With a sinking feeling, I watched a cheerful and well-intentioned lady hand a line of 6-year-olds a snack after their 8 a.m. soccer game on a Saturday morning. Her choice? A six-pack of full-size Oreos for each tyke, in addition to the standard pouch of sugar water known as “juice.” The kids had barely woken up and jogged around the damp field!
As back-to-school season rolls around, lunchbox inspiration abounds, with cute bento boxes, innovative ideas, and accessories. Yet while school lunch is the usual subject of controversy and reform, the pervasive and pernicious snacking habit that afflicts us could also use reimagining.
American children are invited to eat snacks, often loaded with added sugar and food dye, from dawn until bedtime. Different school policies might curb schooltime snacks, but outside of school snacks are everywhere.
I’m not a registered dietician, nutritionist, or dietary expert. If you want official opinions from such credentialed experts, the internet offers many colorful examples of their wisdom. I would suggest, however, that our overreliance on perceived experts has contributed to a fundamental disconnect between what we eat and how we feel.
Think about it: It does not feel good to eat processed snacks all day. Why would we inflict such a lifestyle on our children?
Consider Reducing Packaged Snacks
If you suggest that children eat too many sugary snacks or that breakfast Oreos disturb you, many people will accuse you of instilling eating disorders in your children. It can be concerning when a parent
