Mommy, Why Am I Fat?

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Tuesday, November 3, 2009

filed under: kid logic

"Three kids' meals, one with milk, one with Sprite, and one with a vanilla milkshake and a medium coffee with cream and sugar."

Michelle Kemper Brownlow: A 3:30 school pickup is our norm on Tuesdays. We drive 25 minutes to gymnastics at 4:00, and in an hour, head back to where we started for hip-hop at 5:30. That leaves us roughly 10 minutes to squeeze in dinner before my youngest has to be at soccer. It's a no-brainer, right? FAST FOOD!

According to most health officials, we should not be eating fast food more than once a month! Yes, ONCE a month! In 2004, Morgan Spurlock introduced startling facts about fast food in his documentary, aptly named "Super Size Me."

Four facts I learned from Spurlock ring in my head each time I say the words, "kid's meal":

• French fries are the most eaten vegetable in America
• Only seven items on McDonald's entire menu contain no sugar
• Surgeon General David Satcher: "Fast food is a major contributor to the obesity epidemic."

And the one that should make all of us think twice next time we pull into the drive-through lane:

• The combination of sugar, fat, and salt in the brains of lab rats reacts the same as it does to heroin or morphine. And we wonder why our kids beg and plead for fries and a soda. They are addicted, and we are their pushers.

Of course, I am in NO WAY suggesting that no one ever eat another cheeseburger or fry, but shouldn't we, as our kids' advocates, be teaching them the practice of moderation?

It takes more time to pack a sandwich, an apple, and a juice box (100% juice) every Tuesday, but I'm doing it for the health of my kids. Won't you?

Michelle Kemper Brownlow is a freelance parenting writer, artist and popular mommy blogger who holds nothing back at My Semblance of Sanity. Michelle's unique but gentle parenting insight paired with her quirky sense of humor works to her benefit as she writes and illustrates children's picture books.

filed under: kid logic

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ok…i don’t want to come across as a sancti-mommy, but we never eat fast food. honestly never- it just repulses me, i can’t stand the site or smell of it, and i certainly don’t want my children to develop a taste for it. what struck me the most about this article was the over-scheduling of your children. maybe you were being hyperbolic for dramatic effect, but why do they have so many activities? if they are so over-programmed that they don’t have the time to sit down and eat a healthy meal, perhaps you should consider cutting out a few things. kids need and deserve down-time to!

- jennifer angstmom.com

Posted 11/03/09 06:58 AM

It can be done, you just have to know what you are buying. We go to the fast food places all the time due to our hectic schedule. The kids can order a grilled chicken sandwich without mayo, a side of apples (can’t get them to appreciate side salads yet- oh well no one is perfect) and milk or water. Or another option that we do almost weekly is Subway. They get turkey 6 inch subs and they are healthy and delicious. I know it’s easy for people to make excuses due to their busy lifestyles but there are solutions if you just look for them. My kids know that is what they get to order and they learn to deal with it. They still get their cheeseburgers on occasion because treats are fun but just not weekly.

- Anonymous

Posted 11/03/09 07:01 AM

Fast food rears it’s ugly food yet again… Hectic schedules are no excuse for eating poorly in my mind. Mike

- Michael - Fat Loss Tips

Posted 11/03/09 09:28 AM

fast food = beefwagons

- Anonymous

Posted 11/03/09 09:41 PM

Why do I always see these entries with lines like “I am NOT SAYING never to eat fast food…”. Why not? Why can’t you say that? Are we afraid of the backlash? You know the crap is bad for us, so why sugar coat it? No, you should never eat fast food. Period. We need to stop coddling everyone. It leads to fat kids and adults, diabetes, heart disease and a premature death.

- WaterlooMike

Posted 11/04/09 03:27 AM

I love fast food and eat it all the time.

- HeeHee

Posted 11/04/09 08:50 AM

This is a great article. I’m all for bringing these bad habits into the public eye for scrutiny.

- hunuLola

Posted 11/12/09 08:25 PM