For additional research sources, I went to the library. Yes, I actually physically walked into a library and pulled books off the shelves to find more information.
For my next sources I’m focusing on what children should eat, nutritional guidelines laid down by medical professions, and also trying to focus more on what happens when people are overly controlling about what their kids consume.
One source I chose, and will be checking out from the library to study further is “Into The Mouths of Babes” by Susan Tate Firkaly. Firkaly is an Assistant Professor in the School of Medicine at the University of Virginia. She seems like a reasonably reliable source of information, as she specializes in this field. One of the reasons I chose this book was the first page I flipped open to said, “Early messages about food can lead to body dissatisfaction for our children.” (Firkaly, 54) While the general idea here can sit on both sides of the argument about forcing food choices on our kids, I think it will be interesting to explore the nutritional guidelines she offers in this book and see where she sits on the issue.
The next source I chose is the American Medical Association “Complete Guide to Your Children’s Health” I chose this for specific medical information and scientific evidence about what a child’s body needs. This book lists specific percentages and proportions that children should eat. It also states, “Don’t try to control the amount of food your toddler eats, some toddlers react to this kind of pressure by overeating or refusing to eat.” (Kotulak et al, 109) I’m hoping this book gives me some good solid facts to work on when making the case for children needing to eat a variety of foods, in proper proportions, to grow up healthy.
One more source I found that leans toward building healthy eating habits, and not teaching restrictive eating to kids is a book called “Children and Teens Afraid to Eat” by Frances M. Berg. Berg is a licensed nutritionist, so I find the information in this book to be reliable and valuable. The title captured me, personally, because I have 4 girls that I’m trying to raise into healthy responsible people, and I don’t want them to grow up with any of the food issues I had and have. This book starts with a chapter called “Growing up afraid to eat”. She begins by saying, “America’s children are afraid to eat. It’s a fear that consumes them, shatters lives, even kills.” (Berg, 17) It’s a scary statement, which I think was the intention, but it got my attention and makes me want to find out more about where she stands on this subject.
Works Cited
Firkaly, Susan Tate. Into the Mouths of Babes: A Natural Foods Cookbook for Infants & Toddlers. White Hall, VA: Betterway Publications, 1995. Print.
Kotulak, Donna, Dennis Connaughton, and Edward S. Traisman. American Medical Association Complete Guide to Your Children's Health. New York: Random House, 1999. Print.
I think those titles sound like good places to focus. I too have four kids, and showing them the healthy way can be confusing when there are so many different opinions of "healthy eating."
ReplyDeleteI think the book written by Berg may have some good stuff in it - How big IS the problem of kids afraid to eat, and how many different ways of teaching yield different results? I know there is a big difference in the upbringing of say, a young woman with anorexia or bulemia vs. the upbringing of a person struggling to get life-long obesity under control. I really haven't ever given much thought to how a vegetarian's kid grows up looking at food and how it may affect their lives after mom's house. Would be interesting to find out.
I really like that one of your sources mentioned not trying to control how much your toddler eats because it can lead to negative behaviors. I have a few friends that are overweight and we discussed this once. My mother just accepted that I was full and that was that. They grew up in "you can't leave the table until your plate is clean" homes. While there are certainly many other lifestyle choices that lead to your adult weight we all agree that this helped form our mentality of eating. I eat when I'm hungry and I stop when I'm full. They never really feel "full" anymore because they got so accustomed to eating to the point of discomfort.
ReplyDeleteI was mostly raised vegetarian and my mother pretty much made sure of that. I made a choice to eat whatever I wanted, including meat, when I was 15. I have been eating meat and anything else I wanted to ever since then... vegetarianism is something that will always hold a special place in my heart though. My sister who was also raised vegetarian is still a vegetarian. She has two children and she does not raise them vegetarian. She does not keep meat in her house nor cook it but if her son wants a hamburger at a restaurant she is happy to order it for him. I think it is very important to educate children about smart food choices. I have five kids and they all have very different eating habits and tastes. When the three year old wants candy for breakfast and I have to tell him no I know that is a good parenting choice. Telling the three year old he can't have delicious fatty bad for you sausage is a sacrilegious. Yes, my family likes their pig products but we also are eating a lot of turkey products these days. My personal view is that everything is ok in moderation including meat. We are omnivorous creatures not herbivores or carnivores.
ReplyDeleteI really like that you chose this topic and am looking forward to reading your paper. I am not a very good cook but being a new mom I have been trying to change that. It is so easy just to make things from the box but I know there is no nutritional value in any of that. I really like reading about your sources because it gives me good ideas as to where to start in finding ideas for my son.
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