Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy Processed Food and Sugar in the Schools

In the Omega-3 thread, Cecilia mentioned how processed food, etc. can affect behavior. That got me thinking about the amount of terrible stuff the kids get in school. I've tasted the chicken nuggets at school and only swallowed it because my son gave me a bite to try. Then they get a snack that must be prepackaged (parents take turns bringing) so it usually something processed with preservatives and sugar. So if that is affecting my son's behavior (and we are really having behavior problems since school started) then how do I handle that without being "that mom" and making my kid stand out? I will definitely start do more sack lunches but I'm not sure how to handle the processed snack issue.

You might try teaming up with a national program -
I just googled www.schoollunchinitiative.org

but yes, you will be 'that mom' so don't squander your 'social capitol' until you figure out if the food is really the key issue or if it is 'something else' - such as 'unmet educational needs.' I mean, you are posting on a forum where lots of parents have noticed their children's behavior going downhill once school enters the picture, KWIM?

It is certianly true that many gifted kids are 'exquisitly sensitive' to junk food. But many more are simply being asked to handle way more bordome than is age-appropriate.

Yes?
Grinity

Thanks, Grinity. Yes, I have bigger fish to fry right now. Thanks for the link - the school menus looked pretty good. I couldn't find the chicken nuggets, chicken strips, chicken fries or chicken sandwiches on their menu - all things on our school menu every month - just the same chicken parts molded into various shapes.

Hi Ladybug Mom! At our public school, the teachers and parents have always been interested in hearing about the potential "bad side" of these processed prepackaged foods...Of course, there are always a few who just don't get it, but that's okay...There always will be In the younger grades, parents bring in snacks for the whole class. I would politely tell the teacher that we would bring in our own snack every day. Honestly, whenever I said that, there really was never a problem. If you think about it, kids have all sorts of allergies going on...peanut, egg, etc...It's really no big deal to say your kid is "allergic to preservatives, additives, food dyes" or whatever. I never felt like "that mom" I remember that there were some days ds would really want the brought in snack, or teacher/him would forget to get his natural snack, but I was always okay with that. Sometimes it's just as important for kids to feel like part of the gang and also not to be tagged as "that mom" haha I pick and choose my battles wisely. Now, as my children have gotten older, they prefer the "all-natural" food. They actually get sick to their stomachs and get headaches after eating something with preservatives and ESPECIALLY Red dye 40 or yellow 5 (which is almost always in kids snacks!) At our school, starting in 4th grade, kids get to bring their own snacks...Huge relief! Ds9 prefers to bring his own lunch everyday because he says he feels better. He recognizes his ill behavior/unfocusing as soon as he eats something he probably shouldn't have. So it's a nice relief that he can actually monitor himself now! I totally agree with Grinity that unmet educational needs could also be a cause of behavior problems, but hey, while you're at it, why not clear out the processed foods too??? It sure doesn't hurt to get healthier! I feel that if you can't pronounce the ingredients on the back of a label, you might want to think twice about feeding it to your child....

Funny that we are talking about this and Michelle O'bama was on the news tonight talking about childhood obesity and the foods we feed our kids.

A few ideas I've heard:

possible link of AHDA and food coloring.

The United Kingdom banned food coloring in their food. The only value to food coloring is visual. Lots of people are allergic to food coloring.

My friend's son has lots of food allergies. She has taught her DS this - What we eat is to take care of our body, that is the priority.

I wish I could say we buy more organic healthy food but it's expensive. We do better than some.

Food allergies and sensitivities are different from obesity and also separate from nutrition.

I read what Michele Obama said. I have to disagree with her for the most part. Childhood obesity is caused by a lack of exercise, not diet. Our risk averse society has caused kids to spend too much time in cars and too little time outside playing with other kids. When I was her kids' age, the entire neighborhood would get together to play games just about every evening and on the weekends. Kids walked or rode bikes to each others' homes and to school. You do not see that much anymore. Nowadays it is all about sitting on a couch.

Until we increase the level of exercise, nothing will change.

The one thing I can agree with her about the soft drinks. One can is 250 calories and there is no nutrition in it at all. One a week is fine, but not every day.

The school lunch program is mainly dictated by the Department of Agriculture at the Federal level. School districts just follow it by rote because that is where the money comes from.

It used to be many kids were so poor they could not afford lunch or their parents were so incompetent as to not even provide it. The School Lunch program was meant to provide kids with a meal. It did and still does have a vital place. But it also shows what happens when the Feds get involved rather than local control takes a hand.

Menus are driven by the Ag Dept and foods are produced under large-scale contracts. Commodities are purchased by the Ag Dept to help the market for overproduced items and then these are funnelled into the school lunch program.

Does that make any sense?

Getting parents involved so that local school boards drive the menu is the way to go. Some of the very largest ready-made food makers with labels such as Marie Callendar could easily enter this market and deliver hot portion controlled means for less than a dollar per kid, but the contracts are skewed to those with the inside track and the commodity programs.

Make sense?

Did the new bill change anything?

Nope.

Same model. Same results.

Organic vs non-organic. All the studies show there is no difference. Don't jump on me as one of the first words I learned was Rodale.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8174482.stm

If you look at the well-known trainers such as Larry North, who have enormous success with people, they use good diet and exercise to get results. A good diet is one low in carbs and high in protein and vegetables/fruits.

If we want to remake our kids health, then we need to begin with the end in mind and then find out what the best practices are and work backwards.

I'm interested in what you're basing this on since I've found diet is a critical factor.
Read more:
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1897920,00.html#ixzz0fKaaq2Ga

I'm glad to see Michelle Obama is using a multi-pronged approach with the Let's Move campaign and that Jamie Oliver won the $100,000 TED prize to make this wish a reality:

http://www.tedprize.org/tedprize-updates/watch-jamies-talk-now/

It's pretty clear that both calories in and calories out matter. It's simple math: burn more than you take in, and you lose weight, whether you do so by exercising more or eating less or both. The most effective weight-loss approach is certainly going to attack both eating fewer calories AND exercising more.

Progress is made on the margin. Cutting calories in your diet only goes so far. Exercise will triple that margin.

Exercise burns the most calories AFTER the workout when the body is recuperating. In addition, exercise also suppresses appetite. It also makes the next workout session easier due to higher energy levels.

Biology is fighting all of us. As we get older, our metabolism slows down and that margin has to be maintained. Only exercise can keep that margin a healthy one.


If you look at the fitness competitors, while many are too lean, you see a pattern of working out 5-7 days a week and eating mostly lean foods.

This guy has the best overall program, but if you talk to any trainer, you will get the same advice. The results speak for themselves. You do not need to spend a lot of time, but that time has to be used right.

http://www.johnberardi.com/articles/index.htm