The Great(er) White(er) North: Since when do kids need 'kid' food?

I read this interesting article the other day: Kids Don't Need Kid Food by Marion Nestle. Marion Nestle, as it turns out, is a prof in the nutrition department at NYU. She seems like an interesting lady, and in this article/interview, she brings up the idea that if adults are eating healthily, shouldn't their kids eat the same way?

Before I really launch into this, I should say: I don't have kids. We're thinking 3-4 years from now if everything goes as planned, because I am so not ready yet. That said, I was a nanny for years - we're talking from 8 am to 6 pm at times, up to 7 days/week during the summers, as well as being a regular babysitter. Do I know what it's like to fight with your kids to eat every day? Absolutely not, so take this all with a grain of salt.

I recently stayed with a lovely family with 2 gorgeous and adorable kidlets. (Seriously, they made me actually want children, how cool is that?) These guys are pretty starch-fixed; the younger will eat beans and some vegetables and meat, but the other one lives off of noodles and fruit. They regularly get offered other foods, which they sometimes accept but like most kids, spit it out if they aren't into it. Some may say 'GASP! HORROR! COMMUNISM!'. But really, this is going by Ellyn Satter's principles of 'Feeding with Love and Good Sense.' I won't go into too much detail, but you can go here: How to Feed Children by Ellen Satter. This lady's pretty fab in my opinion; she's a registered dietitian who also has a few other sweet credentials, including a master's degree and a social work designation. A lot of what she says makes sense, including 'if you take the joy out of eating, nutrition suffers.' Making your kids eat something they don't want, even if they're just being stubborn, isn't really helping. 'Yes April, that's easy to say when you don't have kids.' How many of us, though, don't like a particular food because it's associated with feelings of pressure or resentment? I was lucky, we were never forced to finish our plate, and while we had to try everything we didn't have to eat it all. Ergo, I'd say my sister and I have a pretty good relationship with food. However, I know quite a few people who were made to eat brussel sprouts, for example, as a kid, and who have vowed never to touch them again. Creating that situation of pressure at the table seems like it would be detrimental to the whole experience of eating.

Ok, so I've basically said 'Don't make your kids eat large amounts of stuff they don't want to eat.' The second part of that sentence though, is not 'So give them kid food!' Somewhere along the line (oh hey, corporate marketing), someone came up with brilliant idea of marketing to kids. Look at the commercials! Go to your average restaurant and there's likely a kids menu. What's on that menu? Is it smaller, maybe a little blander versions of the 'adult' menu?

Often not.

A lot of times it's: mac and cheese, grilled cheese sandwiched, cheeseburger, spaghetti, or something a lot like that. Since when did kids need to eat something different than adults? I'm not saying go out and feed your kids the spiciest curry available, but how about introducing new foods early? It seems to me that by encouraging a separate menu, it's like we're reinforcing the idea that kids need different foods than adults. This my friends, in my opinion, is crap. Did kids 50-100 years ago grow up eating chicken nuggets while mum and dad ate cabbage? Not likely. Odds are, whatever the regular adult meal, there will be something the kid will eat - even if it's just the coconut rice with a piece of chicken you sucked the sauce off of. Maybe they can try a little sauce if it's mild. Kids often need to be offered food 5-20 times (per Ellyn) before they'll start to like it. If we give up trying and pass the grilled cheese, how is this going to happen?

The idea behind feeding kids is that we as adults decide what to serve and when, and the child decides what to eat and how much. It's probably good to provide something Junior is familiar with - even if they want to fill up on bread, which may some counter-intuitive. It's a balancing act, for sure, and I've seen how frustrating it can be. Even my very smart and lovely boyfriend has said things along the lines of 'Kids won't eat that stuff.' How do you know unless you try once in a while? What's so wrong with a food, say lentils, that kids won't eat it? Maybe it's not appealing; maybe they'll never like it. But maybe they will. Naturally, sometimes you're going to be out and about and not feel like a fight. Fair enough, I say, I have enough experience to say sometimes, you need deserve the freedom to have a bit of fun and not worry about getting your kid to eat fried okra. Get the mac and cheese and enjoy your night out. Sometimes, though, maybe get an appetizer and share your entrée with your kid. The idea that kids consistently need a different menu than adults seems counter productive.

I understand, and fully expect this post to be brought to my attention in 5 years or so when I have a 2 year old who won't eat anything but chicken nuggets. Fair is fair.

Now for something more fun: Gingerbread houses!! My friend came to visit and we made her first gingerbread house (and two more for us) from scratch. BOY is that time consuming, but infinitely tastier than the cardboard-tasting gingerbread house kits. Better icing, too.