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December 2010 Moms
stephy1221
member
How much processed food do you let LO eat?
stephy1221
member
About once a month or so I go to Whole Foods and stock up on some stuff I really like but can't get through my weekly Peapod grocery shopping.
Today for some reason at Whole Foods I went overboard on frozen foods for LO. I got veggie bites (several varieties), nuggets, french toast sticks etc. I looked at all the labels and if it was high in sodium or sugar I passed and this will last us awhile but I got home and felt a little bit like a bad Mom.
It got me wondering how many times a day/week do you let LO have processed foods?
For you Mommas that make all your own food if you have a meatball and/or meatloaf recipe your LO loves please post or PM me, my LO hates mine!
TIA & Hope you are enjoying your weekend.
Oct Angel*BFP 1/25/14 * EDD 10/6/14 * US#1 2/26/14 *US#2 3/3/14 no heartbeat*d&c 3/12/14*
BFP 1/17/15 * EDD 9/30/15
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Re: How much processed food do you let LO eat?
Ginny DX 21-Hydroxylase Deficiency Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia
Charlie DX Specific Antibody Deficiency & ASD
I make her meals. She eats way healthier than H and I do
For example, here is what she has eaten today: Breakfast- blueberries, yogurt and scrambled eggs with chopped peppers. Lunch: Turkey, spinach cakes and a sliced apple.
Here is what I've eaten: Bowl of Fiber One, coffee, a stuffed pepper and a handful of chocolate chips
Depends on what you mean by "processed." I let her have packaged graham crackers and freeze-dried fruit, but I do read labels and make sure that she's not eating HFCS or something. I also use a lot of frozen veggies and packaged tofu. I think that sort of thing is fine and healthy.
If you were feeding bright orange mac and cheese from a box and chicken nuggets to your kid every day and nothing else, I'd be worried, but the bottom line is that you have to do what works for your lifestyle! A little bit of processed food is not a big deal, as long as it's otherwise healthy. I SAH, and I like to cook, so I have more time and inclination to make Nora's foods than a lot of people do, but I have been known to give her yogurt bites now and then, too.
The baby eats a lot better than DH and I do! He gets mostly fresh foods and very rarely processed stuff. It was easier to buy fresh foods the other seasons; Winter is just such an expensive time of year for fresh foods. My go-to foods now are sometimes fresh frozen stuff, like frozen blueberries or frozen strawberries. I do give him veggies from a can too, but I buy the no salt added kind and organic if the store carries it. He does eat Annie's cheddar bunnies too, which are high in sodium and worry me, but some days that's all he'll eat. I'm trying to limit meat and dairy for the grown ups in the family, but LO eats a lot of cheese and yogurt too.
A typical meal for LO is a divided plate with string cheese, peas, blueberries, and half a slice of whole wheat bread. If we eat chicken or fish, he'll usually demolish that. He loves avocado and bananas!
I guess it depends what you consider "processed". But I would say no most of the time. Here is her usual menu.
Breakfast - dry toast, bananas, cream of wheat, or oatmeal sweetened with applesauce
Lunch - usually vegetable puree, avacado and/or our dinner leftovers
Snack - cheerios, puffs, fruit, tofu, cheese or yogurt
Dinner - usually fruit with rice cereal
Snack - yogurt or cheese
I mean, no she isn't eating chicken nuggets and mac n cheese from a box, but things like cheerios and yogurt have been processed for sure.
I like to minimize the processed foods that our whole family eats (started this way before DD was here). But sometimes we revert for convenience (or b/c of pregnancy cravings, lol). I love to cook though, and use natural and/or organic ingredients as much as possible.
But for DD, I do rely on a bunch of pre-packaged snack items. I try not to give her too many in one day, but we usually have Gerber's puffs, yogurt melts, fruit strips, and arrowroot cookies. DD also loves loves loves Gerber raviolis, and so I have a stock of them at all times for a quick lunch when I don't feel like cooking, or for when she gets in a mood and refuses my first offering.
But otherwise, we buy her organic foods and snacks that are not (or minimally) processed, such as Annie's, Earth's Best, and Van's, as well as Safeway's organic line and Stoneyfield Farm. And organic Mum-Mums, which the kid still loves, lol.
ETA: We get organic dairy (Horizon or Stoneyfield milk for her and for us, organic eggs, cheese, and butter) and organic whole-wheat bread for toast (althoug I do give her Thomas's English Muffins sometimes, but I use organic strawberry preserves on them). And we did organic for all of her purees (and I get organic applesauces b/c she loves those still). So I figure that balances out the processed snacks, lol.
As for meatloaf - here is my go-to recipe from my cooking blog (this one is actually a slow-cooker recipe but delicious): https://kitchenwithjulia.blogspot.com/search?q=meatloaf
I haven't tried it for DD yet. I think you just gave me tonight's dinner idea!
That sounds like my house except double the coffee for me! I am going to try to do more egg dishes with her. She doesn't really like meat so I am thinking it will help her get more protein.
@LuckyStarz - I'd love the recipe, I mean I think mine is pretty good but since DD disagrees I want to try out some new recipes. I agree with you on the meats. That is once of the items I stock up on at Whole Foods. I like that they have humane ratings.
@Pitter - I am going to try the rice trick, you have me intrigued!
@Kissy - Thanks for the recipe link & my DD loves the gerber ravioli too. I bought the earth's best kind today so we'll see if she likes it.
Also I never really answered my own question did I?
I guess when I really look at it she does eat a decent amount of processed food and I need to correct that.
Normally she will have a Van's frozen waffle or a cereal bar daily and a few nights a week she's been having veggie nuggets.
Other that that it is fresh fruits, cheese, yogurt, and purees.
He doesn't eat very much but I try to be pretty conscious but still reasonable about it.
For example, today:
B - frozen Trader Joe's whole wheat waffle spread with soy vanilla yogurt and tiny bit of organic raspberry spread
S - freeze dried bananas
L - Leftover turkey meatloaf, one of watermellons spinach muffins, organic banana
S - puffs, a couple graham crackers (we were visiting relatives, it kept him happy!)
D - Baked salmon, brown rice, sauteed bok choy
C is allergic to milk but drinks organic soy. All of our dairy, eggs, and most fruits/veggies/meat is organic but not all. Still though, the kid loves puffs, dry cereal and crackers. He goes to DC too so while they are really, really awesome (limit the sugar, most veggies organic), I'm still a bit at their mercy.
Absolutely NONE. Unless oreos count. Then maybe a little.
Seriously, we do some prepared food, but like utlawgirl, we read labels. Generally, we all eat fairly healthfully. And my kid prefers baked chicken over nuggets. What?? Weirdo. haha. She also loves veggies & fruits.
I don't knowingly give him processed foods. I'm not an expert, but I avoid the things I'm aware of being processed. He eats cream cheese. That's probably processed, right? And I try hard to give him whole grains. Boxed pasta is probably processed, too, I guess. He doesn't have any instant anything, or fast foods, or HFCS.
The meatloaf recipe DS really likes is the one from wholesomebabyfood.com, but sorry I can't find the link! It's turkey meatloaf with applesauce, carrots & oats mixed in.
Jeez, this makes me feel like a bad mom! I don't intentionally try to give E processed foods, but he doesn't like anything! And to get a good variety of organic-y foods I have to drive 45 min. I try to make a large amount of food for him using the weelicious website and wholesomebaby/toddler website but it get frustrating when I make stuff and he just throws it on the floor everytime I give it to him.
*Sigh...my whine done*
It depends on what you mean by processed, honestly. I give him waffles...are those processed? Yep. But I do try to give him a whole grain waffle, organic chicken nuggets, organic meatballs, etc. But they are processed. So we try to err on the side of healthy, but no, I do not always make him food from scratch. He does eat yo baby yogurt and all natural cheese. Those are processed, but I would not go so far as to call them unhealthy.
We have to face that we are not farmers, and we are not raising the chicken and the corn in the backyard. Most of the food we eat, despite the labels of "organic," "whole wheat," "all natural", is going to be processed. Besides the fact that those labels are often meaningless, and companies stretch those terms within an inch of their lives. I just need him to eat, for God's sake.
Probably the most processed thing we give him is deli meat. He really likes deli chicken - weirdo.
We try not to go overboard on the processed food, but at the same time we can't really afford to go all out all-natural all-organic everything. So he gets hormone free milk and some organic veggies and fruits (like strawberries that have a ton of pesticides usually). As a lot of folks have said, it's all about balance.
BFP #2 5/27/12. EDD 2/1/13. m/c and D&C 6/21/12.
Our Family Blog Weightloss Blog
This. I work full time and don't have all the time and money in the world to go pick up organic food to make a home cooked meal from scratch every day. Usually I get home, feed the dogs, play with LO for a bit and then it is time for dinner. We do what we can and try to crock pot and do freezer meals.
I try to limit it as much as possible, but honestly, he gets a lot more than DD did at this age. When I come home I have 2 starving kiddos, so things like chicken nuggets or hot dogs are my go-to. And his daycare providers do home-cooked meals but also have some processed stuff. Still, I try to buy the best of the worst, so to speak, and get as much minimally-processed stuff as possible (with the ingredient list being as small as possible).
ETA: We're HFCS-free and dye-free in our house so he doesn't get either of those things, ever.