The lunchable deal

[sarahlovesmickey]

<<<<wish there was a smiley eating a Lunchable, but buttered Popcorn smiley is okay too!!!

 

[Minniemouse07]

Just as others have stated about snacks.

Also, USDA shows that just because it's organic doesn't mean it's better for you.

One poster said it just perfect that you have to walk the fine line w/ your kids on healthy and giving them a little of the junk.

I opt for organic snacks because they generally don't have ANY partially hydrogenated oils. I have found it difficult to find non-organic snacks that omit these.

The main things I try to avoid w/ purchasing food for our family is partially hydrogenated oils (aka trans fats), artificial sweeteners, high fructose corn syrup and dairy w/ hormones. Many times this means I have to purchase the organic version to find a product w/o these things. Depending on the store or brand I can find conventional options.. like milk.. but not always.

I don't necessarily believe that "organic" is healthier...but it generally does not contain the things that I want to avoid whereas the conventional foods do...so they are "healthier" for our family.

I'm not saying that we don't eat items with these things ever... I just TRY to avoid them if possible. Dd has had her share of Happy Meals... but I balance that out w/ healthier food options at home.

 

[HALEYSMOMMOM]

They are a once-in-awhile thing, not an every day thing because they have a lot of salt. When I do pack them, I usually throw in some fruit or veggies as well.

Being a teacher I can tell you that totally denying a child just about any food (except for health a/o religious reasons) can backfire. The kids in my class whose "can't" list is very long are the first ones to 'attack' other kids lunches when we're unpacking. The best eaters in my class seem to be the ones whose parents walk that line very well between serving healthy food for those little growing bodies & knowing that occasionally, you've just got to give them some Hershey's Kisses.

You are so right! My dd has a good friend that is allowed no sugar. Her mom gives her Diet Root Beer occasionally ( I know, that's worse)The first thing she does when she walks into our house is BEG BEG for anything with sugar in it, and says "I won't tell my mom I promise!!" Of course I never do, to support the moms wishes, but you know that she does find a way to get it at school, other people, etc. It just makes them want it more!

My kids get junk occasionally, not every day, not even once a week. And they don't ever ask to buy cookies or anything like that at the grocery, we don't buy them. But they do get some things every once in awhile, because I think that's part of being a kid. They are both actually underweight so I don't think its a big deal. Who wants their kid to not experience The Thrill of the Ice Cream Truck!! or Halloween candy? I mean come on, use some common sense and don't go overboard, but don't cut it all out either, or it WILL BACKFIRE!

 

[smfritz03]

You don't have to explain, I wasn't trying to pick AT YOU, just in general to show all the others that one lunchable won't harm a child. lol

I admire you for taking the time and energy to give your child choices that are more suitable. More people should. I tend to stick w/ the food pyramid and go by that for amt of servings, and if they eat it, great, if not, there's always the next meal. I honestly do not have the time to bake homemade bread, kill a chicken and boil it so I'm not buying it from the store. So I do stick w/ healthy choices, but--they are bought at the local grocery store lol!!!

So, again, not directed at you, but more to show in general how some people "think" they are eating completely healthy, when in fact--its just healthier but not the best, KWIM!

 

[grumpy28]

Well I guess since I feed my kid Doughnuts + Yoo Hoo for breakfast, Lunchables + candy bars for lunch, and Mcdonalds + Hohos for dinner, I'm a bad parent?? Mmmmm.........tasty!! (relax peeps, its just sarcasm at its finest!)

 

[summerrluvv]

I'm okay w/ some sugar, especially since lunch is about the only time she gets it (other than some ice cream after dinner a few times a week). We limit candy (not banned, just selective) and have almost no cookies or cakes in the house. I would rather the kids have regular sugar than sugar substitutes... especially since we have a family history of allergies to them.

Who said anything about giving them sugar substitutes instead? I'm just surprised that you seem so aware of eating healthy and then you are loading her up on sugar, regardless of what type of sugar it is


Everyone be warned with the "Roarin Waters" drink (it's supposed to be water with a splash of flavor) that is in some of the lunchables...it's sweetened with Splenda. I don't buy those. I noticed Minute Maid has a new kind too called "Fruit Falls" and I swear I looked at the box 3 times before I bought it because I wanted to know if it had Splenda. I didn't see it ANYWHERE on the box so I gave it to DS. A few weeks later I bought another box and it said Splenda on it. I swear it wasn't on that first box though. So there goes that idea to get him to drink more water!

 

[kydisneyfans]

Let's see:

After reading these boards, I think there is only 1 food left edible for the human body.

-I have been flamed for feeding my family spaghetti.
-Can't eat lunchables...too much (fill in the blank________)
-Don't buy spinach, bagged lettuce, or beef due to ecoli.
-Don't buy grapes--might be a spider inside the bag
-Don't buy containers of fruit, picked by illegal aliens making a dime an hour.
-Can't buy anything packaged since landfills get clogged up.
-Can't eat pretzels since the President choked on them.

Now to add my 2 cents worth.
-Organic will not come into my house, I have tried no less than 6 items from pasta and sauces to chips, every single organic item gave me diarrhea. Orgainic fruit tastes no different than a well washed ripe piece of fruit from most markets-just at triple the price.

Since it is wrong to feed myself or anyone in my family any food, the only remaining thing left on the menu is what I am chewing right now, the end of my ink pen. Hope I don't choke.

 

[Donald Applecore]

I'm amazed at how many people on these boards proclaim how "healthy" they eat...

I'm with you, smfritz03.
All I hear on this thread is "Blah, Blah Blah... I'm a better parent b/c of what my kid eats."

Please allow me to recommend my patented 3-step program that can be found on page 2 of this thread. I think it can do a lot of good for some people.

Remember - first you need to admit that you have a problem.

 

[Minniemouse07]

Who said anything about giving them sugar substitutes instead? I'm just surprised that you seem so aware of eating healthy and then you are loading her up on sugar, regardless of what type of sugar it is


Everyone be warned with the "Roarin Waters" drink (it's supposed to be water with a splash of flavor) that is in some of the lunchables...it's sweetened with Splenda. I don't buy those. I noticed Minute Maid has a new kind too called "Fruit Falls" and I swear I looked at the box 3 times before I bought it because I wanted to know if it had Splenda. I didn't see it ANYWHERE on the box so I gave it to DS. A few weeks later I bought another box and it said Splenda on it. I swear it wasn't on that first box though. So there goes that idea to get him to drink more water!

Artificial sweeteners are in a lot more than these new water drinks... a lot of children's medicines have it as well, which is VERY frustrating to me. Dd had a reaction to Augmentin when she was 1yo... we still don't know if she reacted to the antibiotic itself or the aspertame (nutrasweet) in it. Grrr

There are a lot of kid oriented foods and snacks that have them as well, frozen fruit pops, yogurts, ice creams, etc. It has become so "normal" to include it that it's getting harder and harder to avoid it!

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Holy COW! They CALLED your mom?

Have you READ the nutritional value in kids' lunch meals at school?

I think the basic lunch at school was over 600 calories and over 25 grams of fat and the "nutrition" was non-existent!

A lunchable would be better for them!

Dawn

Yep!

This was 20 years ago even.


And I JUST remembered...my justification...it wasn't just any ol' pop tart..it was a PB&J pop tart. I tried to say it was just like a sandwich, but no go.

I think she was appreciative that she was called. She wasn't really phased and since she didn't know what I had put in his lunch, she was thankful that they didn't let it go beyond the one time they noticed it.

 

[grumpy28]

Maybe we should start a thread for those of us that actually DO feed their kids some junk somedays (and I'm not ashamed of that!)

 

[Kimkimba]

I guess I'm one of the bad parents, then. And so were my parents. Considering everything they did "wrong," it's amazing I've made it this far in life.

 

[summerrluvv]

Let's see:

After reading these boards, I think there is only 1 food left edible for the human body.

-I have been flamed for feeding my family spaghetti.
-Can't eat lunchables...too much (fill in the blank________)
-Don't buy spinach, bagged lettuce, or beef due to ecoli.
-Don't buy grapes--might be a spider inside the bag
-Don't buy containers of fruit, picked by illegal aliens making a dime an hour.
-Can't buy anything packaged since landfills get clogged up.
-Can't eat pretzels since the President choked on them.

Now to add my 2 cents worth.
-Organic will not come into my house, I have tried no less than 6 items from pasta and sauces to chips, every single organic item gave me diarrhea. Orgainic fruit tastes no different than a well washed ripe piece of fruit from most markets-just at triple the price.

Since it is wrong to feed myself or anyone in my family any food, the only remaining thing left on the menu is what I am chewing right now, the end of my ink pen. Hope I don't choke.

 

[solferino]

Artificial sweeteners are in a lot more than these new water drinks... a lot of children's medicines have it as well, which is VERY frustrating to me. Dd had a reaction to Augmentin when she was 1yo... we still don't know if she reacted to the antibiotic itself or the aspertame (nutrasweet) in it. Grrr

There are a lot of kid oriented foods and snacks that have them as well, frozen fruit pops, yogurts, ice creams, etc. It has become so "normal" to include it that it's getting harder and harder to avoid it!

I know! I get so frustrated because I love the fruit water, like glaceau, but can't afford it as an everyday thing. I refuse to buy anything with artificial sweeteners in it.

And on a slightly OT rant about kids medicines- why oh why does it have to be colored to make it taste better? I know some kids that react to dyes terribly. Fortunately DD isn't one of them, but it is so frustrating.

 

[Angel A]

I opt for organic snacks because they generally don't have ANY partially hydrogenated oils. I have found it difficult to find non-organic snacks that omit these.

The main things I try to avoid w/ purchasing food for our family is partially hydrogenated oils (aka trans fats), artificial sweeteners, high fructose corn syrup and dairy w/ hormones. Many times this means I have to purchase the organic version to find a product w/o these things. Depending on the store or brand I can find conventional options.. like milk.. but not always.

I don't necessarily believe that "organic" is healthier...but it generally does not contain the things that I want to avoid whereas the conventional foods do...so they are "healthier" for our family.

I'm not saying that we don't eat items with these things ever... I just TRY to avoid them if possible. Dd has had her share of Happy Meals... but I balance that out w/ healthier food options at home.

We seem to live by the same philosophy.

I expected flames, but I wanted to point out how bad these things are. If one of you wouldn't mind posting the nutritional value, you will probably be shocked to see that both the sodium and fat are over 50 percent of the daily reccomended allowance ( and that is for an adult ) Rather high numbers for "just a snack". I know you cannot disagree with me there.

My children get special treats too, just not overprocessed junk food. They would much prefer something that is homemade. My one son asks for zucchini bread with cream cheese as a snack. I am almost positive that my kids wouldn't even eat them if offered.

 

[BonnieA]

Confessions of a bad parent:
My "baby" is 37. When he was growing up, I swear, all he ate was hot dogs, bologna and cheese. His idea of a salad was a little lettuce (very little), topped with ham and cheese and drenched in salad dressing. We grew many of our own veggies but he wouldn't eat most of them. Fruit eating was rare. And I guess for me it was easier to let him get away with it. Believe it or not, he made it through childhood, starting out chubby but growing out of it. Went off to college and came back a vegetarian. Now that was a surprise. And it wasn't a passing fad. He's been a vegetarian for over 15 years.
Moral of the story:
Some kids will grow up and be healthy regardless of what we "bad" parents do to them.

 

[Donald Applecore]

We seem to live by the same philosophy.

I expected flames, but I wanted to point out how bad these things are. If one of you wouldn't mind posting the nutritional value, you will probably be shocked to see that both the sodium and fat are over 50 percent of the daily reccomended allowance ( and that is for an adult ) Rather high numbers for "just a snack". I know you cannot disagree with me there.

My children get special treats too, just not overprocessed junk food. They would much prefer something that is homemade. My one son asks for zucchini bread with cream cheese as a snack. I am almost positive that my kids wouldn't even eat them if offered.

I actually probably come pretty close to agreeing with most of your nutritional choices. I lost over 75lbs and have kept it off almost 7ys by keeping up healthy eating habits. I buy some organic, but some is a waste of money.

But, I'm not going to become an Evangelical Nutrition Zealot about it. If someone wants to give their kid processed lunch meat, that's their business.

I think we all need to climb down off of the high-horse before we slip and fall in the mud.

 

[mjantz]

I expected flames, but I wanted to point out how bad these things are. If one of you wouldn't mind posting the nutritional value, you will probably be shocked to see that both the sodium and fat are over 50 percent of the daily reccomended allowance ( and that is for an adult ) Rather high numbers for "just a snack". I know you cannot disagree with me there.

I don't think anyone is disagreeing with you that these are not healthy. However, many of us are saying that our kids don't eat these every day but occasionally as a treat or a backup for those days when everything just doesn't come together.

I think of them like creme brulee. I love creme brulee & would eat it every night for dessert if given a chance. However, I know its not good for me to do that. So, I eat it about once a month. Same with my kids & lunchables. If I'm not going to totally deny myself something, even though I know its not good for me, why would I ask that of my children?

My DS is going to camp in a few days & I'm going to pack some fruit & a PB&J for him to munch on while we're driving down. However, I fully expect that he's not going to make the best food choices while he's at camp & I'm OK with that. One weekend of Dippin Dots, pancakes & probably not a lot of fruits & veggies is not going to erase the years of good nutrition he's had at home.

 

[Angel A]

Let me just take a moment to bow down and give you your proper praise for being such a superior human being over every one else.

Feel better?

I actually probably come pretty close to agreeing with most of your nutritional choices. I lost over 75lbs and have kept it off almost 7ys by keeping up healthy eating habits. I buy some organic, but some is a waste of money.

But, I'm not going to become an Evangelical Nutrition Zealot about it. If someone wants to give their kid processed lunch meat, that's their business.

I think we all need to climb down off of the high-horse before we slip and fall in the mud.

Your sarcasm is against the rules.

 

[lyeag]

OP, I don't feed them to my kids either. Yes, my kids get junk food aka crap, but Lunchables are out at my house. I did take a good look at the nutritional info about 2 years ago and was horrified. We rarely bought them to begin with, but now, I just don't buy any.

You are right when you point out that for snacks, the sodium and fat are very high. Eating one of those and a fast food meal or something else prepackaged could really put a kid way over for the day.