To all of you with young children please start feeding them minimally processed foods, have them drink water, and cut out most sugar now before they get addicted to it!

My teenaged daughters are having a heck of a time trying to cut out the sugar, but since I've been calling it [sugar] "poison" for the past year they are really trying. I can't get my oldest to touch plain water (she drinks sugarfree kool-aid). Luckily, they eat salads and most veggies. They love the LC salad dressings that have hit the markets.

For mac 'n cheese I make it homemade with lots of cheddar and reduced carb macaroni (dreamfield's tastes like the real thing, mueller's isn't bad), everybody will eat that. My kids love to make slushies in the blender with a packet of unsweetened kool-aid, a cup of splenda, ice, and water. They will make and eat sugar free pudding made with cream for a sweet.

I'm hoping if I keep commenting on how unhealthy sugar and processed goodies are, they will eventually get the message. I know they are trying. It's not too late, it's just much more difficult on them to change their bad habits when they're older.

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Karen
147/135 LF
135/127/117 LC

hmmm. interesting thread. i don't have any little ones anymore, but have two teens at home right now.

oldest teen just gave in and started lc'ing with me. it annoyed her that i now weighed less than here and when dh lost some pounds, she became the "heaviest person in the house." i personally would have never thought of that distinction, but that's probably because i had it tied up for so many years!

younger teen, getting ready to hit 15...well, she seems to think ice cream is one of the major food groups and she calls this lc stuff a "cult." she is somewhat overweight, but not horribly (as in the two of us are pretty close in size right now, but she still refuses to lend me clothes. ha!)

now, i have mixed feelings about this. while i would love for her to have the benefits of lc completely, i also remember being an overweight teen, and EXACTLY what it felt like when my mom tried to push me into addressing it. ugh! she is VERY independent and i believe this totally has to be a decision she makes for herself. as in if i try to push it too hard, she's gonna just buck up and go the other way. she's seen me lose 80+, her sister lose 55+, and her father lose 25+. she's surrounded by good examples and i've made it clear that when she decides to address weight issues, i'll support her every way i can. she is a lot like me--too much, really--and i know that this totally has to be when she is ready and not a moment before. pushing wouldn't have worked for me, and i know it won't work for her, either.

that having been said, well...i don't get too many of those high-carb junk foodies that she loved to live on before! i do get a few items that she likes each week, and she can either budget them throughout the week or eat them all up quickly and then live lc the rest of the week. she often ends up with the latter... she's probably lost 5-10lbs since we've started, just because our fridge is no longer a shrine to little debbie...she eats the same dinners the rest of us do because i won't make the carby stuff anyway. she even skips the bread when i make burgers...so it's slowly taking a little hold. i'm hoping for more, but giving her plenty of space, because i know she needs it.

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EatSmart Nutritional Scale Review

my son had to go on an lc program when he was 7 because of blood sugar problems. Since then he has stopped taking allergy shots, he's rarely sick, he's growing very healthfully, his teeth are strong, no cavities, he is amazingly bright and doesn't sleep till noon every day like his other 14 year old friends. He's usually up and at 'em around 7:00, fully rested and ready for the day.

He is not as diligent as he used to be about reading labels but like yesterday, he made the comment that he felt heavier and not as rested and that he knew he needed to get back in line with the low carbing. The dr. says keep it going, his blood work is excellent, his health is outstanding.

I think more kids would benefit greatly from lc'ing.

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"The future of life on earth depends on seeing the sacred where others see only the common."
- John Denver, 1991

Goddess...LOL, LOL, LOL! I know Little Debbie VERY well! I'm trying to get DH to STOP BUYING HER for DS's lunches!! AAack!

Great advice everyone. I wish I would have started LC when my two kiddos were younger and more impressionable.

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Suzanne (Atkins - 1/9/04)
195/168/145

Goddess and Angel, my hat's off to you. Goddess, I think your DS will come around eventually and remember, the groundwork you are laying now will come back to her when she's able to make more adult decisions for herself. If she ever gets sick and tired of herself being overweight, she'll come over to your side I'm sure!!!!!

Angel, that is such a great testimonial to how beneficial feeding our kids healthily is. GOOD GOING!!!!!

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Well, I can't make a recommendation based on the way I feed my kids cause I don't exactly have them eating the best way in the world. I do however think that kids would be just fine without so many sugars and starches. Of course they could not follow atkins the way we do because their little brains need more carbs to grow and develop. I have 3 children. My oldest being a 6 year old daughter, which is the one I am most concerned about. I also have an almost 3 year old girl, and a 13 month old boy. My oldest daughter is starting down the same road I did as a child also. She constantly wants sweets and junk. Anything with a cartoon character on it appeals to her. She is starting first grade in a little over a week. She is about 49 inches and weighs 50 pounds. She is not fat, but she is not as slim as she was not too long ago. She weighs more then she should. My concern stems from the fact that she is rarely with me. My mother has pretty much completely taken over her. She leaves in the day with my mom, and does not come back till night. I hear about the things she eats when she is gone and cannot help but be concerned. Waffles with very high sugar syrup, candy at the gas station, happy meals, root beer, cookies. Nothing but junk. Kinda brings back memories actually, of when I was a kid. My mother at alot of sweets and junk when we were growing up. We definately were not deprived of it though. We were allowed to have it when she did. She would hide food in the bedroom so she can eat it in the night. She had a weight problem then, but now does not. Unfortunately those eating habits stuck with my sister and I and we were both overweight kids, and that caused us to be overweight adults. I don't want that for my daughter. I have cut back alot on buying junk when I grocery shop. I do not buy popsicles, ice cream, cookies, or anything like that anymore for my kids. I buy cereal for them but not the high sugar kind. My mom goes to the store and buys them tv dinners, high sugar cereal, cookies, candy, etc. I tell her they can't have it and she still buys it. Like I tell her I want my daughter to stay home with me and she still takes her. She feels that she can still tell me the way it's gonna be, and I am married, have 3 children, and I'm 24. My husband also has juvenile diabetes which my kids are at risk of getting. I had pre diabetes before atkins also. I don't want my kids getting this diseases. My daughter seems to be hungry ALL the time too. She wants to eat an hour after dinner. She tells me she's a growing kid and needs to eat. She tells me I have to feed my hungry kid. She makes me feel guilty so that I will let her eat more. She actually does waste alot of stuff she asks for though. I think alot of her need to eat is just boredom. She seems to want to eat when she is just sitting there doing nothing. Still, that's not a good habit to have. That's how I got fat. I wasn't involved in anything as a child. No sports or dance. Nothing at all. In the summers as I child, I would sit home, eat, and sleep. I want better for my kids. If you get your child's habits changed, let me know how you did it.

Mystical

A pound an inch in height is as a rule normal for a child until the get to around 9 or 10. If you want your child busy--don't turn the TV on--play with them--take them to the park, out for walks, read books together, get on your hands and knees and chase them like a bear (DD used to love to be chased). There are things you can do without sitting still and things like games and puzzles that keep young minds busy and stimulate the intelligence without being "boredom causers". There are ways to keep your mother from taking your daughter out of the house every day all day long. . .but you have to be firm and occasionally you have to be blunt about hwat you want. If that doesn't work there are other avenues that will work--if you tell her "NO" and she leaves the house with her anyway it is kidnapping--even though you know she is planning to bring her back. . .but you have to put your foot down and refuse to let it happen. You are an adult and have the right to raise your child in the way you see fit, not the way mom sees fit. I don't know if that makes any sense or not, but that is how I see it.

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Lori

232/190/130
My other journal http://www.lowcarbeating.com/bb/showthread.php?t=1130

Mystical, I agree. You are that child's mother and you are the ONLY one who can make decisions for her. I love my mother dearly, but I would not permit her to see my children if she pulled stunts like that until she decided to respect me and the decisions I make for my children. Sorry to be so harsh, but she is treating you in an unacceptable manner.

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Jen



179/179/120

mystical-it sounds like it's much less an issue of your choices for what your kids eat that some issues with your mom that are causing problems. it also sounds like you don't feel like you have much control over what goes on there and that your mom undermines your efforts to feed your daughter in a healthy way...i am not surprised you're concerned about history repeating itself. i would be, too.

while i've no doubt it's a complicated issue and beyond the scope of on online lc support board, i would really encouarge you to look into getting some support in addressing these issues with your mom and/or finding ways to deal that you feel good about. it's been my experience that these sort of complicated family dynamics don't tend to dissovle without effort and sometimes help, and it sounds as if this is an ongoing source of stress for you.

beyond weightloss, take care of yourself and your needs! it makes everything so much easier! good luck to you.

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EatSmart Nutritional Scale Review

Thanks to all for your support and advice. My mother just has her ways of getting wat she wants. She begs and pleads, then if that don't work, she gets mad and starts yelling. See, she lives with me because she has nowhere else to go. She has very little income and cannot afford a place of her own. I have a 2 bedroom with 3 kids, my husband, and my mom. Therefore, my mom sleeps in my daughters room and we have 2 kids in our room. When my mother wakes in the morning, my daughter does too. My mother leaves and takes my daughter because she wakes up. She will call me later after she has left and tell me she took her, as if I hadn't noticed. It's an ongoing problem that has gotten much worse over the past year. My husband hates it too. He gets very angry with these things. My mom does not care. I have confronted her many times about it and she says " I never talked to my mom that way or treated her that way". She says I shouldn't back talk her or tell her what to do. I think I should though, when it comes to my house and my kids. She is just on a pitty trip though every since she got sick last december. She was hospitalized in ICU for a long time. She has some kind of immune disorder, or bone marrow disorder. She has a very weak immune system and gets sick real easy. Thats no excuse though, to treat me like I have no say in my own childs life. Or to try and take over my daughter. Anyway, thanks for your support.

Yep, you hit the nail on the head. It's YOUR house, YOUR children, YOUR life. I think it's very kind of you to have her living with you and she could show some kind of gratitude. (Respect goes both ways.) And afterall, you are an adult now and can look at the way you grew up and see some things that you don't want to impose on your own children. I can relate entirely to the grip our parents have on us into our adult lives. But I'll tell you, the day I confronted my father about how abusive he was to me, well, that was just the most liberating thing I have ever done in my life. It was very tough to do, but it freed me to be mostly adultlike from that point on. I no longer made decisions based on how my father would react. I no longer needed his approval. I needed to live my life the way I needed to. And you need to raise your children the way you need to. And if giving them the gift of better health is what you want to do, then I would find a way to do it, as difficult as it may be. (even if it hurts her feelings for awhile.) My MIL used to feed my DH's kids all kinds of cookies and garbage. DH had to tell her to STOP it because he would have to go home with a kid that was bouncing off the walls, literally. She stopped. She didn't like it, but she got over it.

Sometimes it takes all the strength in the world to confront our own parents, but it doesn't kill you, it makes you stronger. (Trust me, I know!!!!!)

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Had to chime in here because I've been thinking about this topic myself...

My DS turns 2 on Wednesday, and without prompting from me or DH, he's put himself on his own funny version of LC. I will allow him to have pasta or rice or bread (always whole wheat), crackers, etc... in moderation. But what does he want for a snack when he's hungry? Meat, cheese, apples, raisins, peanut butter. (Today he "needed" for me to buy broccoli at the store, and ate two sticks before we got to the checkout... thankfully it was priced by the stalk, not pound ) I can make a sandwich, but he disassembles it and eats the insides only. He doesn't like potatoes, but will eat an occasional french fry. (Thank goodness Mickey D's and Wendy's are finally offering fruit as an option... he'll take an apple over a fry any day, and again, will eat the insides of a cheeseburger, but not the bun).

So, what's going on here? Is it that he sees what DH and I are eating and leans toward eating like us, or is it that he just finds the LC WOE tastier? Either way, I'm glad he's doing it. And I will still offer him carbohydrates, because children do need them, however, they will be the whole grain, whole wheat, good variety.

Now, just to prove we're not perfect, he does get his "Pooh snacks" (fruit snacks in the shape of of Pooh characters), but not more than 1 package a day, and often only a couple of times a week. (Had to find a way to appease him when he wanted more of his gummy bear vitamins.) But I just look at it as a way to teach him how to have a treat occasionally, and learn that that is how treats are supposed to be consumed - which is why they're called 'treats' and not 'regulars.'

I'm sure it's really difficult for those of you with schoo-age children, since the grocery stores are loaded with pre-packaged, processed, easy-to-pack-a-lunch food aimed at children. I bet they must ask for it, and their friends at school probably get it in their lunch too. So I think we just need to stick to our LC guns and continue to teach our children what is healthy to eat by continuing to re-educate ourselves on healthy eating, being an example, and not giving in to what they think they want.

If I can keep my son from having to deal with weight issues like his father and I have had to do, I will have done him a great service.

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Mada
221.6/193.8 <--- ONEderland! /sz 8

Mada, that is awesome. And if you can keep that going in him until he reaches school-age, maybe he won't succumb to peer pressure.

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My daughters are 11 and 12. The youngest raves carrots and chicken while the oldest is a junk food junky. Go figure that the youngest is slim while the oldest struggles with her weight. The culprit......................Nana. My mother watched the children while I worked. The oldest was her eating buddy. Irregardless of how many concerns I expressed she continued to "FEED HER UP". As my daughter got older she was teased unmercifully in school. Kids are cruel. She finally began to tell Nana "NO", she didn't want the junk. She asked for help.

The turning point for my daughter as well as my mother came at my nieces communion. My daughter was well aware of what she was and was not supposed to eat. After she chose her foods of chicken, a small salad, and some veggies..........my mother proceeded to fill her plate with pastas and sweets telling her, "Mom isn't here to tell you no." My daughter came home in tears. I chose to confront my mother with her own weight issues as well as my concern over forcing food on my daughter.

The agreement was I would do all of the cooking for a week and she would agree to NOT question the food I provided. It must have worked as my mother lost 8 pounds the first week, my father 3, my daughter 4. It made believers of both parents and they began my eating practice as well.

I am glad to say to date my mother has lost 110 lbs, my father 45, my husband 40, but most importantly my daughter 46. Instead of her crying over being teased by other children, not fitting in the "COOL" clothes, being embarassed.............she is now happier, healthier, secure, and with a much higher self-esteem. It is never too soon to begin heallthy eating practices. It may save your child a lot of heartache.

best. story. EVER!

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~~funkynut

started: 1/8/04
263/223/150 (5'6)
223/223/210 ~ halloween challenge
223/223/205 ~ thanksgiving challenge