Fighting Childhood Unhealthiness Tip#1: Do Not Be Deceived!

Oct 05, 2010

So the next few posts will be dedicated to fighting the cause of childhood unhealthiness.  What I've learned as a (relatively) new mom:  I am outraged at the junk that exists in kid's products, that adults would never eat! (Well, most of us wouldn't :)  This is more than about childhood obesity.  None of our kids need the junk that is in these products.  "If you eat junk, you'll feel like junk."  -that's what I say!  If they're not suffering from intense weight gain, they may be suffering from headaches, short attention span, moodiness, lack of energy, etc.  Most of us as patients want to create a better path for the children in our lives, so I figured some posting on this was very relevant!  We remember what it was like! 

Check it out:  I spent several minutes over in the LUNCHABLE department (which is bustin at the seams with new products, so they must be popular).  Of my favorites were:  the Oscar Mayer Cheese Dip + Salsa Nachos, which features the afore mentioned as well as Capri Sun and an AIR HEAD.  The ingredients list (which is a novel) tells me that Capri Sun is mostly water + sugar. The nacho cheese is a mix of uncheesy things including dried corn syrup, and the air head: sugar, corn syrup (sugar), maltodextrin (sugar), dextrose (sugar), modified food starch (corn), partially hydrogenated soybean oil (trans fat), water (thank goodness!), citric acid (used as a preservative; also exists in trace amounts in oranges....although note that they didn't extract it from oranges:), and artificial flavor.

This little box contains 490 calories, 21 grams fat, 4.5 saturated, and 67 grams of carb, oh, and only 7 grams of protein.  Probably because there are no protein powered ingredients in it, such as meat, beans, yogurt, real cheese, etc.

Another box was a Pizza "LunchMakers" from Armour.  It features pepperoni-flavored sausage (what?  Is that like orange-flavored cranberries?), Hawaiian Punch, and SKITTLES!  I guess I should stop being surprised at the included candy.  Just remember that when you let your kid take candy in their lunch to school, what gets eaten first?  The skittles!  Then the chips or cheetos, they may take a bite of their sandwich, and the apple is left to fend for its lonesome. Okay, so in this "LunchMaker," I notice that the punch is 98% water and high fructose corn syrup.  The 3rd ingredient in the pizza sauce? HFCS.  The 3rd ingredient of our pepperoni-flavored sausage friend? corn syrup, right after pork and mechanically separated turkey (more on that later:) Skittles? Sugar, corn syrup, & hydrogenated palm kernel oil.  YUM!

What makes our kids so crazy over processed food???  THE BRIGHT, FUN PACKAGING!  How do those marketing people sleep at night?? They're so deceiving!  Ultimately, the parents make the decisions for their kids, but even as I was walking down the aisles with my almost 2-year-old, she was picking up boxes that looked appealing to her and putting them on the cart.  (Tinkerbell Fruit Chews, anyone?)  Of course they were right at her level.

Tip #1 for nourishing your kids:  DO NOT BE DECEIVED BY CREATIVE MARKETING!  ...or FLASHY PACKAGING!

Looking at the Fruit Roll-Ups or Fruit Chews, and you'd almost believe it was like giving your kids a serving of fruit.  The packages boast of "made with real fruit" or "7 vitamins & minerals" on the front.  Don't believe it!  Remember, CLAIMS ARE LAME!   Pumping vitamins or minerals into processed foods does not make them any better for our kids.

If you are under the belief that "a calorie is a calorie" and it doesn't matter where the source comes from, I've got many stories for you I'll be sharing of kid's lives that were completely changed in major ways once they started eating "God made, not man made."  Food DOES affect our children!  Attention spans, headaches, hyperactivity, moods, weight, body image, confidence....food majorly affects all these categories, and it can solve them!

So, what to do instead of lunchables or fruit roll ups?  Watch the video, I've got some tips for us!  There are many of you parents who have conquered this problem LONG before me, and I would love for you to share your solutions.  Were all fighting the same battle!  ....trying to provide healthy habits for our children.

Instead of Luchables, try:

*Making your own mini-pizzas at home!  Would be hard to take to school lunch, but a fun idea for a lunch at home or family dinner!

*Schoolbox Sushi!  Find recipe here!

*Make your own "lunchable" for your kids to take to school! (Got this great idea from a friend, Amy Murray, who even puts the pieces in a separated plate. ....and the kids think they're getting something BETTER than Lunchables!  It's all about presentation, huh?)

Instead of Fruit Roll-Ups or Chews, try:  (for kids!) 

*Archer Farms (Target Brand) Fruit Strip: made with purees and juices, no added sugars.

*Archer Farms (Target Brand) Real Fruit Bar in Cranberry-Raspberry: This product is ingenious. I have been taking it with me everywhere I travel. It apples combined with oat fiber, cranberry & raspberry flavor, and vegetable juice for color (from black carrots and red cabbage...I lOVE that!)  Eat has 110 calories and 4 grams of fiber, which is AWESOME!

*Funky Monkey: read about it here.  My new favorite (and my daughter's favorite) fruit snack!  We love the Applemon and Bananamon!

*Uh, how about just fruit!  Does it get any better than a fresh, perfectly ripe peach? 

(Watch a video on this segment as well as how to make a yummy peanut butter dip, and triple protein powerballs!  Click here!) 
 

Take care of those kids in your sphere of influence!  
Annessa 

www.flourishyourlife.com 
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Youtube: Flourishable 

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