You know, something struck me as funny several months back. While rocking one of the kidlets I came to the realization that I protect my children from quite a lot. What they watch, where they go, how they spend their time, etc.
Then it hit me.
I was not protecting them from what they put in their mouths.
Huh? you say?
Quite simply, my kids, as well as my husband and I, ate a lot of junk. What we put into those precious little mouths was not wholesome, or even natural.
Seriously, have you looked at the ingredients of most labels? Do we really know what that stuff is?
As parents we need to be super-duper careful about what we allow our children to eat. I am still trying to wrap my mind around why it took me so long to realize this. We can blame food manufacturers or our government, or even doctors, but when it really comes down to the nitty-gritty, it is us, as parents, who are ultimately responsible for our children's nutrition.
I know I am not the only one who has been struck by my own lack of foresight. Blogs and websites abound with tips on "how to get your children to eat healthy." Some even go so far as to hide vegetables in casseroles or smoothies. And while putting vegetables in casseroles and smoothies is not a bad thing, it is ultimately beneficial to teach our children now how good is the stuff that God made.
I have admitted before that I am not big on vegetables. When they are fresh, I do not mind them so much, but they sure are a lot of work to prepare. Not to mention, they are not something I can buy during my twice monthly shopping trips due to the fact that they spoil within days.
This may seem like a meandering post, and I'll grant you, it pretty much is.
But I just want to encourage my friends and readers, as well as myself, to be more vigilant in what we put in our children's bodies. Let's ask ourselves if what our sons and daughters are about to eat is worth the time it takes to chew. After all, we are responsible for those little ones and it is serious business.
How are you making sure your children are eating healthy? What ways are you striving towards in respect to changing their eating habits? I want to hear from you. I have a lot to learn and I sure will appreciate your comments!
20 February, 2009
You Are What You Eat
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6 comments:
Both my daughters, age 22 and 26 love their vegetables! Can't be from me as I only like green ones. Must be from their dad. At least they learned to eat healthy, inspite of me!
Moomettesgram's Musings
Good point.
Great post!
We've been label readers for awhile because I learned from my doctor (who studied natural medicine) that I needed to stay away from artificial ingredients in food. Then I started to notice that when my son was about a year old he reacted both physically and emotionally to food substances! I had to look at the labels to make sure he wasn't getting cow's milk (he was sensitive), artificial colors (which affected his mood dramatically), artificial preservatives or anything else that seemed to cause him difficulty!
Good mom! Keep up the diligent work. It is time consuming to read all the labels and make stuff from scratch but so worth it!
blessings,
melissa
I've been working on this, too. My little guy likes Incredible Hulk smoothies...(got the idea from a post and a comment on Passionate Homemaking the other day!) He watches me blend up the fruits, several handfuls of spinach, flaxseed, juice and yogurt, and then drinks it down. I'm surprised he's so open to drinking his spinach! :) I've also been surprised to find that when I cut up raw veggies to eat for lunch, he's choosing broccoli over carrots! :)
Wonderful post. My kids like dipping lettuce leaves into salad dressing. Usually the orange French-style dressing.
I am definitely on this journey, too. This is a wonderful post.
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