Pajiba

Except, most children don't eat foods made with ordinary sugar. They eat foods made with high fructose corn syrup which does not signal the pancreatic cells in the same way that ordinary sugar does. With regular sugar, a signal is sent to the pancreas that the body has had enough, HCFS does not send this signal and the body keeps on wanting more. The corn lobby has ads trying to convince us that HCFS is just natural sugar, which technicallys is true, but the way it acts in the human body is far from natural.

Sugar does have a place in a balanced diet. Keyword: balanced. Too bad we don't even have the choice anymore as it gets dumped in the vast majority of food advertised to us everywhere we go. So just assume that everything edible that comes in shiny/colorful/bright cardboard/plastic/metal packaging can and will kill you if you consume the whole thing and you'll be just fine. Maybe.

Yeah...shoulda changed my name from back when I was all full of cold...

Robert, I'd always heard that there was absolutely no need for sugar in a person's diet. While I agree that keeping an eye on what we eat and how much sugar we're taking in, is a good idea, in fact, we could do without it perfectly well and not suffer any consequences. The same can't be said for complex carbohydrates, protein, fat and fibre.
Funny how I know that and yet am still at least five stones overweight :-/

Corn is the main problem, not natural sugar. Corn is in everything. It's no coincidence that the same food used to fatten our livestock is also fattening us. Avoid processed food wherever possible. It works wonders, believe me.

Also, no one mentioned yet that kids in 1971 were out running around like crazy for hours a day. After school, we used to play outside. Race each other. Play ball, ride bikes. There was nothing worth watching for kids on TV, no computers or video games. When you get that much exercise, a few Cocoa Puffs will not make you a blimp.

To be fair to sugar, a lot of the shit kids eat too much of isn't filled with sugar, it's filled with fat. Hamburgers, pizza, chips (of all kinds), pizza rolls (those grody Totino's things), etc. They market this stuff to kids (and mothers, who do the bulk of the family grocery shopping) just as aggressively as the HFCS or sugar industry does their product.

Just sayin'. It's not just sugar.

Niodigenes:

Children don't have any say over the crap their parents feed them or over-feed them. My niece is a case in point: 9 years old; horribly obese; hasn't stood a chance since the day she was born; and there's no way to reason with her parents. By the time she's old enough to take control of her life, it's going to be a terrible uphill struggle to undo years of bad habits and ill health.

Also, try avoiding foods with HCFS. I do it diligently, but sometimes I have to walk out of the store with nothing because I can't find anything. Heinz makes one HCFS-free ketchup. They make it in the smallest bottle possible at a high premium cost.

Dustin, its hilarious that you posted this today, on the back of a guy releasing a study where he lost 27 lbs on a Snack Cake diet.

My first reaction to this is "malnutrition."

Man Eats Nothing But Twinkies - Loses 27 Pounds

Yeah. Malnutrition.

I'm with - well, everyone. It's not sugar, it's HFCS. AND it's fat, AND it's changed lifestyle. Feed your kids (mostly) unprocessed foods - it's not rocket science. Meat and a veggie or two, eggs and cold cuts and fresh bread, nuts and berries and bananas and apples. You don't have to make everything from scratch, but if you pay attention to the food you eat and what you feed your kids, you can do pretty well pretty easily.

First, kids back then (i was one of them) didn't have all the refined sugars that they eat now (but that's not a good excuse). Second, we ran or road our bikes EVERYWHERE! We stayed out until way after dark playing kick the can. We road our bikes for miles just to get to a 7-Eleven to blow a pocket full of change on sodas and candy. The candy was fuel for a generation of kids that played outdoors non-stop. I love video games, but I hate TV. Both are killing our kids. (and some of us lazy ass adults too)

If anyone is curious, this is a good study demonstrating what PaddyDog was talking about: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/10/081016074701.htm

Being an Australian citizen, I always find it fascinating reading anything to do with the american weight situation. Australia is in a bad place too, but by the direction this discussion is going, it almost seems like its an unavoidable problem in america.

In Australia the vast majority of our sugar comes from our cane fields. So learning about all of the problems concerning corn based products is interesting. I myself am probably slightly underweight ( 6 foot and 70kg, I lead a very physically active lifestyle and dont get time to stuff my face with food ), but thats mostly to do with my parents and how I was raised. Its been mentioned previously and The Mutt gave a great example, but parents caving to there childrens demands and not teaching there kids why they cant have something in particular is a big problem.

Kid: I want!
Parent: No.
Kid: but I want it now!"
Parent: I said no.
Kid: I WANT IT.
Parent: fine.....

Kids need to be taught why they cant have it. Through learning they will gain the knowledge of why things are bad for them, parents shouldnt just assume the kids will pick up on these things.

Kid: I want this chocolate bar.
Parent: Sorry you cant have it, for desert tonight you can have X desert, as long as you eat all of your dinner first.

The kid is thrown off the scent of the chocolate bar and has a new focus of a reward for finishing there dinner. As long as the dinner is healthy in the first place, consisting of 3-5 vegies/salad and a healthy red meat. Let alone getting your kids to help in the food making process and teaching them why each food group is good for them.

Time is an important factor though, and with morgages/work and the socio-economic problems associated with both playing such a vital roll against a parent raising there kids, it is understandable why parents take the easy way out and buy takeout, or dont have the time to teach there kids about fundamental basics such as food.

Our decadent lifestyles are resulting in the degradation of society.

It’s the Parent Guilt Industrial Complex.

I recently spent 3 minutes staring at the jam shelves at Whole Foods thinking that I can’t really afford to buy the organic jam, but then won’t I be saturating Little Julien’s body with chemicals because, you see, I know that strawberries are one of the fruits on the dirty dozen list that you must always buy organic. Organic/affordable/organic affordable. I gave up when a little voice in my head said, “Really? Do you really think the jam is going to kill him?” and I don’t and I took the regular one. I'm fatigued as a parent. I'm on the brink of a general malaise setting in*. As a parent in the information age, I am inundated with concerns and responsibilities: never mind if the jam has chemical-laden strawberries, how is it sweetened; too much sugar; too much corn syrup; since we live on the second floor and have an unfenced yard and can’t send him out to play is he being scared for life; sunblock will give you skin cancer; no sunblock will give you skin cancer; zinc sunblock will make you look consumptive; what is in the drinking water; how long will it take that juice box to biodegrade; what is in the vaccines; is the car seat safe; what about the red dye in that Tootsie Pop; is the microwave diminishing the nutritional content of his peas; Mr. Julien and I are so out of shape, what are we teaching him; how much fluoride is enough; why do I have spend MORE MONEY to get things that are LESS PROCESSED; why does CHICKEN cost LESS per pound than FRUIT; was the shirt he is wearing made by someone about his age in a third world country; the dyes and perfume in my detergent are doing what to his immune system; am I giving him too much starch even if it is whole grain…

I’m a mostly rational and very sensible person, but keeping up with, abiding by and sorting through all of the rules is exhausting. The Juliens don’t eat much processed food (what you’re looking at is all home cookin’), but I do let him have “organic**” Kraft dinner once in a while or a chocolate bar. On a day when I am especially tired the fact that we don’t eat processed food makes dinner such a pain. I think it would be easier if I was one of those people who bought Wonderbread, Frosted Flakes and fish sticks and didn’t worry about it. But then I might not be the kind of person who frequents a site like this and learns of prehistoric creature death matches.

I think it’s a fair trade.

*because of the poor quality chocolates - $20 to the person who can name that reference

** I snicker too. It’s snicker worthy. Maybe even a snort.

Mrs. Julien, it's Eddie Izzard isn't it?

Mrs. Julien, get grape jam instead. Since grapes are cheaper, they don't get the extensive pesticide treatments that more expensive crops like berries do. Strawberries are fragile and susceptible to all kinds of disease and pests, not to mention that no one wants to buy them if they look funny.

He doesn't like grape. Their tastes do have to enter into it. We go with raspberry and blackberry instead.

Mrs. Julien: I hear you loud and clear, sister. As to the jam, it's a swipe on a piece of bread, so I don't sweat it. That said, it's a swipe, so the extra money you invest in organic or non-HFCS version goes a long way b/c jam lasts a long time.

Crap that is crap doesn't freak me out - I permit my daughter to have crap ice cream fairly frequently and don't freak out about it. Crap masquerading as healthy food, i.e. cereal with HFCS, chicken with tons of hormones, bread loaded with preservatives, yogurt with weird colors, etc. is what concerns me the most. As to processed v. non-processed, sure, I prefer to make marinara myself for the kids. However, Trader Joe's marinara really isn't that bad. I try to keep enough on-hand for those in-a-pinch nights (which are mighty frequent these days).

I seriously don't worry about the rest (what detergent I use, - not enough hours in the day for that. The only thing I'm truly a lunatic about is car-related safety.

I have to thank my Mom for my good eating habits. She raised my sister and I on a mediterranean diet (she grew up in Iran) and we pretty much ate the most excellent, fresh, healthy stuff. It was mostly centered around vegetarian fare, fresh veggies, huge salads, fruits, french bread, good cheese. Pasta and fish, but no red meat. Rarely chicken (mom's been a vegetarian for ten years, so is my sister, and I'm almost there).

Of course, when we were kids we wanted ice cream and soda pop, but mom stood firm and to this day I really can't even eat processed foods.

One of the things that drives me mad is the "I can't afford to eat healthy" argument, especially coming from an overweight or obese person. If you are significantly overweight, let's arbitrarily select 50 lbs. or more, that means you are consuming more calories than needed. Extra calories means extra money you are spending.

Besides, it's actually LESS EXPENSIVE to buy fresh produce/lentils/spices and actually, you know, cook your own meal. Home cooked meals, ones that don't come from a microwave oven, are hands down less expensive than pre-made dinners and snacks. You get a lot more for your money, which is why I refuse to buy prepackaged food.

At Trader Joe's (a store I love), they sell PRE-SLICED ONION. For like, $2.50. I mean, what are you paying for? You're paying for someone to slice up a damn onion, wrap it, and put it on a shelf. Why not spend .50 on a whole onion and slice it up yourself? That stuff drives me bonkers. Same with pre-made salads. $5 for a bit of dry lettuce, a huge package of dressing (with probably 300-400 calories alone), and some croutons. Give me a break. Buy a head of lettuce for $1.00 and slice it up yourself.

All of which to say, we have lost the art of cooking for ourselves. I think people are confused by cooking, they don't know what to do with it, and don't do it often enough to keep regular ingredients at home to use. If you eat take-out all the time, or eat microwave dinners, when it comes time to try and make a home cooked meal you're probably not going to have the experience, confidence, or the necessary ingredients to make the meal. So you have to run out to the store, spend $50 on seasonings or ingredients you might never use again, and then slave over a recipe you're not sure you even want to eat. That, I believe, is why people get frustrated. They say it takes too long to cook from scratch, it costs too much money, etc.

I can say, though, that if you make a habit of cooking at home, you will find you can make a meal in less than half an hour and be satisfied monetarily and nutritionally. You will be healthier and all will be well.

BTW, loving the Eddie Izzard note on the board. I'm a huge fan!

I agree, Lbees. Cooking doesn't have to be an art, but it is an essential skill that fewer and fewer people hold. It is also much easier to control your food budget when you're not eating out as much. And it's true that with practice you can get many meals ready in 30.

One of the things that drives me mad is the "I can't afford to eat healthy" argument, especially coming from an overweight or obese person. If you are significantly overweight, let's arbitrarily select 50 lbs. or more, that means you are consuming more calories than needed. Extra calories means extra money you are spending.

Ehhh, not so much. Go wander the aisles in the middle of the store and look at the boxed dinners - those things are jam-packed with fat, sodium and HFCS and they cost like $1.50. The problem is that low quality food is cheap to produce and those cost savings translate to lower prices in the grocery store - as opposed to meat and fresh fruits/veggies, which take a bit more effort to produce and therefore costs more in the end. It also doesn't help that corn production is heavily subsidized in this country, making it easy for companies to get HFCS on the cheap and sweeten/flavor their products with it.

Ah, Mrs. Julien, I see. I guess I saw someone mention Eddie somewhere on the board and got all excited.

And to Another Jen, yes, I agree wit you. There are some very inexpensive frozen meals for under $5.

But, but! Is that pre-made food fulfilling? I certainly don't feel satiated after eating a Stouffer's mac n' cheese tin. My point is that these foods are not only extremely calorific, they do not satisfy one's hunger. You end up eating more of some other food. And I still firmly believe that extra weight equates to extra money. You pay to eat more than you need to consume, that's just math.

Processed food also has the added negative consequence of not curbing hunger; a 2 liter bottle of Coca Cola may be only $2, but the HFCS causes increased cravings for more sugar. You don't feel satisfied with drinking a glass of cola (it's tasty!). So yeah. I just think... healthier fresh food costs less, hands down.

Let's go shopping! I'll show you what I buy, you show me what you buy, and we'll compare how many meals you can get out of it.