Strollerderby : baby food

Some "Baby Food" Less Healthy Than a Cheeseburger

Shannon LC Cate — Thu, 07 May 2009 16:30:00 GMT

The Children's Food Campaign has released a new report analyzing the nutritional value of some of Britain's most popular baby and toddler foods, finding them worse for health than the average cheeseburger or chocolate cookie, claims the Guardian.

Of the foods surveyed, only half were found to be low in sugar, sodium and saturated fat--some even contained the dreaded transfat. But the worst culprit for unhealthy baby food was the Heinz company, of whose surveyed products, only one quarter were deemed to have sufficiently low amounts of sugar, sodium and fat.

Two Heinz products were singled out for headliner status. Farley's Husks, were higher in sugar than chocolate digestives, while mini cheese biscuits were found to have more fat than a McDonald's quarter pounder with cheese. Both are foods aimed at beginning eaters and toddlers.

Okay, so these foods are unhealthy. Do they claim to be healthy? Do parents merely assume anything for a baby or toddler is healthy? I feel that while it would be nice to see the food industry regulated better in certain areas, determining what is a good diet for myself and my young children is my responsibility. In the line of this duty, I take nothing for granted. I read labels, determine what's in the processed food I give my children, then mete out such foods sparingly, focusing instead on whole foods in a nice variety.

Contrary to some opinion, this actually doesn't take a great deal of extra time or energy on my part. Washing and/or peeling and/or slicing a piece of fruit really isn't that much harder than opening a box of crackers and shaking a pile of them into a bowl. And even when the fruit is organic, it's usually cheaper. And it doesn't take a master's degree in nutrition to know it's healthier than the crackers.

So sure, shame on Heinz for marketing unhealthy food to parents. Shame on them for basically trying to get us to train our kids to expect food to taste sugary, salty, and fatty, so they'll have lifelong junk food customers. But ultimately? Shame on us for not taking the four extra seconds to read the back of a box before we throw it in the grocery cart. Really, it ain't that tough.

image: junkfoodnews.net

How to Raise a Foodie

KeriF — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 13:35:00 GMT

Step One: Lovingly hand-puree baby's first foods, taking care to use only organic vegetables and lots of herbs and spices so baby's palate develops.

Step Two: Continue to feed baby everything under the sun as she develops into an adventurous eater by the time she turns one, diving into plates of pad Thai and roasted mushroom risotto with abandon.

Step Three: Keep feeding your toddler everything under the sun, even when she literally spits it back in your face, on past her second birthday when she simply stops eating.

Step Four: Fingers crossed behind your back, tell all your friends she's a foodie.

My kids should have been foodies. They were born into it. Their parents are both chefs, and would sooner eat asparagus in February than eat processed food. And we did Steps One and Two with great success. Unfortunately, we also did Step Three. By that time, however, we didn't care that our oldest son wasn't a foodie. We just wanted him to eat.

My sister, with whom I share a communal household, found this quite funny, and even wrote about it for Babble. Now that my youngest daughter is nearly one and eating everything under the sun, I'm enjoying Step Two while I can, knowing that Step Three is just around the corner.

I'm not the only one to harbor not-so-secret hopes of raising an adventurous eater. Matthew Amster-Burton wrote a book about it, "Hungry Monkey: A Food-Loving Father's Quest to Raise an Adventurous Eater" (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009).

"I really didn't want to fall into something where I was cooking separate food for her," says Amster-Burton. "Luckily, pretty much from her first mouthful of solid food, Iris was way more interested in what we were eating anyway."

Sure, that's how it starts.

Now Iris is 5. Does she still eat sushi and Thai chicken salad?

Of course not.

Amster-Burton concedes that his daughter may be slightly less picky than other kids her age, but if so, "it's by a factor of like 5 percent."

But that's not the point, insists Amster-Burton.

"She has a vast interest in food beyond what she actually likes to eat," he said. "Someday, that's going to pay off."

That's what I keep telling myself.

Photo: The New York Times

Finish Line - Cars, Baby Food, Panties

Brett Singer — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Wow, what a week. For reasons that I don't completely understand, this one was very draining. For me. Your mileage may vary, of course.

Here's some of the excitement on the 'Derby the past few days:

Keri told us about a mom who actually went through with the threat we've all made -- "I'll stop this car and throw you right out!" Some people took her side, implying that this was just another example of "free-range kids." The only time my mother ever tossed me out of the car was when she was teaching me how to drive. But I was 17 at the time. (Of course, I still don't have my license. That's not her fault, though.)
One word: PANTIES! Thank you Madeline.
Amy wrote about homemade baby food, and judging by the comments, this is the next battle in the Mommy Wars. Note to self: if you want to get people going, use the phrase "get a grip." Seems to work wonders. (Which is fine, by the way.)
Kate wrote about some proposed new rules for corporal punishment, aka spanking. See, spanking the kids is one thing, but what about the more recrational forms of spanking? Will there be laws against that? (Don't answer that question, actually.)
Hannah tugged at our heartstrings (no pun intended) by telling us about a little boy named Tucker, with Parents Find Unique Way to Pay for Child's Heart Surgery.
Sunny wins the Headline of the Week award with Pregnant Woman Escapes Bear Attack - Gets Hit By Car. I have to agree with maeby, who questioned why a pregnant woman went for a hike in "bear heaven."
Jeanne told us that chewing gum is a GOOD thing, despite what your teachers told you. So there, Mrs. Morrison! Take that!
As for me, in honor of food week, I told you what I served my kids every day. I even tweeted it. No really. I did. There are pictures and everything.

More to come next week, I'm sure. Now go take a nap, will ya? Oh wait, I meant to say that to myself. Sorry.

Read more:

Jamie Foxx Jokes Miley Cyrus Should Make A Sex Tape

Boy Calls 911 When Mom Drives Drunk

Finish Line - April Fools And More

Finish Line - Pirates Are Back

Making Better Baby Food

Amy Kuras — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 22:31:00 GMT

We are, thank heaven, fairly recently out of the baby food stage here – my one year old now eats whatever we eat with gusto, although I do swap out, say, snow peas for regular peas for his dinner and keep vigilant watch for “chokeables.”

But “what to feed the baby” is high on my list of things I didn’t stress about with my second child near as much as I did with my first. Thank goodness, too, because I suspect it’s going to become the next big competitive parenting thing (if it isn’t already). Exhibit A –this story from the Washington Post last week about homemade baby food. While it’s a good read and full of interesting information, there’s that ever-so-slight air of “You feed your baby store-bought food in jars? How déclassé and bourgeois of you!”

And yes, I did feed mine store-bought food in jars.

The article quotes Eric Ripert and Tony Bourdain, who cite things like free-range chicken and wild nettle risotto as favorites for their kids. Okay, fine, they are professional chefs. But at least in my boring stretch of the Midwest it’s become a hipster parent cliché to brag about how much your toddler loves sushi and Thai food and your child making the acquaintance of the McNugget is equivalent to copping to never reading to him.

That said, I’m eager to try the recipes that accompany the article. Curry chicken? Mexican beans and rice? Yum! These are things all four of us would eat, especially since I am trying to get my spicy-food-hating daughter to get accustomed to the flavor of spices that aren’t hot.

I’m all for giving kids more adventurous palates –I married into a family where no one save my husband will ever eat at a non-chain restaurant if they can help it, and let’s stamp that out of the gene pool as soon as possible. But can we all acknowledge it’s enough to feed them wholesome, healthy food without striving to turn them into culinary adventurers before they can cut up their own meat?

Round 1: Baby Food Taste-Off

Madeline Holler — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 23:02:00 GMT

I dry-heaved my way through this short video over on Chow. One thing even more disgusting than meat-laden baby foods is an adult snacking on them, which is what Chow columnist James Norton did.

Better him than me.

Norton taste-tested jars of butternut squash from three different baby food makers -- Roundy's, Gerber and Nature's Best. Not so bad. Then he popped the lids of turkey dinners of the same labels. I could smell the freshly opened jars from my laptop.

I'm sure I'm not alone in finding baby food disgusting. And, yes, I feed them to my babies (like they're gonna complain). So thanks to Norton, I know to avoid Roundy's grainy, meat-chunkless (there goes another dry heave!) turkey dinner and also to pass up the "sausage in a jar" flavor of Gerber's for the fruity and nicely textured Nature's Best. Nature's Best also had the best squash.

Had Norton really had some sack, he would have sampled other baby food nasties (which, yes, again!, have found their way into my kids' mouths): green beans, those orangy "dinners" involving beef and plain, pureed and jarred poultry -- pink as an undercooked chicken breast.

Which jarred edibles do your kids gobble up while you gag? Have you ever sampled baby food bananas? Doesn't taste a thing like bananas, but man is it good!

Photo: Chow.com

How To Feed Your Baby Well

Amy Kuras — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 14:02:00 GMT

One of the most fun parts of having a little baby in the house, without question, is feeding them their first solids. It’s hilarious to see them react to new tastes and textures and get the whole world of food opened up to them with just a few little spoons of puree.

Like most parents, though, I feel pretty clueless about exactly what to feed him and when. Like, is he ready for “people food” in mushy little bits or should I stick with the chunky baby food? Are tomatoes OK or not? How about pasta, tofu, etc., etc. And when is it important to buy organic and when is it OK to save a little bit and skip it?

Enter Well-fed Baby. This, I like. You click on your baby’s age and where they are in the transition-to-solids process, and get a clickable list of various foods you could try with them, along with suggestions for preparation and an adult recipe so you can eat right along with your baby. They also suggest what foods (like apples) make it worth it to buy organic and which ones aren’t.

I’ve been really cautious, probably overly so, on solids – I have tried grinding up our meals a few times only to have my son look at me like I was feeding him dog food, and haven’t ventured much beyond the pasta-and-puree things. When my daughter was a baby, meanwhile, people in our baby group were feeding their nine-month-olds little bits of burger and letting them taste cookies. I also have a terror of food allergies after my daughter had a mild reaction to blueberries at around 7 months –seriously, I was so panicked she didn’t get her first peanut until age 3.5.

So a site like this is nice reassurance that I can be a little more adventurous with my little guy’s food, and has suggestions I wouldn’t even have thought of.

WTFof the Day: Baby Food Tasting Bar

Amy Kuras — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 23:06:00 GMT

Are rich parents thoroughly insane?

That’s the only remotely possible explanation for this: there is now, in Newport Beach. Cailifornia, a “tasting bar and lounge” exclusively for babies. Pomme Bebe sells baby food at its bebe bar and bebe lounge – which allow their drooly customers to try all the store’s offerings.

But this isn’t just any baby food, the kind that people who push – gasp – Graco strollers or whose children wear – quelle horreur –clothes from Target might buy, poor dears. No, “Working under the close supervision of Executive Chef Laurent Brazier, our team of chefs peels, steams, and purées by hand every single nutritiously wholesome, organic baby and toddler meal.”

Seriously, a team of chefs. To do what even I, an incompetent baby-food-maker at best, can do in three minutes with some produce and a $2 potato masher. And how bad does one have to have fucked up one's culinary career to end up as executive chef for a line of overpriced, upscale baby food?

A four-ounce container starts at $3.75, aka six times what the jar of Gerber applesauce I fed my son for lunch cost. Ingredients: apples, filtered water. Ingredients for Pomme Bebe's: apples, filtered water.

Look, I am as much a lover of quality food as the next reasonably sane person and understand wanting your kid to have a discerning palate. But for God’s sake then do the food mill thing – it will likely cost a lot less than $3.75 per serving and you get the satisfaction of knowing you cooked for your little one (or shared your meal from your favorite restaurant, as the case may be).

Perhaps I am just cranky because I wake up every morning to more news that the auto industry, which affects just about every job in my state, is about to implode, but this really ties into two stupid shallow yuppie trends I hate – ridiculous foodieism and baby-as-status-symbol. It’s bad enough to be a douche who would spend $3.75 on chef-prepared baby food, but leave your kids out of it.

Mill This Over: Babies Can Eat What You Eat

Amy Kuras — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 20:02:00 GMT

We’re right in the baby food stage again, and while my daughter enthusiastically ate whatever we spooned into her cute little mouth, my son is a little more picky, even doing the “clamp the lips shut and go un-unhhh” thing.

He’s really all about the big people food. He’ll reject his gooey little pureed meals and then practically knock the fork right out of my hand in an interception attempt if I am eating something that seems to appeal to him. Since he’s only seven months and just had his first two teeth break through just this week, though, I am not ready to give him even very mushy teensy morsels of grownup food no matter how much he might want it. “Get some teeth, then we’ll talk,” I tell him as I fend off his advances on my dinner with one hand and balance him on my lap with the other.

In today’s New York Times, father Keith Dixon talks about how he and his wife got around the baby food issue and raised a pretty adventurous eater in the process – a food mill. They’d simply grind up whatever they happened to be eating and served it to their daughter. Now while some of this just comes across as bragging – cannelli beans with garlic confit? Really? – it’s a great idea.

Of course, if you have worries about food allergies this might not be the wisest course. After a few minor allergic reactions with my daughter, I have been overly cautious about her food, even waiting to give her peanuts until she was well older than three. My son benefits both from showing no signs of sensitivities yet and from being the second child, so his worrywart of a mother has learned to chill as much as I ever will.

It’s long been known that limiting babies to a bland diet is not necessary, but it’s such an ingrained part of my learning about baby care it’s going to take me some time to get over. Still, sending the collard greens cooked with onions and garlic we had last night through the Cusinart might be fun for both of us.

Budget Baby: Cooking It Up Yourself

Amy Kuras — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 20:02:00 GMT

When my daughter was born, I had high minded ideals of making all her food. I love to cook, after all, and am pretty good at it. I own both a food processor and a blender (and a potato masher, for that matter).

Then reality hit, and I was too busy, exhausted, and quite frankly apathetic to steam carrots forever, or figure out how to strain all the little pea skins out of peas, or whatever. And quite frankly, while I am a good cook I am a recipe cook –I can make just about anyting well, if someone tells me how to do it. Leave me to my own devices and who knows what might come out of my kitchen.

But since my girl graduated to "people food" I've gotten a lot more green and concerned out all that plastic and the carbon footprint of those little jars and tubs -- and it still irks me to pay 50 cents for what is probably the teeniest slice of raw squash.

Now I have another little eater-in-training, and made my first visit to the baby food aisle in a long time in preparation this week. Still expensive, still in little tubs. So I came upon this nice little article with recipes for baby food with great joy. It includes a recipe for chicken puree, which makes me so happy because those little jars of pureed meat were just nasty beyond belief.

I know from what I was able to make before that a few bucks and about an hour will make food for weeks. Now that I have an idea of what to do, I think I am up for it again, since I love the idea of knowing exactly what goes into my baby's food.

What are your ideas for baby food? What are some of your best sources for tips and ideas?

Salmon Baby Food: Delicious or Disgusting?

Amy Kuras — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 13:58:00 GMT

Babies smell good. Their food, however, does not, at least the jarred variety most of us throw into our cart at Target or the grocery store. My older kid has been eating "people food" for the better part of two years now and I can still remember the horrible scent emanating from the turkey baby food I dutifully attempted to give her for protein's sake.

So I have to wonder how horrid Beech-Nut's new Alaskan Salmon and sweet potatoes meal must smell, part of their line of new, health-conscious foods. For example, many of the foods in the new line are augmented with DHA, an Omega-3 fatty acid, and morning meals feature whole grain cereals with soluble fiber meant to prevent blood sugar spikes.

Many health conscious parents, of course, just make their own baby food so they know exactly what's in it and how it was prepared; this never worked for me (ever tried to puree broccoli? Not easy, my friends, and I am a pretty good cook). I harbor fantasies of doing the same, especially since paying 50 cents for a teensy jar of something that sounds like something I would make if I could irks my inner cheapskate. Not to mention I try to avoid overprocessed food and extra double hate how much of it is marketed to kids.

But when making it myself isn’t an option, I think it's good that babies at least have some healthier choices. What do you think? Do you spring for homemade baby food (and if so, how?) or boutique organic, or is the mass-market conventional your choice? Or did you skip baby food as such entirely?

Canadian My Organic Baby Cereal Recalled: Rancid

Karen Murphy — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 23:32:00 GMT

Ugh, there's nothing worse than rancid anything, even if it's organic. (Actually, I can think of lots of things worse, but that's beside the point and not nearly as dramatic-sounding, is it?)

And four varieties of My Organic Baby have been recalled due to possible rancidity. ("Rancid", by the way, is defined by Mr. Macbook here as "smelling or tasting unpleasant as a result of being old or stale". Yum!) Here's the deal:

The recall is for 227 gram boxes of Barley, Brown Rice, Oatmeal and Multigrain cereal with 'Best By' dates of April 2008 and June 2008. Consumers are warned not to eat the cereal if it has an "off" odor or taste. Uh, that should be the case for anything you consume, but I know you know that. Ditto if it's for your baby. Consumers are also being warned that eating rancid food can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Which is sooo attractive in a baby, isn't it? That's about all I have. There's slightly more information here on the My Organic Baby website if you're interested. Oh, and if My Organic Baby baby food doesn't ring any bells it's because it's sold mostly in Canada. Oh, and also on the original article there's a lovely judgy comment about how you should be making your own organic baby food anyway, but let's just not go there, shall we? Jeez, it's just baby food, not a lifestyle choice. If it's rancid don't eat it. End.

Photo: www.onfc.ca

Things Fall Apart: Gerber's Clumping Choking Organic Baby Cereal

Karen Murphy — Sat, 14 Jul 2007 20:03:00 GMT

Feed your baby organic rice or oatmeal cereal? Sure you do. Organic = good, right? And that baby cereal, it's pretty handy, it just mixes with your chosen liquid and poof! cereal for your baby.

Except when it has lumps that won't dissolve. Yeah, you know and I know that you're unlikely to force your baby to actually eat those lumps, but hey, maybe somebody out there may overlook one inadvertently, or some precocious baby actually feeds himself (I've heard this happens), and all of a sudden you've got a choking baby on your hands. Which is not good. We try to avoid that.

I'm a little bothered that there's no mention of this on Gerber's actual site as of yet, but the known facts are that the recall involves Gerber organic rice and oatmeal cereal (in an 8-oz. box). You can call the Gerber parent's resource center at 800-443-7237 or 231-928-3000 to return the product and receive a refund.

Baby Goes "Ga Ga" Over Mom's "Gourmet" Endeavors

Stefania Pomponi Butler (CityMama) — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 20:02:00 GMT

Stephanie I. Cohen, a writer for the Christian Science Monitor whose culinary adventures never strayed far from pasta ("Drain. Add sauce."), was inspired to become "gourmet" by her 9-month-old daughter's hearty appreciation of her cooking.

Cohen was never moved to make her own babyfood when jarred purees were readily available, but barraged by media reports that cooking healthy, organic, tasty foods for children helps to "unfurl their taste buds" she took butternut squash to pan and made a "gor-may" puree with cinnamon and applesauce. And her baby gobbled it up.

As a parent I can say that nothing inspires my cooking more than having my kids exclaim, "Mamma, you're the bestest cook in the whole world!" and the same goes for Cohen. Gourmet means "a person who appreciates fine food," and at a robust 24 pounds, Cohen's babe "fits the definition." Says the newly culinary mama:

The results so far have been satisfying: my daughter jamming a heaping spoon into her mouth, followed by fingers that do a little clean-up work around her mouth, and a first-rate smile that says "thumbs up" better than any restaurant critic. Next up: spinach corn casserole.

And that's what it's all about, innit?

Earth's Best Organic Baby Food Recalled

Karen Murphy — Sun, 18 Feb 2007 13:28:00 GMT

And you thought it was safe because it says "organic" on the label. Well, I did anyway. I am totally a sucker for marketing ploys like that. Give me "natural" or "organic" and that means "better", right?

It turns out even "organic" can also mean "botulism". Hain Celestial Group, Inc. has recalled its "Organic 2 Apple Peach Barley Wholesome Breakfast" in 4.5-ounce jars and 12-packs expiring Sept. 14, 2008, and variety packs of "Earth's Best Organic 2 Wholesome Breakfast" expiring Sept. 13, 2008. The recall extends to about 100,000 individual jars and some 30,000 variety packs because of concerns they may be contaminated with the bacteria that cause botulism. If you have any of this baby food in your house, the FDA advises that you don't use it and that you destroy it immediately. Hain Celestial's website advises consumers who have purchased the recalled product and have questions to call 1-800-442-4221.