As we drove back home from daycare today, my daughter made an interesting remark.

“Dad, this fruit juice is very healthy”, as she sipped the last of her fruitables^TM juice.

“What makes you think it is healthy for you?”, I asked, expecting her to read the nutrition facts label on the box.

Yes, ever since we had our small breakthrough when she discovered the word “sugar” at the back of the box of instant oatmeal, she has been reading labels and other information on food packages.

“Fruitables..a juice beverage that is packed with fruits and veggies but has less sugar than other juices and juice drinks”….she read out loud the marketing pitch on the back panel.

“Really?”, I exclaimed hiding my surprise.

“This is one refreshing way”, she continued, “to get healthy nutrition you need every day!

“Very interesting”, I thought. She was reading the whole thing…

“And daddy, long time ago, someone said fruits and vegetables weren’t delicious!”

I found that very funny and laughed out loud because I had not seen the whole message myself. Surely, she made it up I thought.

I decided to take a closer look at the juice box when we reached home. The marketing message was clever, and she did indeed read pretty much the whole thing verbatim. Except the part at the end, which she tweaked a little based on her interpretation.

Clearly, fruit juice is not equal to real fruit in terms of overall nutrition value. The marketing message is clever, no doubt, as it attempts to separate this product from other juices which have added sugar.

One box of Fruitables (200 mL) has 9 g sugar only 66% juice. Quite close to “empty calories”, but not a bad alternative to other beverages when used in moderation.

Clever food marketing messages and package design can attract a child’s attention and curiosity. I think it is good to let them absorb these messages, but very important to help them interpret correctly so they don’t fall for them.

What do you think?

Disclaimer – I have not received any sponsorship or free samples of product from Apple & Eve, LLC  for writing this review. For complete nutritional information and other products, visit Fruitables website.

©2011 Littlestomaks.com

A big thank you to all those who participated in the discussion on my last blog article Fruity Cheerios vs Froot Loops where I shared how we managed to switch my daughter to Cheeios from Froot Loops. This was a big deal because she is so fond of Froot Loops that she doesn’t want to try anything else.

But I need to give a special word of thanks to Selmada who left a comment about teaching her to read labels. I tried this idea over the weekend, first with her reading the label on the Fruity Cheerios just to get her used to the contents of a nutrition facts label. She got quite interested in it running her tiny forefinger down the long list as she read out vitamin D, calcium and iron. Later that night at dinner, we talked about the food label and the different items it contains and what they mean. We talked about sugar, fat, protein, vitamin D and calcium. We talked about how calcium and vitamin D made our bodies strong and gave us good bones. We talked about how junk food is full of sugar and fat. We also talked about how different breakfast foods contain different things and why some of them may be better for us. All this conversation happened without the box of cereal on the table as we ate our dinner together.

The next morning, I was quite surprised when she asked for a bowl of instant oatmeal with milk instead of the usual Cheerios! She even insisted on helping me take out 1/2 cup of instant oatmeal mix and mix with a cup of milk; reading the label of course! It was ready in a few minutes and she happily sat down on the table to begin eating it after it had cooled down a little.

I encouraged her to look at the label and find how much sugar the oatmeal had. She ran her tiny finger again and read 1 g. Then I showed her the box of Fruity Cheerios and she read 9 g. As she made the connection, she exclaimed “Cheerios has more sugar than oatmeal”! I said it was ok and we could still enjoy it once in a while.

Then I pointed to the bottle of honey and helped her find the amount of sugar – it was very difficult to find because the label is small and not easy to read.

“16 grams”, she exclaimed in a loud, surprised tone of voice.

“..and that is why we should use only a little bit of honey in the oatmeal”, she suggested after the difference in amount had registered in her mind.

“Yes”, said I as I watched her squeeze out a smaller than usual amount of honey from the bottle.

Her twin brother got interested in checking out the label once he had his own bowl of oatmeal in front of him.

Wow, sometimes things just have a way of coming together!

©2011 Littlestomaks.com

photo credit: maia hopes.

My daughter loves Froot Loops^® for breakfast. Every morning she likes to have a bowl of these colorful rings with milk. As if it is not sweet enough for her, she squeezes a generous dose of honey over it from her Honey-Bear bottle. It has become her daily routine. She does not want to eat any other cereal. In fact, we carried two boxes of Froot Loops with us to India because we knew she was not going to touch anything else in the morning!

I know, it is not really healthy. Surprisingly – and to our great relief – she is not big on other sugary stuff, which is why we don’t try to stop her from enjoying her favorite breakfast cereal. Because eating breakfast each morning is very important, we have accepted her preference.

Still, we have been trying to find a way to reduce the sugar level in her breakfast bowl. This weekend, we stumbled upon Fruity Cheerios® which looked almost identical to the box of Froot Loops sitting on the nearby shelf. Since Cheerios is one of our favorite food brands, we decided to give it a try!

We also bought a box of our regular Froot Loops, just to be safe!

Front of the box labeling on Fruity Cheerios emphasized whole grain, calcium and vitamin D. But on a closer look, as shown in the following table, it has lower sugar and higher levels of other vitamins and minerals compared to Froot Loops.

When I showed the Fruity Cheerios box to my daughter, she paused for a moment but then happily tried it instead of the Froot Loops. Just for the record, I did not try to trick her into thinking that I was giving her the usual Froot Loops. Plus she can now read the box anyway!

She still added the regular dose of honey….oh well!

Overall, I think it is a better choice, but in some ways you could call it the lesser of the two evils. There are, no doubt, healthier breakfast choices, but then we don’t have that option right now. We plan to slowly start introducing her to other foods at breakfast.

What do you think? Share your child’s breakfast favorites in comments below!

Disclaimer – I have not received any sponsorship or free samples of product for writing this review. For complete nutritional information check out Fruity Cheerios and Froot Loops.

©2011 Littlestomaks.com

We found these fig bars in a local allergy-free food store called Chase Foods. If you live in the Jacksonville, FL area, you got to check out this store!

The twins loved the free samples of these fig bars we received at an event so we decided to buy a whole box of 12 packs. Each packet contains 2 pieces which makes a nice built-in portion control feature. In the whole wheat type we are trying right now, the dough is made up of whole wheat flour, organic evaporated cane juice, canola oil, brown rice syrup, caramel color, apple fiber, sea salt, citric acid, baking soda, lecithin and baking powder. The filling contains fig paste, brown rice syrup, organic evaporated cane juice, rolled oats, molasses, citric acid and sea salt.

Here is what we like about this product -

1. A dairy-free option for people with dairy allergy
2. Simple, natural ingredients
3. Tastes good
4. Only 110 calories per bar
5. No saturated fat or trans fat
6. No cholesterol
7. Provides fiber, calcium and iron

Here is what we don’t like about this product -

1. Not organic
2. Label says it is made on equipment shared with peanut and dairy products. Can’t claim true “dairy free”
3. It could use a little less sugar – for a small 28 g bar, it has 11 g of sugar.

Overall, we like these fig bars a lot. Give them a try!

Disclaimer – Although we were introduced to this product through a free sample, I have not received any sponsorship or free product for writing this review.

©2010 Littlestomaks.com

Ask The Expert is a weekly column on Littlestomaks.com. The idea is to have a reader-submitted question answered by a nutrition expert or a pediatrician. Feel free to submit your question in the comments section below.

This week, registered dietitian and contributing editor of Parents magazine Sally Kuzemchak offers tips for managing fruit juices in a healthy diet.

Question: Is giving juice to my kids okay as long as it’s 100% fruit juice?

Truth is, if your child eats fruit everyday, she doesn’t need to drink any juice at all. It’s certainly a quick and easy way to fit in a fruit serving and get a day’s worth of vitamin C. But it doesn’t offer any nutritional advantages over fruit. And when you drink juice instead of eating fruit, you miss out on the fiber—something kids (and adults) need more of anyway. One medium apple with skin offers more than 4 grams of fiber, but a cup of apple juice has less than 1 gram. Plus, it’s not hard for a child to meet his C requirements without juice. Just one-half cup of broccoli or sliced strawberries provides more than a day’s worth of the vitamin.

The bigger issue with juice is that a serving provides more calories than a serving of fruit. One cup of orange juice contains about 122 calories, while a whole medium orange supplies just 69. Juice is easy to drink in large quantities: Without the fiber, it’s not nearly as filling as a whole piece of fruit. Children who gulp down multiple cups of juice a day (and many do) can take in hundreds of extra calories—and may start refusing beverages (like water) that aren’t sweet.

That said, if you want to work juice into a healthy diet, here’s how:

1. Stick with the current recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics: No more than 4-6 ounces for kids age 1-6 years, and no more than 8 ounces for older children. Diluting it with equal parts water will stretch small amounts further. Make milk the default beverage with meals and water the go-to thirst quencher in between meals.
2. Serve juice in a regular cup at the table (or highchair) with a meal or snack. Avoid letting your child drink juice from a sippy all day, which encourages over-consumption. Bathing the teeth all day in sugar, even the natural kind in fruit juice, can also increase the risk for cavities.
3. Choose 100 percent fruit juice, which will contain more natural vitamins and antioxidants. Fruit “drinks” contain just a little bit of juice and a whole lot of added sugar.
4. Keep only one type of juice in your house at one time, such as a carton of orange juice OR boxes of 100 percent apple juice so kids aren’t tempted by multiple kinds and flavors.

©2010 Littlestomaks.com. All Rights Reserved

Disclaimer – Information provided in Ask The Expert column on Littlestomaks.com is intended to give you general guidance on a question related to toddler nutrition. It is not meant to be treated as medical advice. You are welcome to contact this expert for a detailed consultation on your specific situation to determine what actions, if any, you should take regarding nutrition and health of your toddlers. We do not recommend you to take any action based solely on the information presented in this column. Experts have agreed to provide their professional opinion on toddler nutrition related questions on a voluntary basis and no compensation is offered to them by Littlestomaks.com.

Cereal has become a common choice for breakfast, and often a late night snack, in most American households! Kids love cereal and that is why I asked Registered Dietitian Elisa Zied, MS, RD, CDN, to share one of her video tips selecting a healthy cereal. She is the author of Nutrition at Your Fingertips which just came out in November 2009 and is a “Go-to guide” according to More magazine. Her channel on YouTube has lots of great videos on nutrition tips for both adults and kids; check it out!

Elisa earned a bachelor of arts in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania and a master of science in clinical nutrition from New York University.

She blogs at The Zied Guide. You can follow her on Twitter @elisazied.

Here are three easy to remember tips from this video:

• Go whole grain
• Look for fiber – at least 4 g per serving
• Ditch the sugar – not more than 10 – 12 g per serving

And I will add that sometimes you can mix a few different types to keep things interesting for kids. They love funny, colorful shapes so feel free to mix ‘n match!

Enjoy and eat healthy!

©2010 Littlestomaks.com. All Rights Reserved

Disclaimer – Information provided in Ask The Expert column on Littlestomaks.com is intended to give you general guidance on a question related to toddler nutrition. It is not meant to be treated as medical advice. You are welcome to contact this expert for a detailed consultation on your specific situation to determine what actions, if any, you should take regarding nutrition and health of your toddlers. We do not recommend you to take any action based solely on the information presented in this column. Experts have agreed to provide their professional opinion on toddler nutrition related questions on a voluntary basis and no compensation is offered to them by Littlestomaks.com.

Eating too many sugary foods is now believed to be one of the main reasons behind our obesity problem. But can it also weaken your immune system?

Some experts such as Dr Sears believe that excess sugar decreases immunity. I was intrigued by this notion so I decided to research if there was any scientific basis for it. One commonly cited study was published way back in 1973 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. In this study, researchers found that when volunteers took about 100 g of sugar, the infection fighting cells in their blood were less effective in killing bacteria. Not much has been published on this topic since then, but this belief about the role of sugar in compromised immunity still persists.

No doubt, there are many harmful effects of excess sugar. It may be that poor immunity results from overall poor health, not simply because of consuming too much sugar. If you want to make sure your child develops a good resistance to infectious diseases, follow these time-tested advice:

• Balanced diet, rich in fruits and veggies (see tips)
• Play-nutrition-rest
• Reduce meat consumption
• Multivitamins if needed (see when to consider a multivitamin)

And if you are struggling with a sugar problem, here are a few tips on how to shake off a sweet addiction!

©2010 Littlestomaks.com

There is something ironic about freezing cold weather in Florida! I know, I should not be complaining because rest of the country seems to be under a really bitter cold, but I can’t help myself. It is not supposed to be that cold here. I would not mind it so much if it got cold enough to get some snow and everything shut down for a day or so. That way, we could go out and play in the snow with kids. That would be fun, but this bitter cold with the sun shining on us at the same time is simply miserable!

Anyway, enough of complaining about the cold. I hope you all had a wonderful Holiday season. I am just now getting in the groove with blogging again in the new year after a short break. Therefore, for this week’s 5 for Fridays, I am going to pick my personal favorite nutrition stories of 2009 I wrote about in this weekly column. So, here they are; let me know what you think about them.

Even Top Chefs Have Picky Kids (published Feb 20, 2009)

I have not seen the otherwise popular show “Top Chef”, but I really liked this interview with Chef Tom Colicchio in the New York Times. Despite his celebrity status, he appears to be quite modest and down-to-earth. Like most parents, he too struggles with his teenage son’s eating habits. I liked his ideas about wholesome food made from fresh ingredients and setting an example by eating healthy food at home. According to him, the choice of food is not between unhealthy and healthy, it is between good and bad! Although he acknowledges that people are busy, it is not really that hard and time consuming to make a healthy recipe (if you know what you are doing of course!). He proves that by giving an example of a 20-minute pasta dish with a yummy clams sauce.

Which vitamin is better – tablet or liquid? (published Mar 27, 2009)

There is an interesting debate going on in one of the LinkedIn groups on Nutrition. Does a tablet form of vitamin work better inside the body or the liquid form? Absorption of vitamins and minerals from a multivitamin supplement is not very well understood. In the absence of scientific data, all kinds of claims are made about liquid vitamins that they are better and they are absorbed quickly. In response to these claims, those who believe in tablets and capsules tend to make their own counter claims. It is all very confusing to everybody.

In response to my poll on multivitamins, most of those who used these supplements for their toddlers preferred the gummies or tablet variety. Very few favored the liquid form. Could be that liquid form of vitamins is not very common and tends to be more expensive.

I have been thinking about this topic lately and I intend to do some research before writing a post. In the meantime, feel free to share your opinion.

The sweet nothingness of artificial sweeteners (published May 29, 2009)

There are so many different types of artificial sweeteners available these days. And now there is all this buzz about Stevia, the real “natural” no-calorie sweetener. How do you decide which one of the white, blue, yellow and pink packets to go for as you try to grab your morning coffee? They are zero calories all right, but should you worry about possible adverse health effects, including the possibility of cancer, from some of these chemicals? And what about the fact that consuming zero calories sugary beverages does nothing to control your appetite and you might actually end up eating more even as you try to cut down on calories? Check out this very detailed article on artificial sweeteners which basically says that most artificial sweeteners are safe in moderate amounts. So go for the one that tastes the best to you. Overall, you will be better off going for just water instead of the sweet beverage and following a nutrient-rich diet including fruits and vegetables. Zero means zero after all!

30 states have 30% or higher childhood obesity rates (published Jul 3, 3009)

Scary statistics, and nothing to be proud of in my opinion. This data comes from a new report called F as in Fat – How Obesity Policies are Failing in America 2009 published by the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). Mississippi got the top honor for its 44% childhood obesity rate – that is nearly 1 in 2 children 10-17 years old is either overweight or obese. 8 of the 10 states with highest rates of childhood obesity are in the South. Another study of children 2-5 years old in low income families shows that nearly 15% of these children are obese compared to about 12% nationwide. It is not that we don’t know the reason for this trend – children eat junk food, they spend too much time watching TV or in front of a computer, they don’t exercise, and schools are not up to standard when it comes to providing healthy meals. Still, nothing is being done about it, and seems like we have no control over the expanding waistlines of our children. Clearly, childhood obesity is a problem we need to confront with all our creativity and resources since it has terrible implications for the long term health of our nation.

Watch out, eating hamburgers can paralyze you (published Oct 9, 2009)

I was shocked beyond belief to read the unfortunate story of 22 years old Stephanie Smith, who got really sick after eating a hamburger contaminated with E. coli. She was so sick that doctors had to put her in a coma for nine weeks, after which she could no longer walk because she was paralyzed from the waist down. A very heavy price to pay for a cheap hamburger all of us assume safe for eating without much thought.

Turns out there are serious gaps in the food inspection system which is supposed to test packaged meat for E. coli contamination. Ground beef is produced by processors from beef trimmings and other parts which they buy from many different suppliers. Not all of these incoming supplies are tested for contamination before grinding. The result is that contaminated cow parts can sometime enter the ground beef supply undetected. Does not happen very frequently, but it does happen often enough to make the news. 8000 people have become sick from 16 E. coli outbreaks in the last 3 years.

No matter how many regulations and inspections are put in place, there is no way to be 100% safe because of the way meat is processed in modern plants. My advice – cut down on beef in the first place – it has been shown to increase the risk of various types of cancer. And if you do want to enjoy a burger, make sure you follow the safe handling procedures and cook it thoroughly so that the inside of the hamburger reaches 165 °F.

Photo source: dylinindustries on Flickr via everystockphoto
©2010 Littlestomaks.com

It has been an excellent year blogging about toddler nutrition! When I started writing back in the Fall of 2008, I did not realize how exciting it could be to learn and write about all aspects of a young child’s nutrition and growth. Blogging has also given me an opportunity to connect with both experts and moms in a unique way!

As we close on 2009, I would like to reflect upon the more than 220 posts I have published on this blog. Whether you are a brand new visitor, or a regular reader of this blog, I invite you to check out these top 10 posts of 2009 in terms of page views and comments.

Enjoy and let me know what is on your mind!

	Attachment Parenting and Toddler Nutrition This post by Annie of PhD In Parenting explains what it means to feed your child with love and respect. It is one of the 8 guiding principles of Attachment Parenting.
	All Natural Toddler Multivitamin My review of Floradix Kinder Love Children’s Multivitamin Liquid Extract Formula attracted a lot of attention because it is based on herbal extracts and fruit juices. It claims to be easy on the child’s digestive system while providing vitamins A, B, C, D and E. It is not a good source of minerals.
	Simple Recipes – Chicken with Quinoa This is a very easy recipe to make! Quinoa, in my opinion, is the unrecognized superfood because it is a good source of protein and low glycemic index carbs. It also provides a good mix of vitamins and minerals.
	Ask the Expert – Sushi and Toddlers If you are a sushi lover and you are thinking about introducing your toddler to sushi, you have got to read this informative piece from registered dietitian Janet Helm. She writes a great blog at Nutrition Unplugged with tons of excellent information about nutrition and food trends.
	Looking for a Multivitamin Supplement? This is a “mini” guide to toddler vitamin supplements on the market. If you are considering a supplement for your child, you can use a simple comparison chart in this post. Centrum Kids and Flintstones Complete offer a good balance of complete vitamins and minerals. But the most important advice is to rely on a balanced diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables.
	5 Reasons to Consider a Multivitamin Supplement I heard a variety of opinions from Moms who took my Global Toddler survey about use of multivitamins. In this post, I highlight 5 main reasons why you might consider it for your child. Vitamins should not be used to “fix” nutrition and eating issues; rather you should rely on them to supplement a balanced diet.
	Basmati Rice: It is Very Easy to Cook and You Will Love It’s Flavor and Fragrance We love basmati rice! It is an excellent source of low glycemic index carbohydrates. Try my simple recipe to cook it as a separate side dish. You can also try some of the links in this post for other great recipes.
	Help! My Kids Don’t Eat Enough Fruits and Veggies! This is a very common concern of most toddler parents. In this article, pediatrician Dr Ayala Laufer-Cahana offers a few practical tips to get your kids interested in fruits and veggies. Check out her blog at Ayala’s Herbal Water.
	Traffic Light and Food Labeling Clearly, consumers want simple and easy to understand front of the box food labels. FDA is worried about accuracy and manipulation by the food industry. A traffic light based food labeling system is gaining popularity in UK and Australia. It is not perfect, but clearly a step in the right direction.
	Think Play-Nutrition-Rest for Long Term Health of Your Children Play is an important part of your child’s physical, mental and emotional growth. Combine it with good nutrition and enough rest for long term health of your toddler.

Web statistics are surely important, but there are a lot of other articles which I am particularly very passionate about. Here are a few of my favorites. I hope you will check them out and leave me a comment with your opinion!

1. Twinkie tax will do nothing to reduce the sweetness
2. Shaking off a sweet addiction
3. Why we must address childhood obesity NOW
4. Good nutrition key to managing food allergy
5. Healthy fats for children

©2009 Littlestomaks.com

Greetings! Hope you all are enjoying the beautiful days of Fall. I simply love this time of the year. We are getting ready for Trick-or-treat and pumpkin painting, and the twins are excited! They are already dreaming of collecting candy – it is going to be an uphill battle trying to keep them from eating too much. I won’t spoil the fun by telling you their costumes this year yet, but will surely post a photo after Halloween.

Here are the 5 nutrition related news that caught my eye this week. Enjoy and drop me a comment to share your thoughts.

A new index to help you select affordable nutritious foods

A new food rating system called the Affordable Nutrition Index (ANI) was introduced this week at the American Dietetic Association’s Food and Nutrition Expo in Denver. The idea is to provide a score that takes into account the cost of a certain food item in addition to its nutrition value. A food item with a high score means that it is high in 9 nutrients (protein, fiber, vitamin A, C, E, calcium, iron, potassium and magnesium), low in 3 nutrients (saturated fat, added sugar and sodium) and costs less on a per serving basis. Sweet potato, broccoli, green pepper, orange and banana scored high on the index (over 100) while packaged convenience foods scored lower than 100.

This index has been developed by Dr Adam Drewnowski, Director of the Center for Public Health Nutrition at University of Washington in Seattle. He used the Nutrient Rich Food Index (NFR9.3) which he previously developed and a price per serving information from food prices database, Seattle area supermarkets and industry sources. This research was sponsored by the Campbell Soup Company. Not surprisingly perhaps, many of the condensed soups from Campbell ended up with a high score around 100 compared to many fresh or cooked vegetables and even fresh fruits.

I am intrigued by this idea since we all want to select foods that have high nutritional value at an affordable cost. However, I don’t think that this is the only way to make that choice. I was disappointed to see that vitamin D was not included in the 9 nutrients to promote in the NFR9.3. Plus cost per serving is probably not the right measure of what a customer pays when buying a product. Also, you can manage cost by buying seasonal fruits and vegetables from local sources. Still, I think it is a good idea and I plan to write more about it in future.

Coke’s response to the debate on obesity is lame

Coca-Cola, the icon of sugary drinks is under attack! CEO Muhtar Kent wrote an Op-Ed piece in the Wall Street Journal on October 7th defending his company against proposals of soda tax. Coke Didn’t Make America Fat is what he believes; and quite arrogantly he points the finger to his own customers saying they lead a sedentary lifestyle! Well, Coke did make America fat according to my blogger colleague Dr. Ayala who wrote an excellent piece this week in response to Mr. Kent’s lame arguments.

So far, Coke’s response to the current debate on the role of sugary drinks in our obesity problem is rather lame in my opinion. They have announced that they will add calorie information on the front of Coke cans. They have given a large amount of money to the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) to develop consumer education content as part of their Consumer Alliance Program. They are also a part of the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation (HWCF), a group of 40 organizations seemingly engaged in a collaborative effort to address obesity. And now in their latest move, Coke has announced that they will introduce a 90-calorie mini soda can so that people can limit their intake of sugary cola.

While I am no fan of the twinkie tax, I do not believe that these actions by one of America’s top brands are of the high caliber needed to solve one of America’s most challenging health problems. Coke needs to do more than just pay lip service and make lame arguments defending their products in public. They need to take a more grass-roots approach – building playgrounds in schools, sponsoring healthy lifestyle events, developing after-school programs, integrating nutrition and physical education, sponsor healthy nutritious school lunches just to name a few examples. They need to measure the effectiveness of these programs in reducing obesity and make the data public.

Coke’ 3Q financial results show that they generated $6.3 billion in cash from operations year-to-date in 2009. They spent $241 million buying back their own shares. A little more of that cash spent on real programs to solve our obesity problem will not make a dent in their profits! What do you have to say about that Mr Kent?

FDA puts the hammer down on front-of-box labeling

The Smart Choice program it seems was the last straw according to Marion Nestle who writes a blog called Food Politics! In a letter to the food industry, the FDA is openly questioning the arbitrary nutrition standards used by companies to develop these labels which end up showing their own products as healthy. FDA wants to develop a set of independent criteria which these labels will need to meet before companies can use them on their products. FDA also wants to understand how these front of the box labels affect consumer choice.

I say, it’s about time. The Nutritional Facts panel, usually at the back or the side of the box, is too complicated for most consumers to read and understand. Consumers are looking for something simple that allows them to quickly make a decision.

We are lagging behind other countries in this area. A traffic light based food labeling system developed by the industry based on government guidelines in UK seems to be working very well. Why can’t we do the same here?

Here is a good background information on different types of front of box labeling systems. What is your opinion? Have you come across a labeling system you really like?

Toddler diets a cause for concern according to the 2008 FITS data

Latest data from the 2008 Nestle Feeding Infants and Toddlers Study (FITS) confirms the sorry state of a typical toddler diet in America. Most toddlers and preschoolers are not eating fruits and vegetables. They are consuming too much saturated fat and sodium. French fries are the most popular vegetable!

Good news is that the diets of infants and older babies are much better compared to the 2002 data. Mothers are breastfeeding their children longer and consumption of sugary drinks is decreasing. There is a risk of iron deficiency in some children.

Looks like parents and caregivers are following the feeding guidelines for infants. So why do things go south during the toddler years? Is it because of picky behavior? Or is it because toddlers eat what their parents eat? Or a combination of the two?

Not much progress has been made in the diet of toddlers since 2002. We need to make a deliberate effort to improve this situation.  Having dinner together, being a role model and encouraging fruits and vegetables is critical to solving the problem of childhood obesity. And in case you are struggling, here are some tips for picky eating.

Let us bring the school nutrition standards to the 21^st century

Can you believe that it was 1995 when the standards for the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP) were last revised? Yet the NSLP served lunch to over 30 million children and SBP served breakfast to over 10 million children in 2008! If we are serious about fighting the battle of childhood obesity, we need to revise these standards and bring them to the 21st century!

Well, the good news is that the Institute of Medicine (IOM) has now issued its recommendations in a report titled School Meals: Building Blocks for Healthy Children, which the US Department is going to consider as they revise these standards. Recommended meal requirements encourage more fruits & vegetables, whole grains, min and max levels of calories and limit saturated fats  and sodium.

This is good news! I hope they will begin to implement these recommendations by the time our twins start going to school. I think progress may be slow due to cost and bureaucracy, but at least it’s a good start.

Enjoy and do let me know you think. I would love to have you share your best tips in comments below.

Photo source -cambodia4kidsorg on Flickr via everystockphoto

©2009 Littlestomaks.com

Over the weekend I was looking at the ingredient list of freshly baked bread that we got from our local Publix supermarket. What caught my eye was the very first ingredient called enriched flour. At first it appeared to be a good thing. After all, look at what all it contains:

Enriched flour – wheat flour, malted barley flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid

Niacin is vitamin B3 needed for DNA repair and production of steroid hormones. Lack of vitamin B3 results in Pellagra, a disease of 4 D’s: diarrhea, dermatitis, dementia and death!

Reduced iron is simply a form of iron added to the flour. Iron is essential for all living organisms and its deficiency causes anemia where blood hemoglobin gets to low levels.

Thiamine Mononitrate is vitamin B1 and its deficiency causes beriberi which affects the nervous system.

Riboflavin is vitamin B2 is needed for metabolism of fats, carbs and proteins. Its deficiency causes inflammation in eyes, mouth and throat.

Folic acid is needed for a lot of different bodily functions especially at a time of cell division and growth (pregnancy and early childhood). Folate deficiency results in loss of appetite, weight loss, weakness, headaches, heart palpitations and behavioral disorders.

So on the surface, all this looks good since enriched flour is giving you iron and important B vitamins. What can be wrong with it you wonder.

Well, the main question is why they need to add them to flour in the first place since wheat contains these nutrients anyway!

Simply grind the wheat, turn it into flour and forget about all this processing and enrichment. Turns out, things are not so simple.

Customers love the looks of bright, white flour. But enriching is necessary because the processing used to make white flour destroys some of these nutrients that originally were present in the whole grain. So, FDA forces producers to add these important nutrients so that they don’t have to face the public health nightmare resulting from their deficiency. This makes everybody happy – customers get the white flour they like, producers make a profit and FDA doesn’t have to deal with public health problems.

But is that really true?

Vitamins, minerals and oils are stored inside the germ of the whole grain, protected by the bran so they can continue to nourish the seed. The carbohydrates and proteins are stored inside the endosperm which is also protected by the bran. The milling process of turning wheat into white flour removes the barn and the germ, so all you are left with are the carbs and proteins from the endosperm. High surface area of the flour causes very rapid release of sugar in your blood when you eat stuff made from white flour. Insulin levels have to go up to correct this sugar surge. Done a lot of times, this can lead to insulin resistance and Type II diabetes. You can add back vitamins and minerals and feel good about it, but the problem of sugar over time is the one we need to worry about.

Next time, go for whole grain bread instead of the white bread. I know it tastes so good, and it is ok to consume it in moderation; but over eating baked foods made from the so called enriched white flour is a long term health risk.

Photo Sources:
White Bread – PhotoExpress
Whole Grain Kernel – Wikimedia Commons
©2009 Littlestomaks.com

Greetings! It is Friday again. We are getting ready for a week-long trip to the Disney World with our kids. This is the first time for them and I can tell they are excited. My daughter keeps saying “next week we will go to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse!” It should be fun and we are looking forward to this little time off!

I am taking a slightly different approach to my regular Five for Fridays this week. Instead of writing about 5 nutrition news of the week, I am going to cover just one news in more detail and try to look at it from 5 different ways.

The big news this week was a report issued by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) which urges local governments to take a decisive action in controlling childhood obesity. Reading the report brief, it is hard not to be impressed by many of the suggested recommendations from the committee. The media, however, picked on one of the most provocative idea that a “twinkie tax” be imposed on junk foods and sugary drinks to limit their consumption. A 10% tax on sugary beverages could reduce their consumption by 8-10% according to some experts.

To these experts, I say a better way would be to simply ban all junk food and sugary drinks. Seize the products from the stores, treat them as controlled substances and shut the manufacturers down! It has a better chance of working if that is the culprit behind childhood obesity.

Obviously no one will stand up for it because this would be considered so un-American.

Here are 5 reasons why I believe a “twinkie tax” will have no real effect on the obesity problem:

1. Tax is like using a spigot when a dam is needed- let us face it; consumers love sugary foods and drinks. There is a huge demand for them and as a result, there is a huge supply. Imposing a small tax will be like trying to control the flow of a river by a spigot when we need to build a dam. The real question is, how high the taxes should be before the resulting prices are simply prohibitive for most consumers to give up on these products?
2. Tax does nothing to the production cost – manufacturing junk food is cheap! Cheap raw materials and large scale production keeps unit cost at a very low level. What is not cheap is packaging, marketing and distribution of these products. It would be very easy to keep the same sticker price by simply reducing these costs by a small amount. It will take a lot to cut them to a level which can affect their availability on the shelves.
3. Tax will actually increase the desire for these foods – let us say the price does go up to a point that these products become out of reach for some consumers. Do you really believe that their desire for these foods will diminish? In fact, if they can’t have them as often as they would like, they will actually want more of them. They will find some other way to get them anyway.
4. Tax will do nothing to the consumption of healthy foods – those who favor taxes on junk foods justify their idea by suggesting that the money could be used to promote awareness of healthy options. This is absurd! It makes the assumption that those who will give up junk food because of high prices will actually be able to afford healthy foods if they become aware of them. Not true at all in my opinion. As long as the availability of healthy foods remains limited, the current demand from consumers with higher income will continue to keep their prices high. A lot of people eat junk food not because they don’t know it is unhealthy, rather because it is cheap, readily available and tastes good.
5. Tax will encourage producers to develop bad habits – dealing with taxes is like dealing with a strict teacher in school. You try to find a way around him rather than developing a desire for learning. This is particularly true if the producer is confident that the demand for his product is not going to be changed in a fundamental way. You can expect more lobbying, more promotion and even more products at a lower price point. Is this what we want?

By now, you might be tempted to believe that I am not a tax-and-spend kind of a guy! Let me clarify – this is not a political discussion for me. I am looking at this situation purely from a business perspective. In fact, if you are a proponent of taxes, I suggest the following ideas might work better:

1. Tax the raw materials, or lift the subsidies that result in low commodity prices. Now that is a touchy political issue, isn’t it?
2. Tax the machines that make these products. The trickle down effect on the manufacturing sector would be tremendous!
3. Tax the utilities used by producers of these products. Make their electricity, water and gas more expensive. I bet the utility companies will be delighted!
4. Tax the transporters of these foods by making them pay more for gas and use of highways and railroads. Maybe they will consider going after producers of healthy foods then!
5. Tax the retailers who stack their shelves with these products. Make them pay more for healthcare and unemployment taxes. Perhaps that will persuade them to opt for healthy foods instead!

No matter how you look at it, taxing these products is not a sustainable solution. In my opinion, we should rather focus on finding ways to make healthy foods cheaper and more readily available to consumers of all socio-economic backgrounds.

Another approach would be to change the demand patterns in a fundamental way. Businesses innovate in response to consumer demand, not necessarily in response to legislation. For example, the demand for soda in our household is zero. It is as if the soda aisle does not exist in the store. Not even offers like buy-one-get-one-free tempt us anymore. I am not saying that this has had an impact in the bottom line for Coke and Pepsi. But imagine, if just 1 in 5 shoppers bypassed the soda aisle in every store in America. That would certainly force them to find out what consumers like me want and develop products to satisfy this need. That is what drives innovation. Not taxes.

I hope the “experts” can exercise their brain cells to think about that for a while!

What is your opinion? I would love to hear your comments.

©2009 Littlestomaks.com

It was purely by chance that I added this product to my shopping cart this weekend. I was looking for our regular small drinkable yogurt bottles for kids from Dannon. I did not remember the exact brand. Turns out we were buying Danimals^® Drinkables which comes in a 6-pack of 3.1 fl oz bottles. Anyway, I was intrigued by the immunity claim on the packaging, which also prominently displayed the marketing name of the active probiotic culture L. Casei Immunitas^TM. Another bold statement on the package claimed that it was clinically proven to help strengthen your body’s defenses. Worth checking it out I said to myself.

Both of our twins loved it. In fact they have been drinking a couple of these bottles every day!

Here is what we like about this product -

1. L. Casei Immunitas^TM is supposed to be more resistant to the stomach acid compared to other  yogurt cultures. Which means that more of it will end up in the small intestines where it is supposed to help maintain the right microbial environment.
2. It has a high amount of protein, calcium and potassium.
3. No trans fats and very low saturated fat.
4. It tastes quite good!

Here is what we don’t like about this product -

1. Main problem – too much sugar! One 3.1 oz bottle contains 13 g sugar. My guess is that nearly half of it is added sugar. No wonder the kids liked it so much. By the way, the Danimals^® Drinkables are no better – one bottle contains 14 g sugar, although it has more vitamins and minerals.
2. It is not organic.
3. It is super expensive – a 6 pack costs $4.89 at my local store. It come to about 80 cents per bottle, which is way more than even milk or a homemade smoothie. Not sure if a slightly higher amount of bacteria reaching the gut is worth this much more! Eat more of plain yogurt and mix it with fresh fruit puree!!

Because of its sugar content and high price, I give it a thumbs down even though our kids loved it! This will only fuel their sweet addiction!!

Have you tried it? What is your opinion?

Disclaimer – I have not received any sponsorship or free samples of product from Dannon for writing this review. For complete nutritional information and other products, visit Dannon’s website.

©2009 Littlestomaks.com

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]]> http://www.littlestomaks.com/2009/09/product-review-danactivetm-immunity-probiotic-drink/feed/ 4 http://www.littlestomaks.com/2009/08/shaking-off-a-sweet-addiction/ http://www.littlestomaks.com/2009/08/shaking-off-a-sweet-addiction/#comments Mon, 31 Aug 2009 10:00:50 +0000 TwinToddlersDad http://www.littlestomaks.com/?p=2759

It should not come as a surprise to anyone that we are addicted to sugar! What might surprise you though is just how much added sugar we Americans consume every day. A whopping 22 teaspoons according to the news I covered in last week’s Five for Fridays. That comes to about 355 calories or nearly 20% of the recommended 2000 daily calories. Most of this added sugar comes from regular soft drinks, soda, candy and desserts such as cakes, cookies and pies. Consuming this much added sugar is really not necessary because it does not provide any added nutritional value, just empty calories.

It is true that there is no clear link between added sugar, weight gain and obesity. But common sense tells us that if we consume more calories than we can spend by physical activity and exercise, those extra calories will add up. Excessive sugar can also result in insulin resistance leading to Type 2 diabetes. In short, too much sugar is not good in the long run no matter how you look at it.

I think that it is important to tame your child’s sweet tooth by keeping a close eye on it early on. All children love sweet treats, some more than others. At times you may be tempted to give in and just accept that your child might be hardwired for a sweet tooth. But that is no reason for a child to be introduced to soda at a young age. In my opinion, that can count for child abuse! I can live with children enjoying desserts and candy in moderation, but when it comes to soda, I have to draw the line!

I have written about how to manage daily sugar for your child in the past. Recently I posed this question to some of my Twitter followers for their tips. Here is some of what I heard back.

@notdiyheather tweeted about how she does not keep sugar drinks and snacks at home:

She also tries to teach her child that sugary treats are for special occasions and prefers water over juice:

Dr. Taffy Wagner @moneyinmarriage, a mom of twins, has a little more strict approach to managing sugar:

@TheMommyChef suggested that you make your own homemade sweet treats with natural sugars and reduce the amount:

@mamahall offered an interesting formula to control how much candy the children get:

She also suggested to dilute sugary drinks with water when giving them to children on special occasions:

Registered Dietitian @MiltonStokes cautioned against too much control:

Bottom line: it is important to put some boundaries but not too many. I should add that there should not be a different set of rule for adults. As a parent, you have to be a role model and practice what you preach. We don’t drink soda in our household or while eating out – period.

What are your rules and tips for managing sugar for your child? Please leave a comment, I would love to hear from you!

Photo source – GlamourFood by suiker on Flickr via everystockphoto
©2009 Littlestomaks.com

Hello everyone! Seems like I still can’t let go of summer – this picture was so cute, I had to post it this week to remind us of summer fun on the beach. We did manage to get out a few times to the nearby beach, although my daughter refuses to step on the sand! She finds it too yucky – go figure!! Luckily both of our twins love the pool, so that is where we spent most of our summer this year.

It’s Friday, which means it’s time for another Five for Fridays! Here are 5 interesting nutrition stories of the week that caught my eye. Enjoy and drop a comment to let me know what’s on your mind.

Finally some guidance on daily sugar intake for Americans

I almost fell out of my chair when I read that Americans consume a whopping 22 teaspoons of sugar every day. That is about 355 calories, nearly 20% of the 2000 recommended daily caloric intake. I am sure you have noticed that on a typical nutritional facts label, there is no daily percentage for sugar content. This is because a daily limit has not been established, although there is good consensus on limiting the daily intake to less than 25% of total calories. As a result, it is very difficult for consumers to keep track of their daily sugar consumption. A while ago, I wrote about how to take the guesswork out of daily sugar to help set some boundaries and regulate the sugar intake.

Now, for the first time, the American Heart Association has come out with fairly clear guidelines on daily sugar which suggest that most women should limit it to less than 6 teaspoons and most men should limit it to 9 teaspoons. Note that these are still not official USDA recommendations, which I hope will follow soon. I think the breakfast cereal makers will respond first since their products tend to make heart-healthy claims although they contain a lot of sugar per serving. But I hope to see it change other food products as well. It is possible that this will drive the use of zero-calorie sweeteners in food products.

Ideas for packing a healthy lunch your kids will actually eat

My Twitter friend @RelevantMom alerted me to this article by the Associated Press which highlighted a few interesting school lunch box ideas from TV food stars Rachel Ray and Melissa d’Arabian. It is hard to resist the ready-to-go lunchables but they can end up costing a lot without providing good nutrition. Simple ideas like peanut butter, hummus, canned tuna, beans and lentils are good source of protein. You can mix them with breads, pitas and rice to create a quick and easy nutritious item. Add fruits and veggies selected by your child on the last grocery shopping trip to make sure he will actually have an interest in eating them. Get creative on snack ideas and skip the packaged snacks to save money. Their last tip is the best – add a loving note to the lunch box; it costs nothing but it can make your child feel special and loved when out of home in school where they might still not be very comfortable.

Share your tips for the school lunch box this back-to-school season. Here is what @themenumom suggested when I asked this question to my Twitter followers:

What has worked for you so far?

How normal is your eating?

Ever wonder if you practice normal eating? I can see you rolling your eyes and thinking “please, not another diet buzzword to make me feel guilty about my eating behavior”!

I was intrigued by a short note in the Well column of the New York Times by Tara Parker-Pope this week which asked this question. I am sure if you ask different people, they will come up with their own answer, and be quite sure that their eating preferences are perfectly normal. Turns out that the term normal eating was coined by famous dietitian Ellyn Satter. She explained that normal eating is when you “listen” to your body, eat when hungry and stop when full. Sounds simple and common sense. Except that we now seem to listen more to our tongue than to our stomach when it comes to eating. There are some who believe that the food industry has figured out how to rule the tongue by loads of salt, sugar, fat and other taste enhancing chemicals in processed foods. Self-control is lacking, especially when most family meals are consumed in front of the TV. We no longer have a sense of portion control. We try hard when we are motivated to go on a diet, only to give it all up and return to our old ways when things don’t work out the way expect. From this point of view, today’s normal eating is hardly normal the way nature intended it to be. I think it is about time we paid attention to it, especially when it comes to raising healthy children.

Functional food is nothing but dressed up junk food

That seems to be the opinion of many nutrition experts such as New York University’s Marion Nestle as cited by one of my favorite bloggers Dr. Ayala on her recent post “Are functional foods healthy foods?” I liked her article very much because she reminds us that with a little bit of right information, planning and effort you can prepare your own nutritious foods without having to waste money on these so called functional foods. It is easy to slap catchy slogans like low cholesterol, zero trans fats and fortified with brain-boosting omega-3′s without really changing the basic nature of the food inside the box. Sad truth is that such marketing works since such fortified functional foods deliver over $27 billion in sales each growing at up to 20% each year.

I am not personally against all processed foods. To our busy lives, they offer the convenience of immediate consumption although there is a cost to it. I do want to credit the food industry for many innovations that have made the modern life possible. I am not suggesting we turn the clock back by making all of our food from scratch. What I don’t like is that the industry at its heart is no longer concerned about the health of its consumers, rather the profit motive has become the main driver of innovation. Surely there are exceptions, which I hope will become the norm in future.

One Hungry Monkey and a dad committed to raising a healthy eater

I was finally able to finish reading a delightful book by Matthew Amster-Burton called Hungry Monkey! If you did not get a chance yet, check out my review of Hungry Monkey published this week. And let me know what you think.

Enjoy your weekend!

Photo source -sara.atkins on Flickr via everystockphoto
©2009 Littlestomaks.com