When I pictured being a mom, I pictured being one of those mom's who kept all sugar and junk food out of the diet until they were three of four. Possibly going vegetarian and having the healthiest children who didn't even whine for soda or treats because they scarcely knew what they were. But today I pulled a mango/cream Popsicle out of my freezer and ate it (I try not to have sweets in the house, it was from last summer and I'm still trying to loose the last 7 lbs from pregnancy!). My 8 month old is just expressing interest in our food and we are having a blast giving her little tastes and watching her face. Not only was my diet shot, I forgot all my big health nut plans when she reached for the Popsicle and there we sat on the floor sharing licks of the cold sugary goodness.
Now I'm kicking myself remembering my big plans of not even introducing sugar into the diet. Should I get back on the wagon or change my unrealistic goals?
Not unrealistic at all!! I took Dr. Sears advice early on from The Baby Book and then from The Healthiest Kid in the Neighborhood book - here is the deal. We as parents are our kids nutrionist and we tame their kids taste buds from day 1. In other words, give them salt, sugar, processed foods and that is what they will crave. In fact, they'll have full on tantrums to get the sugar (it is addictive). I do not believe in withholding ALL sweets. I do believe in NO SODA! Not for me, not for the kids ( I will admit, I sneak a coke here and there when I have spicy food, but that is it and I rarely finish a can ) My kids 3 & 5 know that soda is junk food and have no desire to even taste it. Now back to sweets. My kids have always had the Birthday party treats, I've never been one to say at a gathering, "No! You can't have that". Everything in moderation. I stock in my home, healthy foods and healthy treats. The kids know what grow foods are and they know what junk food is. Why? Because I started young with taming their taste buds. I think I read from ages 0-3 or 4 is the most important time to teach them healthy eating habits. So basically, it is our job to teach our kids how to make the right choices. Does that mean they are bad if they choose to drink fruit punch at a party rather than the water? No way, but if they know it is just a treat and that having too much isn't good for them, then I've given them the tools they need to hopefully be able to live in a world that has a fast food restaurant on every corner, serves 64oz sodas w/a meal, where childhood obesity and diabetes are at an all time high, etc..
Want your daughter to enjoy a popsicle? Pour 100% fruit juice (we love Naked, all natural, Might Mango) in to popsicle molds.
Get The Healthiest Kid in the Neighborhood by Dr. Sears, it is a quick read and you'll be so informed.
*** Anyone reading this who doesn't believe this is possible, please read the above mentioned book! Your kids will thank you!! ***
Hope this helps!
Michele
Real, lasting satisfaction, as you know, comes from things that are wholesome. If you work towards a majority of healthy eating at home, your kids will be blessed. Thankfully the human body functions as a democracy. That means if the majority of what they are getting is healthy, then grandma offering a cookie shouldn't be devistating. And even if grandma watches them for a week straight and serves macaroni and cheese every meal, the worst they will be slotted for is getting crabby and sick, not cancer.
So, in support of the awesome job you are doing, some good books to read are Kids Are What They Eat by Betty Kamen (another of hers that is AWESOME is New Facts About Fiber).
Getting kids to eat healthy is a test of creativity, yet those who have the guts and determination to be hopeful and creative get the blessings. Junkfood can really blind people from the goodness of wholefoods, so keep doing the great job of keeping on your toes!
Hi Heidi:
I have to agree with Michelle on this one. The earlier you begin teaching your children healthy eating habits, the better. I had to giggle,when you spoke of sitting and sharing that popsicle with your your daughter. You know...That (pardon the pun) SWEET MOMENT you had together wouldn't have been half as enjoyable,had she been use to eating things like that,on a daily basis. Theres nothing wrong with treating yourselves once in a while. Heck, thats why they call it a (TREAT) right? They make great natural juice popsicles.Orange juice,or grape-juice.My grandkids ask me to make them slushes,with real juice. They love it. Keep up the good work Heidi,your children will adore you for it by the time they reach middle school.I know my grandaughter has a few friends, that have a terrible time with their weight and putting up with ridicule because of their unhealthy eating habits.I wish you and yours the very best.
Hi,
I wanted the same thing for my son. Not the whole vegetarian thing but I wanted him to stay away from sweets, sodas, and read meat. For a while I was able to do it, he never got a taste of anything sweet. Then the grandparents started taking him out to dinner and giving him little bites of icecream and things like that. At first I was angry and told them to knock it off and follow the plans I had.
Then the next time I took him to the doctor his physician gave him a lolli pop. I must have had a horrified look on my face because the doctor started explaining that letting him have a small amount of sweets every now and then wasnt going to hurt anything. The most important thing is for you to never give him the sweets.
After I had the little chit chat with the doc I started thinking that maybe he had some good points. So now when I take my son to the doctors or to get his hair cut and they offer him a lollipop I let him have it.
Heidi,
It is not unrealistic to keep sweets from your daughter. My son, now 2, didn't really have sweets until very recently. And even now, he rarely gets it. We figured that he didn't know what sweets were, so why should we introduce them to him? He thought blueberries and grapes were practically candy (we call it baby candy!).
You do need to remember to that withholding sweets altogether can backfire too. If you withhold something so strictly, they will want it even more when they get older. They may even hide it and sneak it. So that is why we decided to start giving our son "healthy" sweets. Organic lolypops, cookies, etc. And he only gets some once a week or so.
Good luck and enjoy those sweet moments on the porch with your daughter!
We didn't give our DD any sugar for two years. Now, 5 y/o, she doesn't like candy, chocolate, sodas, cookies, cake. She does occasionally have a popsicle, vanilla ice cream or a marshmallow but it's not that often. Keep with the plan, you'll be happy you did.
Good luck.
Marla
I think you mean "sweets" and not "sweats." Sweets are foods with a high sugar content. Sweats are comfortable clothing or what you get after heavy exercise.
My philosophy is "everything in moderation." I didn't really introduce sweets to my son until he was around two. If you make a food totally forbidden, a child will crave it more and do what he can to get it. But if you give sweets in moderation, then your child will view them as a treat. At home my son gets a sweet dessert (a cookie or a small pack of Gummi Bears) only when he eats his whole (healthy) dinner. Every once in a while we'll go out for ice cream. Overall, we have a healthy diet. But we figure that a small amount of sweets is okay as long as we all eat a lot of fruits and veggies daily.
As your child gets older, she will start going to friends' houses and birthday parties where sweets will be served. If your daughter eats sweets in moderation at home, she will do the same at places that you cannot control. If you totally ban sweets, she will eat all she can when you are not around.
Our son didn't really drink any sodas until he was about 4 or 5. He still likes plain mineral water, which is common in Germany, or fruit juice with mineral water. When we go out to eat, he always orders an "Apfelschoerle," which is apple juice and mineral water. The only time he drinks soda is at birthday parties.
Good luck. I'm sure you will strike the right balance in keeping a healthy diet and the amount of sweets your daughter will eat.
They aren't unrealistic goals..because really there is no reason to have to do such things. My daughter is almost three and she still has no idea what a candy is or soda. She still has ice cream, cookies, brownies, fruit snacks and so forth..they are all just made with no sugar. You would be amazed if you just looked around the supermarket that most of everything with sugar has an alternative which doesnt have added sugar. Popsicles are great just buy the sugar free ones..etc. Even juices, apple sauce etc I buy without sugar added, pancake syrup, and so forth. She enjoys everything all the other kids do, just without the side effects. Most of the people in my family including myself are all over weight and prone to Diabetes..so needless to say I want to keep my daughter as well as myself from that.so just buy no sugar added items and life wont be much different, especially cause she dont know any better. Good luck.
Your goals are not unrealistic at all and should be followed. Not so much for weight, but life style patterns. We have so many obese kids, childhood diabetes is on the rise, autism from preservatives and ingredients we can't pronounce... You didn't ruin your goals with one popcylce, just resume feeding healthy choices. They don't know syrup is supposed to go on pancakes unless you tell them.... My son is 16m and has never had processed foods, sugar, unhealthy fats... They have plenty natural sugars in fruits and vegs.
I would change your unrealistic goals now. Since there is sugar in almost everything (even fruit), you can't go without sugar completely. You can always buy sugar free popcicles (where the sugar comes from the fruit.)
We don't give our kids a lot of sugar, but to not give them any would be completely ludicrous! Have fun with your little one, and enjoy a little sugar from time to time! :)
Dear Heidi, Your daughter can smell as well if not better than yourself. If you are eating something she will probably want it. What's not realistic is to expect her to have a diet far superior than yourself. If you find eliminating sugar intirely from your diet not a reasonalble thing to do, then perhaps it is too rigid a plan for you to try to keep her on. Eating healthy most of the time is a very good goal to achieve. Trying to do things perfectly is often more irritating than productive.
PS:Don't sweat not spelling sweet right, it's another of those perfectionistic things that aren't worth worring about.
Heidi,
Wow on your responses. Apparently alot of these moms were never kids themselfs. First of all I'm a junkfood junky, on the sweet side which means I go for cookies rather then chips. I'm not fat, I do have a little belly but a lot of that is excess skin from babies.
Do you remember when we were little and our parents never let us eat cookies for breakfast. Well now that our parents are grandparents, they let our kids eat cookies for breakfast, and their answer now is we dicided it didn't kill you when you were little so it must be ok to eat them.
I think the problem today is people don't know how to stop eating, it's not so much the junk food but it's the fast food and supersized. For example my hubby would go out to eat and because he was really hungery at that moment he would buy a supersized value meal and 2 extra sandwiches. (No wonder he's fat). But he said he was hungry and he didn't eat breakfast. Like that should make a diffrence. Your stomach is still the same size unless you keep eating and make it bigger. My kids have always had a small plate until they turn 12, this is when thier appetites change and they eat you out of house and home for a few years. I never told them they couldn't have seconds, but sometimes our eyes are bigger then our bellies. My room mates would be on Jenny Craig for months and they would say things like, when I get to my ideal weight I'm going to eat a whole bag of doritos, or whatever they were craving. I would just say why not have a hand full now and save them for the next time you have a craving rather then eat the Entire bag.
I guess what I'm saying is, teach her how to eat now, not that you can't have any sugar ever just limit to desert time or once a day. This way when she goes to a Birthday party she won't be the one scarfing down the cake. Or hogging the pin-u-ata candy. Eating healthy is good but so is teaching her intake amounts. Good luck! Don't expect her to be your guinypig, if she is giving up the sugar so do you. Especially if she has no say in the matter. Julie
Keeping your kids sugar-free is possible if that is what you want to do. I don't think it is unrealistic at all. My mom raised me and my 6 siblings that way. We never had refined sugar in the house, we had honey and I think raw sugar, but I don't remember how we used that. There is a difference between "natural" sugars (like in fruits) and "refined" sugars. Basically, anything that is "refined" is not good for your body. I started reading up on a lot of these nutritional things when my kids came along, and I'm still learning.
When my first baby was born, I was determined that he would have no sugar for the first year. Then he turned a year old and I couldn't bear the thought of putting that "poison" into his precious little body (poison is a strong word, but the more I have learned about it, the more I feel that way about sugar and other processed or artificial foods). I figured his first taste of sugar would be at his first birthday celebration. But I couldn't do it, so I took my favorite carrot cake recipe, and altered it. I used whole wheat flour instead of refined flour, and honey instead of sugar. And we made home-made ice cream, sweetened with honey instead of sugar. That has been our family birthday menu ever since then. It took me a few birthdays before it tasted good to me (the frosting was the hardest part for me to get used to), but now I think it is delicious. And my son is crazy about that birthday cake.
My oldest is nearly 3 1/2 now and has a 2 year old little brother. We do our best to keep them away from anything refined (especially sugar), processed or artificial (like preservatives). Those kinds of foods are not in their daily diet. Once in a while, like at a family party, and there are lots of cookies around, if they ask, they may have one cookie (I know there is sugar and possibly other contraband ingredients in there, but "once in a while" is not going to do any lasting damamge). It is a lot more work, and more expensive, to live this way, but I think their precious little bodies are worth it. Whenever we go somewhere, like Sunday School, where a snack will be offered, we bring our own snack and I politely ask the teacher to offer my child the snack I provided. Sometimes they forget, and it's no big deal. My oldest went to preschool for a short time and that was tough to keep him away from all of that. There was constantly something going on where junk food was involved (I still can't figure out why they would have that kind of stuff around a class of 2 1/2 - 3 year olds). He would come home after lunch time and be unable to sleep for his nap (I'm guessing the sugar may have had something to do with that). Now that he is not in preschool any longer, we have no trouble with naps.
My boys have lots of fruit. Those are their "sweets." They love all kinds of fruit. When I was potty-training my oldest, I thought I would give in to M&M's for rewards (every mom I know told me they were the "golden ticket" with potty training), but I couldn't do it, so I found some juice-sweetened natural peanut butter cookies. It worked! They were a perfect reward for him.
If you want to share a popsicle with your little one and have wonderful moments like that, without the sugar, you can make your own juice popsicles (you can buy little popsicle molds so you can make your own). Or you can have the "real thing" as an occassional treat. I do like to eat junk food, but I never eat it around my kids. I know that crud is not good for me either, but I figure is is even worse for my kids, whose little bodies are still growing and developing. I know as they get older, I will probably have to get rid of it completely, and I am working toward that. But I don't think it is awful as an occassional treat, as long as your primary diet is healthy.
I completely understand your dilemma. While I am only about to have my first child myself, I have several nieces and nephews, and am constantly trying to keep them away from sweets and keep them healthy and set the right dietary example. I have the same goals of not introducing mine to junk food (I am almost 100% vegan) until they are much older.
I would suggest this: from now on, don't have the junk around the house. Have healthy treats, such as fresh fruits or celery with peanut butter around to satisfy your own sweet tooth, but to also set the example for your child. Baby will see what you eat and drink and follow your example.
One thing to remember, though, is to not have sugary foods and fun treats be on the "never" list. Human nature is to want even more what you are told you can't have. Keep those foods to "a limit", but not always "off limits".
My hubby and I, for ourselves, will not keep junk around the house, but will take a nice long walk, get a frozen yogurt, and walk back. We appreciate the treat so much more because we make an event out of it and we ddon't have it all the time. This is something we have instituted in our house when the nieces and nephews are around, too, and it is working with them. We plan on using this with our own children as well, also.
Obviously a little bit now and then will not do permanent damage, so your few popsicle licks is not all that big of a deal, considering her age. I think if you work on instituting your initial goal from here on out you will be ok.
Sorry so long, but I wanted to give a detailed response. Have a great day and good luck!
Amy
I doubt she'll remember it if you only gave it to her once. So she won't want it all the time. I would go back to trying to stay away from giving her sweets until she's older. My daughter is 2 now and she didn't have any sweets besides fruit until she was almost 2 and even now it is only occasional. She's never tried soda, we tell her it's only for mommy's and daddy's and she wouldn't like it. I would stick to your same way of thinking about trying to be healthy, just don't get discouraged if you slip up a bit... no ones perfect.
Heidi!
I had the same plans! Myself, I am a healthy eater and even sometimes called a health nut...but, I was going to be so careful to make sure my son didn't end up one of those kids in school that was 'plump'. Then I woke up to the reality that my denying him foods could 'cause huge sneaking food issues or bad eating habits.
My son is now two years old and he gets to eat ice cream for desert, but not a gigantic serving and only for desert. And, to keep myself in check, I don't eat a bigger serving than I give him...helps me keep off the pounds most weeks. :) I mean to be honest, I have fond summer memeories of chasing the Ice Cream truck down the street and eating fudge bars with my Little Sis on the porch...
I agree with several posters...it's all about moderation. My Mom taught me and my sister to stop eating when we were full and that sweets were a 'special treat'...like lollipops, candy bars and so forth. But, we could always eat fruit if we wanted it or granola, juice bars and fruit snacks. Things that were healthy and naturally sweet and good.
It is hard in our world with all the drive-through windows and Super Sized meals, but if you teach your child to eat healthy and choose for herself, it will hopefully be the road map to a succesful eater. I think I'm trying to lead by example, so I try to serve things for dinner that we both can enjoy. Like baked chicken, homemade french fries that I bake and not fry...there are a lot of great cookbooks with recipe ideas, it's just a matter of finding your groove. And, for me sharing dinners is easier on the budget and it kind of cuts out the feeling like I'm depriving him of something and keeps my healthy too.
At any rate, the best thing to do is go with your gut! Do whatever works best for you, and just roll with it.
Good luck!
Gosh! This is a tough one and near to my heart. I had to respond to you. I said the same to myself and husband about McDonald's. He laughed at me when I'd never take my kids there. He even thought I was depriving them. Now that was easy for a while, but the convenience and the toys in the happy meal and the low price, the jungle gym and social aspects drew me and my kids in. My kids are now 11 and almost 13. It's taken me this long to re-educate them into the values of eating right. They'd be hard pressed to go there now. Not too long ago, my son had a horrid addition to sugar. He'd even hold out and say he's full on the real food just to an hour later pull out the ice cream or some other confectionary. Yes, I had it in the house.
So what's the big deal? A little sugar?
Have you noticed the increase in diabetes and over weight children? So what? Well, what I've discovered since I've been brave enough to look is that processed foods of any kind, especially sugar are literally killing us as a society. This is one reason health experts are telling us our children's generation will be the first not to outlive their parents. Eating refined sugar weakens our immune systems and promotes yeast overgrowth. Our immune systems is what protects from any disease.
I have found the best way to reverse this trend of eating processed foods and sugars in my household is to be a role model for it. Eating more sugar causes me to want more sugar, so I am on a kick to see if I can be without it for 3 months. My kids are watching me and decided to take it on for themselves. Better would have been to avoid it in the first place and stand my ground. I wasn't ready to do that when I first had my kids because I was addicted too. I knew it was right but didn't take it on for myself till now. If you can be the example, that will be the best way to have it for your kids. What's really cool is I have discovered a way to literally eliminate the cravings for the sweets. It's so strange when it happens. Only took about a week through nutritional cleansing. At 12, my son did it and accomplished the same. Totally amazing and weird at the same time! I could finally walk past a cookie and say, "Oh, there's a cookie." vs. "Oh, that's my cookie!"
My best to you in your choices as parent.
Here's my number if you wish to talk, or want to know specifically how I did it.
(858) 922-7293
Happy Dani
Don't get to upset at yourself. A lot of your best thought out plans will be tested when they give you that sweet little smile. I don't think you should hold off all sugar...think of Halloween, what will your child do if they can't trick or treat? Will they feel left out when classmates bring treats to celebrate a birthday? Just watch how much sugar your child gets. There is nothing wrong with you wanting healthy kids and if you still want to stick to the "no sugar" rule good for you! I know with my 3, I couldn't. I just watch how much they get. Instead of buying bottled juice I buy the frozen concentrate and dilute it. If you make koolade, use 1/2 the recommended sugar. Do what feels right to you and try not to feel guilty.
Yes, it's absolutely realistic. My husband and I decided to not feed our two sons soda or sugar and it's worked brilliantly. The trick was to just not have it in the house and politely decline when we were asked if the boys could have it. They were both in grade school before getting their first taste of sugar foods (cake, candy, etc.). In fact, it was at their after school day care where they got candy for the first time. When I asked if non-candy options were available for snack time, the entire staff looked at me like I was from another galaxy. Go figure.
My sons are now 10 and 14 and they refuse soda for milk, water and, occasionally, juice (just another sugar drink according to most dentists). As for candy, that's harder to control now that they're older, but they know to eat it in moderation. I'm proud to say my kids prefer to snack on fruits and vegetables.
So, yes, it can be done. And, no, my husband and I are not health nuts or vegetarians or even rabid on the subject. It's just what we do, so our boys will be healthier than us. And, yes, we've gotten a lot of flack over the years for our choices. But, I'll tell you, the day I saw a five-year-old friend of my son ask for Coke for breakfast with a mouth full of rotting teeth, I knew we had made the right choice.
Kids want the healthy food. My sons actually take extra fruit and veggies to school each day because their friends ASK for it. I'm talking about carrots, bananas, pears, apples, oranges, the basics.
Good luck to you!