“Children used to come home, change into play clothes and go outside and play with other children,” said Joanne Ikeda, a nutritionist emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. “There were not snack machines, and the gas stations only sold gas. Now there are just so many more opportunities to snack and so many activities after school to have snacks.”
--
I do not find the statement to be 100% true or even 100% false. As a young girl I know that I certainly ate less than my cousins who were boys, and even now as a mom I am aware that my 9 year old son eats more than I did at his age. It seems to depend on the child and also what the snack is that is being offered. Offering a child a brownie or a cookie every afternoon as an after school snack is definitley different than offering them a banana or a cup of yogurt. Let's face it, food is everywhere today, good or bad its here. Its up to us as parents to sensor what our kids are eating just like we should sensor what they are watching on TV. Bad guy fighting movies or PBS educational shows? A bag of potato chips or a bag of sliced apples? Its up to us to make sure their bodies are fed good snacks; having a snack is not a bad thing, its what they eat which makes it a bad thing.
If you're interested in reading the rest of the article you can find it here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/20/dining/20gusti.html?hp
No comments:
Post a Comment