuckers things), scrambled eggs, pancakes, and various casseroles. All of the teachers eat with the kids, and 98% of the time eat what the kids are eating. The lunches follow the 1 carb:1 protein:1 fruit:1 vegetable ratio. (occasionally 2 fruits or 2 vegetables instead of one of each) There is no dessert. However, I do have the complaint that a potato (often in the form of homemade hashbrowns with the eggs) counts as a vegetable, therefore the kids also get bread and butter.
The complaint that I have with the daycare's food system, is that kids whose parents pack their lunches are often exempt of the whole 1 carb, 1 protein, 1 fruit, 1 veggie ratio, even though it is stated in the parent handbook that if they do not meet these requirements that their children will be given them from the kitchen and they will be charged accordingly. The food that parents send with their children is absolutely awful. While there are exceptions, such as a parent sending along yogurt as a snack, the majority of parents who pack lunches have "picky eaters" who won't touch anything that hasn't been processed in some form. These parents make me sick.
One child in particular stands out, his mother packs his lunch because he is diabetic. She sends cookies, candy bars, often 2 sandwiches (a proper serving for most children at the daycare (~3-6) is half a sandwich), chips, soda (all of our children drink milk or water), and a salad that he often never touches. And of couse, since he is diabetic and just ate all that processed sugar, he gets an outrageous insulin shot after lunch. If this was my child I would try to cut out processed foods with extra (unnecessary) sugars, so he would not need such a large dose.
I felt the need to comment on this post. When my teen was a baby I had a lot of problems with people trying to feed her junk. We are from the south where you see babies with juice, soda, and kool aid in their bottles. Thankfully I was able to keep all that sugar from her diet until she was older. Now people always comment on how she doesn't eat a lot of candy but prefers fruit or veggies. I really believe this is due to the lack of sugar in her diet when she was younger. Mind she still eats junk but not often. Don't give up trying to feed your babies healthy while they are young it really pays off when they get older and start making their own choices.
@nicole I agree with you about not "judging" the parents of the toddlers/children. I KNOW how difficult it can be to juggle preparing healthy meals for my son with the multitude of other responsibilities I have.
I am a full-time teacher and my husband is a teacher/coach. Our time is precious and there are nights when my son's dinner is not as healthy as I would like, but I am aware and I am trying.
As parents we all have to "pick our battles" and choose the values, traits, etc. that we would like to instill in our children. Nutrition, fitness, education, faith, respect, hard work, love – these are some of my "anchors." They HELP ME find balance and give ME something to strive for when my life becomes overwhelming.
When my husband and I had our son we made a commitment to raise him in the best manner that we can. I can control the food he eats now, the love he gets from his family, the bedtime stories we read at night – all of these things will help to make up the man that he becomes… that thought helps me make his healthy foods, play with him when I'm tired and love on him when he is grumpy. It is a choice I have made; I HOPE other parents make similar choices.
Thank you for all the insightful posts about infant and toddler food. The transition from the relative ease of breastmilk and/or formula to actual real food is overwhelming for many parents (I know it was for me). All of a sudden my cooking skills had to be sufficient enough for the whole family. Luckily for me I know how to cook and was raised with a "granola" mom. Even with that background it felt like I had a new pressure to deliver a healthy meal. My husband said multiple times, "I wish you could just breastfeed like before," – easy for him to say, right? But that was so easy compared to planning a balanced meal.
What works for me is being organized and doing a basic meal plan for the week. I grudgingly started doing this (it seemed like so much "work"). Actually once I starting meal planning, the daily stress about dinner evaporated. Now I devote a little time on Sunday before a weekly grocery run to plan the week day-by-day and then write up a list of foods not on hand. It's a necessity for a working mom.
My nephew attends a montesory school. My sister packs his lunch daily, mostly leftovers from the night before. They heat up the food for the kids and everything. I make lunch for my kids (who are in public school) daily. They don't get a hot lunch, but I know it is healthy and filling enough to get them through the day.
I haven't commented before, but I've been reading your blog for awhile and love it!
I'm not a parent yet (though my husband and I hope to have kids eventually), but I've always been interested in nutrition and know I'll be very concerned about the food our eventual-children eat.
(Off-topic: I've also done a lot of research into pet nutrition for our two dogs and two cats. There's a lot of nasty stuff in many famous brands, and our pets also don't get table scraps unless they're plain, non-fried meats.)
As far as child nutrition goes, I'm already worried about the battles we'll face as residents of the Deep South. I've seen young relatives fed sweet tea from sippy cups and every processed, fried, salty food you can imagine as soon as they're able to eat it. It worries me that I'm going to come across as some sort of hippy health nut, but it's absolutely important to me. I can only hope that this concern will spread and become the norm by the time we have children.
Keep up the good work!
Wow…after reading that I am even MORE grateful for the daycare/preschool that I work at part time (and my three year old son attends). It's a working Farm where the children spend most of the day playing and learning OUTSIDE and all of the foods are either organic, all-natural, or grown there. I really wish there were better options for children out there. Here's the school blog:
http://dosflamingavocadoes.blogspot.com/
I've been a nanny for over 4 years for the same family. While I have seen "my kids" grow up and new additions come to the family, I have always placed a healthy lifestyle at the top of our daily routine. We all cook together, do dishes together, exercise together, and have school time together. I dont think I would ever give a 15 month old a hamburger, it is a choking hazard. I would try to introduce things like oatmeal, yogart, and steamed veggies. I even let the kids take turns picking the veggies and fruits that we are going to have. "My kids" are 10, 5, 4, and 8 months. "My" 10 year old could cook a four course meal now, 5 and 4 year olds arent to far behind. They are even picky eaters like myself but are willing to try new foods if they cook them or see how they are cooked. They have all grown taste bud wise and the youngest now eats everything that we eat except meat and raw veggies.
I couldn't read every comment in detail, but one thing I thought I'd throw out there that my pediatrician told me when DD was little is that a toddler's nutrition should be balanced over a whole week, not necessarily day to day. Because their tummies are so small they often need several small meals throughout the day and on 1 particular day the kid may only get in a container of yogurt, a few cheerios, and a banana. My question was, "Where's the meat and the veggies?" He said I should judge the whole week and not just one particular day and as long as she had a variety of foods over the course of 7 days and that 90-95% of those were healthy, then I shouldn't fret.
I sent my son's food to his daycare and was actually questioned repeatedly by the workers. The daycare he went to offered subsidized care options (although we paid full price, other families with lower incomes could take their children there… we were one of the few paying full price) Apparently the child services in charge of checking up on the daycare wanted to know why I "refused" to allow my child to eat their provided food… I had to sign a paper twice refusing their food.
Granted the baby food was just that – jarred baby food, but I planned ahead and worked hard to make my babyfood for my son from organic fresh food. There was nothing extra in my food and I liked it that way. I thought it odd that I would be questioned so heartily for providing my own food! At 12 months he was expected to sit at a table on his own (uh… not happening!) and eat a "breakfast" consisting of a waffle *with* syrup and some sliced (not diced) peaches… with utensils… alone?? Choking hazard? And how much would my little boy actually get in his system? I made arrangements to be "late" to work so that I could feed him a more appropriate breakfast at home.
Later on in preschool at the age of 18 months, he was given marshmellows for a snack?? Sorry – but even goldfish crackers on a daily basis seems unbalanced. I began bringing cut up fresh fruit (bananas, pears, strawberries etc) for the whole class and was told to stop because the other children weren't eating it and they had to break out their "regular" snack foods anyhow. (meaning graham crackers and goldfish and marshmellows)
My husband and I soon realized that in our area, affordable daycare/preschool that would provide our son with nutritious food was not attainable and we made strides for me to stay home instead!
We now homeschool and have 3 kids. My oldest 2 are school age and we have watched Jamie Oliver's show. Needless to say my kids are appalled at the food choices and at the same time have a better understanding of the diseases and problems that we try to avoid by eating healthy – its not just so mommy looks cute in jeans! 😉
We enjoy reading Mrs. Q's blog and want to help change the school food program for everyone else who can't or isn't interested in homeschooling. Not to mention the possibility of changing the health and eating habits of our whole nation!! Keep up the good work!
Hi Texan Mom,
I could not agree more with your post. My son was in a daycare program in the building where I work from the time he was 3 months old, when I returned working. This daycare did not provide food and I provided all he consumed. I was very happy with this care, but it was a bit costly. So we switched to one closer to our home.
This new daycare did provide meals and published a menu each week. I was astounded with what they served….all processed and canned, and very little fresh. I have always fed my son healthly and organic as much as possible, and like you, made arrangements to pack a healthy lunch for my child. The daycare owner understood and said due to the costs she could not provide food such as I was sending for my son. I asked how many other parents sent food and she said NONE. Of the roughly 50 children in this center, NOT ONE other parent was upset enough by this food to send their own. I found that astounding!
After 9 months at this center, I returned to the day care in my office building, and have never looked back.
My son is now 3 1/2 and just last week a parent asked my son's teacher "why is it that TJ never is sick or has a runny nose even when all the other kids are sick?"
The teacher replied "I am not sure, but I can tell you that his Mom is rigid on what he eats. He rarely eats processed and he gets organic fruit everyday." The teacher later relayed this conversation to me and it just re-enforced what I have believed…what we put in our children's body DOES MATTER!
Don't get me wrong…it is not easy. I have to drive out of my way and many times go to multiple stores to get the food I use. Not to mention the fact that organic food is sooo expensive. This is on top of working full time and fulfilling all the other commitments we have as parents. I can understand how the ease of going to one store close to you to buy all your food is so convenient and attractive. But I feel like one of my most important jobs as a parent is setting up my child with habits that will provide him a lifetime of health.
So I commend the work everyone involved with this site is doing. Your contributions are much appreciated! Keep us the great job!
When my little guy was 2, he was at a daycare for many hours a day. He never had diaper rashes before in any repetitive manner but each day I was picking him up and he had a rash. I know his teacher changed him frequently..(she was awesome). What I found out was causing it was a dye that is in the kool-aid like drink they were giving all the children in the school instead of water or juice ALL DAY LONG EVERY DAY.
I was outraged to find that my baby was being fed nothing but sugar drinks all day long because it costs less than $.17 a gallon. He moved to a new school very soon after that because a virtual revolving door started up with the teaching staff and it became impossible to police his diet or general care when there was a new woman supervising the classroom each day. It is sad that tuition is so high yet these teachers have pitiful wages and no way to give these kids the kind of care they know the parents expect.
When our youngest daughter had our first grandchild, I quit my teaching job and we moved 130 miles from our home of 20 years to be a full time Grammy!! Therefore, I am his "daycare" provider and it is my responsibility to give him the foods he needs.Good nutrition has always been important in our family so it's only natural that our grandson, Jaxon, has that too. Yes, you might have to put a little thought into snacks and meals for toddlers but the options are many! Before he had many teeth we used a little gadget where you can put in chunks of fresh fruit and he "gummed" it until it was mushy. He loved it!! He's now approaching 2 years old and his snacks are oranges, apples, prunes, raisins, cheese sticks, etc. He also LOVES to snack on frozen peas. Sounds crazy but you should try them. :)I'm not going to say that he never has processed food but it is very limited! I truly believe that the eating habits he develops now will stay with him throughout his lifetime!! We joke at our house that Jaxon has to be the best fed toddler around!