5 Things Never To Feed Your Child

I remember it like it was yesterday. I was seven and, after school one day, my mom agreed to take me to my favorite fast food joint for a burger, fries and a cola because I did well on a test. As we pulled into the parking lot, my mouth started to water. I literally imagined putting the food in my mouth and the sweet taste of every chew. I was a picky eater and ordered my burger "plain." Since it was 1983, we were given a small yellow tent to put on top of our car because we had to wait for the "specially made" sandwich to come out. Those minutes seemed like hours. Obviously, this wasn't my first time eating fast food at my favorite place; the emotions I felt were conjured up from past memories that my stomach, brain and digestive hormones weren't soon to forget. Throughout the years, I appreciated my fast food treat more often than I should have and, by the time I was a teenager, I had a weight problem and needed to change my habits for my health. I saw a dietitian at Cleveland Clinic and the rest, as they say, is history. But I often wonder -- had I never been introduced to fast food, would I really have become so excited waiting in the car for my fat, sugar and sodium? Would the years have been a bit easier on my waist size and my insulin levels? Would I still say, "Man, I miss (insert favorite fast food item here)" every so often when I pass my old favorites places?

Today, I often get questions from parents regarding the healthiest foods to give their children. More often than not, they don't like my answers. Do you ever wonder about how the foods you're giving your child today may affect him or her tomorrow? Here are five to steer clear of.

 

Follow Kristin Kirkpatrick, M.S., R.D., L.D. on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ClevelandClinic

Comments

[activeirish]

09:48 PM on 03/21/2012

This is my second comment on this subject, Does anyone here ever consider doing what I do when I want to give my kids something different, I buy some lean chicken breasts or turkey, chop it up, then chop up celery, onion, and blend them together in a food processor, then take a handful, shape it into a ball then flatten, then dust it with flour and shallow fry it using minimal amounts of sun flower oil in a non stick pan, they look like junk food chicken burgers but they taste much better and not a chemical or colour involved, my kids are eating fresh lean chicken and vegetables and I enjoy one or two with them without regretting it later.

[Rossco33]

09:35 AM on 02/11/2012

Nothing that we eat can be nitrate free. 79% of the oxygen we breath is Nitrogen. Any type of food we or our kids eat is ok as long as it is in moderation. There are nights that either I work late or just don't feel like cooking and stop on the way home and grab burgers or pizza. As long as the children stay active and don't sit in front of a computer or gaming system all day it is no big deal.

[Kendall Hawley]

02:11 PM on 02/08/2012

Everyone keeps talking about junk food being a "treat" and that makes it ok... isnʻt that the problem? Kids grow up with this idea that fast food and other junk is only for special occasions and rewards, associating it with the best things in life. Is it at all possible to raise kids that donʻt like fast food, and wouldnʻt that be so much better for them in the long run?

[marla d]

11:27 AM on 02/06/2012

This is a good article. I want to give it to a friend who does not have a computer. Actually, people who do not have computers are likely to be the ones who really need to know this. My issue is that the format is very printer-unfriendly. Please reformat this so that it can be more widely distributed.

[DG-NY]

05:23 AM on 02/06/2012

In Germany, people eat "Luncheon Meat" for breakfast... and sometimes supper! I was in the hospital with a super high blood pressure (over 200, when the ambulance came) and the hospital fed me this twice a day. The "warm meal" was lunch and it was often too salty to eat. Germans love their "Natrium" (Sodium)!

[captainindustry]

06:55 AM on 02/04/2012

go to whole foods and get buffalo hot dogs. delish

[N0NDescript0]

02:07 PM on 02/01/2012

"If the phrase "Nitrates and Nitrites... Mmmm Yummy" have never flown out of your mouth, why would you put them in the mouth of your child? Hot dogs and processed lunch meats -- frequent favorite kid foods -- often contain nitrates, a preservative added to prevent the growth of bacteria, add color or preserve flavor but also can increase colon cancer risk."

If you are worried about nitrite and nitrates, then stop eating vegetables.

http://www.ajcn.org/content/90/1/1.full.pdf+html

http://junkfoodscience.blogspot.com/2008/07/does-banning-hotdogs-and-bacon-make.html

[Ave-all-day]

08:28 PM on 01/31/2012

I think children can eat basically anything they wanted as long as they don't eat too much of one thing and have a good balance when it comes to healthy food and junk food. There is nothing wrong with treating your child to some junk food every now and then. You just got to be responsible and pay attention to their eating habits. It's when you let it get out of control that causes major problems.

[Basal Pinyon Think]

11:44 PM on 01/31/2012

Complteley agree. As long as you balance the 'junk' food with healthy food (which most kids like some of anyway), then they should be fine. You just shouldn't make drive thrus and soda a daily thing. It should be a treat.

[bizzaro birdman]

02:22 PM on 01/31/2012

My kid looooves hot dogs. He'd eat them breakfast lunch and dinner if we let him.

[Dazed not Confused]

12:02 PM on 01/31/2012

I would add two things to the list: 1) any cereal specifically marketed to children, not only because they are high in sugar and other crap but also because the industry shows its true colors by marketing to kids; 2) any sweetened soft drinks, not just cola, not just carbonated drinks...and artifical sweetners are bad for kids too..

[xanadu4024]

06:50 PM on 01/30/2012

Here is odd thing, I started eating a 2500 calorie diet and put on weight, I was weak, shaky, tired, couldnt think straight at work. Boss asked me to diagnose a car with driveability issue (I am a mechanic) and I just could not think straight.
So next morning I came in and next to our Firestone store was a Burger King. So since Icame in a half hour early I went over and bought an Enormous Omelet sandwich, long bun, egg, sausage, extra bacon. I ate, and since it was cold got hot chocolate . Well time to work I worked 5 hours and got the diag done, and two other cars, I wasnt weak, or shaky or nothing.
so iwent over for lunch and had a Tendercrisp chicken sandwich, small fries I believe and actually got Orange juice. MAN I FELT fantastic!!! energy, clear headed. And I remember when the active dietary caloric was upped to 4000 calories.
I remember when they tried to put my grandfather, a farmer on a strict diet, and first day he came home from field and ate a larger cold cut sandwich and told grandma to fix regualr dinner.
Biggest issue in,, if you sit on your back side eat more protein in morning to hold you over, if you dig ditches,, eat mix of protein and carbs.
Eat smart, stay active, Healthy. Eat crap, sit on your A$$ get sick/fat/dead! Fast food isnt for three meals a day.

[Open Circles]

10:55 PM on 01/31/2012

Eat Smart, stay active. Great advice. Great post

[TraceyES]

04:19 PM on 01/30/2012

Hot dogs can be purchased that are organic and nitrate free. Yes, they have a lot of fat and a lot of salt. But the occasional hot dog is not going to make a kid overweight as long as he/she eats a balanced diet. As many people have said, moderation is key is the "never" business is unnecessary and hyperbolic.

[RobynHeud]

12:24 PM on 01/30/2012

I'd like to point out that the study everyone cites about nitrates and nitrites causing cancer was conducted on rodents and the levels they were injecting the subjects with were at levels so high that in order to match them, we would need to consume nothing but baloney/hot dogs, all day, every day. Yes, I think any substance in that amount may cause cancer. It doesn't mean avoid at all costs. I would also love to see articles that when they cited the research include a link to the research that would detail how the study was conducted, not just an attention grabbing headline and studies cited from other article.

[Dadding Dudes]

02:59 PM on 01/30/2012

Such good points, RobynHeud. But you may as well call yourself DonKeyHotey :-) with those demands from the media. Most people want to see the sensational bottom line from a study, not realizing how drawing these conclusions can in many cases be better qualified as creative fiction. And the media delivers what the public wants.
I tend to stay away from nitrates and nitrites, but, as you said, not at all cost. The occasional beef jerky can be a nice, low carb snack, hot dog dinner is a life saver sometimes...
Thanks for voicing some reason here.
www.daddingdudes.com

[teacherterry]

03:24 PM on 01/30/2012

I am a teacher and once had a student ( ESE preschool for students with behavior disorders) who ate ONLY bologna sandwiches( white bread, of course) for lunch------2 slices of this junk, every day for an entire year.....would that qualify as enough nitrites and and nitrates for you?

[RobynHeud]

04:43 PM on 01/30/2012

No, the number I'm referring to is more like 2000+ hot dogs per day. In other words, not humanly possible. Plus, there's the fact that nitrites and nitrates are found in leafy greens in amounts exponentially greater than found in as single hot dog. If nitrites and nitrates are so bad, why aren't we banning salads? It's because people are still referencing a study, done in the 70's, that was highly flawed and whose results no other study has been able to duplicate. We're told to be afraid of everything we eat, yet we're expected to willingly eat the poorly-researched garbage articles like this feed us on a daily basis.

[Cratewasher]

11:54 AM on 01/30/2012

Here's something Obama can do today for healthy eating. Remove Monsanto executive Michael Taylor from the FDA.
http://signon.org/sign/tell-obama-to-cease-fda.fb1?source=s.fb&r_by=2133671
Michelle would approve!

[jml1018]

09:17 AM on 01/30/2012

what's wrong with hotdogs, lunch meat and 100% juice?

[Basal Pinyon Think]

11:47 PM on 01/31/2012

I was wondering the same thing!