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Children’s Nutrition

Paula Deen Serves Up Food Advice for Kids

by Janet on September 30, 2009

paula deenThe queen of Southern cuisine has a new cookbook for kids:   Paula Deen’s Cookbook for the Lunch-Box Set. I must admit, Paula is not my favorite Food Network star. No doubt she’s charming and entertaining, but I don’t really embrace her deep-fried, fat-laden style of cooking.  So the thought of her cuisine translated to kids made me a bit nervous.  It seems as though Barbara Walters had a similar concern when Paula made a recent appearance on The View to promote her new book.

Paula dishes up an enormous spread of fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, strawberry cake, chocolate fondue, cookies, muffins and other Southern comforts, licking off her fingers as she described these so-called kid-friendly foods in her cookbook. The View ladies are digging right in and then Barbara asks a rather serious question:

“This is a cookbook for kids. Obesity is the number one problem for kids today. Everything you have here is enormously fattening. You tell kids to have cheesecake for breakfast . . .you tell them to have chocolate cake, meatloaf and french fries for lunch.  Does it bother you that you’re adding to it? No? Not at all?”

Paula mumbles something about moderation — “you know, we don’t eat this every day” — to an unconvinced Walters. The awkward exchange has fueled a heated debate in the blogosphere, with people passionately taking both sides — criticizing Walters for her “attack” and Paula for promoting high-calorie, fatty recipes for kids.

Yes, Walters comes down hard on Paula during this light-hearted segment (ironically, the abrupt question came soon after Paula told Walters how she reminded her of her mom and Aunt Peggy because she was so lady-like).  Ha!  Guess she didn’t know what hit her.

But how could Walters not ask this question?  How could the issue be ignored?  The entire segment was over-the-top indulgent — it seemed like a logical topic to bring up.   So can you really blame Walters…or was it just the way she said it?   What’s disturbing to me is that so many people will be looking to Paula for advice on what’s good for kids to pack in a lunch or eat for breakfast before school.  She even tried to talk about nutrition mentioning the “protein” they need.  Yes, Paula is a celebrity chef and she has a devoted following, but that doesn’t automatically make her an expert on children’s nutrition. Well, at least she’s not talking about hiding broccoli in brownies.

No, Paula is not the reason we have a childhood obesity problem in this country.  But is this the type of cookbook parents really need right now?   Was Paula ambushed by Walters on The View?  Was it a fair question?  Or should we just all calm down and shut-up?  Watch the video and let me know your thoughts.

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There’s Got to Be a Better Way: I Say No Hip Hip Hooray for Hooray Puree’

by Janet on September 20, 2009

6a00d8341c58f853ef01157036110e970c-250wiI was shopping at my local Costco in Chicago today when I stumbled upon one of the many sampling stations set up throughout the store.  I had skipped the others, but this display caught my attention. All of these moms were gathered around a tall guy in a hair net talking about children’s nutrition.  He was demonstrating a new product called Hooray Puree?, tubes of frozen pureed vegetables to sneak into macaroni and cheese, brownies and other “kid foods.”

I couldn’t believe my eyes.  Here was the concept of Sneaky Chef and Deceptively Delicious come to life in the aisles of Costco!  I guess it was only a matter of time before a company jumped on this idea. Is it really an indication of the power of this trend?

If you read my earlier posts [Debating the Merits of Stealth Veggies and An Update on the Seinfeld Food Fight] then you know I’m not a fan of this stealth vegetable tactic.  I’d rather parents work on new ways to get kids to love vegetables, rather than focus on hiding them.6a00d8341bfc7553ef00e54f2ddeb28833-640wi

Even so, I know sometimes that means getting creative at mealtime.  It’s not always easy, but I think there are better ways to teach kids to enjoy eating vegetables. I appreciate the company’s interest in children’s diets, but the recipes they promote to use with the purees are not really going to help.  Each 4-ounce packet (including spinach, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower and butternut squash) is equal to 1 vegetable serving.  But then most of the recipes only use 1 packet and they serve 4 or more.  That translates to less than 1 ounce of vegetables per serving!

For example, the beef stew recipe featured on the company’s web site is 1 can of Dinty Moore Stew and 1 packet of carrot puree.  So for one serving of this delicious stew, your child would get about a tablespoon of carrots!  Come on.

Similarly, the macaroni and cheese recipe is 1 box of mac n’ cheese plus 1 packet of butternut squash puree. Once again, that’s only 1 ounce of vegetables per serving.  I wouldn’t want parents to think they’re off the hook, they gave their kids vegetables with just a dollop of mushed vegetables mixed in. The meat loaf recipe features 2 packets of purees, but the recipe serves 6-8…so that’s still just about 1 ounce of vegetables per serving.  You’d be better off adding grated carrots and small bits of red pepper to your meat loaf mixture. There’s got to be a better way!

Hooray Puree is made by a Chicago-area company called ReeRee Foods in Elk Grove Village.  Since it’s a local creation, I feel a little bad being negative.  But I wish this desire to get kids to eat better would result in a different type of product.  I think this will only distract parents.  And even though the intent is admirable, the actual product — and stealth technique —  is not.

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Myths About Feeding a Healthy Family

by Janet on May 20, 2009

secrets-of-feeding1Eating should be enjoyable.  But for many families, eating translates to trouble.  It’s frequently a source of guilt, frustration and stress.  Parents today say they often worry and feel overwhelmed in their attempts to prevent childhood obesity, according to a new survey by Mintel.  For starters, they don’t know where to focus — diet or exercise?  Nearly three quarters of parents (72%) believe kids have too much access to “junk food,” while 69% feel that a lack of exercise is more to blame for obesity.

Parents also feel unsuccessful.  While 93% consider it very or somewhat important to limit their children’s access to “junk food,” only 77% feel they have been very or somewhat successful at accomplishing this.

But limiting access to certain foods may not be the answer.  That’s the major myth that Ellyn Satter tries to bust in her newly revised book Secrets of Feeding a Healthy Family: How to Eat, How to Raise Good Eaters, How to Cook.

She says we should be focusing on raising “competent eaters.”  The secrets of feeding a healthy family, she says,  is to love good food, trust yourself and share that love and trust with your child.  In her 30+ years of clinical practice, Satter found that many families became demoralized about eating — even demoralized overall.  She created the Satter Eating Competence Model  that represents a “fundamental shift from the conventional approach to eating management.”  The eating competence model has four parts:

  • Feeling positive about eating:  Cultivate positive attitudes about eating and about food.  Emphasize providing rather than depriving.
  • Having regular meals:  Take time to eat and provide yourself with rewarding meals and snacks at regular and reliable times.
  • Eating enjoyable food:  Enjoy your eating, eat foods you like, and let yourself be comfortable with and relaxed about what you eat.
  • Eating enough to be satisfied:  Pay attention to your sensations of hunger and fullness to determine how much to eat.

“Foods that aren’t forbidden become ordinary foods that you eat in ordinary ways,” she said.  “Big portions lose their appeal when you know that you don’t have to try to make yourself go hungry in the name of weight control.” To become competent in your eating, Satter recommends we focus on permission and discipline:

  • The permission to choose enjoyable food and eat it in satisfying amounts
  • The discipline to have regular and reliable meals and snacks and to pay attention when eating them

Satter often talks of the importance of  dividing the responsibility.  She says for children to eat and grow well, parents must manage the what, when and where of feeding and let the child manage the how much and whether of eating.  As a parent wrote to Satter after “Satterizing” her approach to feeding her family:  “The basic idea is so Zen — stop controlling, stop struggling, stop worrying and you change the very nature of the problem.”

And talking about part of the problem, some of the messages that young girls receive in the media often work against these principles.  I really shared the rage of Jezebel (“It’s Never Too Early To Hate Your Body”) over an article in the April/May issue of Girl’s Life magazine.  It’s worth checking out the angry analysis of the misguided magazine article that tries to give nutrition advice to 10-15 year old girls.  With promises of “get a bikini body fast!” the article  is full of red flags.  It’s exactly the opposite of competent eating (and competent writing).

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Squeezy Fruits?

by Janet on February 19, 2009

No doubt, kids need to eat more fruits and vegetables.  All too often french fries dominate the plate and juice is the only form of fruit many children consume.  So it’s great to see companies develop innovative new products with kid appeal.

However, must we have squirtable fruit?

smashies

Smashies is a new line of squeezy applesauce for kids that I happened to stumble upon when grocery shopping last week.  I give the company credit  for not adding sugar to the fruit, but I’m struggling with the squirt-in-your-mouth approach.  Don’t think that’s how I want to encourage my kids to eat.  Sure, it’s great the product is portable and ideal for lunch boxes or on-the-go snacks…but remember apples?

The puree in the pouch contains “organic apple flavor” (what is that?) and 0 grams of fiber — a significant disadvantage over real apples.   I’d much rather encourage the whole fruit, or look at other options on occasion to add variety and interest.

Rather than sucking on pulverized apples, I like the idea of  freeze-dried apples better (all natural, no added ingredients) and mini-bags of sliced apples.  But, of course, real apples are the best of all. 

fc-fujiapple-24pack_thumbnailchiquite-apple-2What do you think?

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Debating the Merits of “Stealth” Veggies

by Janet on February 10, 2009

I must admit I’m fascinated by the food fight between the “deceptive” and “sneaky” cookbook authors.  And I’m eagerly awaiting the outcome of the lawsuit Missy Chase Lapine filed against Jessica Seinfeld, author of Deceptively Delicious. Lapine alleges that Seinfeld stole ideas from her book The Sneaky Chef, which was published six months earlier. 

sneaky-bookseinfeld-book2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This controversy stirs up so many intriguing issues — originality of recipes, ethics of publishers and agents and the power of celebrity. While the authors argue over potential “vegetable plagiarism,” I’m more concerned about the actual content of these best-selling books. Is the advice being dispensed really good for kids? 

Now, it appears the “hide and seek” approach is catching on with the food industry.  The trend tracker Mintel says the hidden nutrition strategy is gaining ground with manufacturers and predicts multiple new products for children with vegetables and fruits hidden inside.

Yes, children’s diets do need improving.  And eating more fruits and vegetables is a good place to start.  But, to me, the sneaky approach sends several wrong messages.

Tricks are for kids? 

As a registered dietitian and mother of veggie-loving twins, the concept of camouflaging vegetables just hit me wrong. Does deception really belong at the dinner table?

For starters, disguising vegetables reinforces the notion that these foods are so bad they must be hidden. Early childhood is a critical time of palate development and children need to be exposed to vegetables or they’ll never learn to eat them. Relying on these deceptive recipes may encourage you to throw in the kitchen towel and stop offering “real” vegetables to kids.

Most troubling, though, is the actual nutritional quality of the recipes. Janice Bissex and Liz Weiss, the Meal Makeover Moms, tested some of the recipes in Deceptively Delicious to see if they worked and, more importantly, to see how nutritious they really were. Once they got cooking they found that several of the recipes provided a measly amount of vegetables – some only about 1 tablespoon per serving. They thought the recipes were so focused on sneaking in small amounts of vegetables that they often missed the boat on overall good nutrition.

For example, a chocolate pudding recipe included pureed avocado but surprisingly no milk, so it contained no bone-building calcium. It was also high in sugar (10 teaspoons per 1/2-cup serving) and contained, oddly, uncooked cornstarch that they said gave it a gritty texture. Many recipes in the two books are overly time-consuming and embrace the narrow concept of “kid food,” such as chicken nuggets doused in a broccoli puree before being breaded and fried. The two dietitians thought many of the dishes didn’t even taste good – which is quite ironic since the recipes are attempting to mask the taste of vegetables, yet the final product wasn’t appealing. 

I totally agree with the concept of boosting the nutrient density of the foods kids eat (such as adding grated carrots to meat balls or finely diced bell peppers to pasta sauce), but I struggle with this deceptive approach.

Jessica Seinfeld has readily admitted in media interviews that she resorted to these stealth tactics with her children because she grew tired of “bribing them, begging them, whining at them” to eat their vegetables. But studies show that pressure like this doesn’t work. When you bribe or force children to eat certain foods, they like those foods less. 

So what can we learn from this cookbook controversy? For me, I’m even more convinced that there are better ways to get kids to eat their veggies.

We should focus on making vegetables taste good, not apologizing for them. If we do, children will learn to eat vegetables the same way they learn to eat other foods.  Kids need time and multiple opportunities to eat vegetables.  Plus, they need to see parents enjoy them too! Getting kids involved in selecting and preparing vegetables can make them more appealing. Trips to farmers markets and even growing your own vegetables also can help.

We need to remember that we’re helping to establish food preferences that can last a lifetime so it’s worth the effort. There are no quick fixes.

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