Have we lost control of what our children eat?

[Demi]

The Telegraph
London, UK
10 April, 2008


Have we lost control of what our children eat?

Telegraph Speaker's Corner


The Government's food watchdog wants to ban six artificial food colourings (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/04/10/nfood110.xml) that have been linked to hyperactivity in children.

The Food Standards Agency is considering the ban after researchers from the University of Southampton found that the E numbers may be as harmful to children's development as leaded petrol (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/04/07/nfood107.xml).

Do you worry that additives in many foods may be harmful? Do you find it difficult to keep track of what your children eat?

Or do you think food scares frighten people unnecessarily? Are most foods OK as long as they are consumed in moderation?

Have we lost control of what our children eat?


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[costello22]

Do you worry that additives in many foods may be harmful?

Yes. Most of the processed foods available in the supermarket aren't really "food" at all. And everything has sugar/HFCS added now.

Do you find it difficult to keep track of what your children eat?

Impossible.

I have two sons, ages 23 and 16. Of course, the older is on his own, and thank heaven he seems to be conscious of what he eats. He avoids caffeine, sugar, and refined flours.

The younger eats breakfast and lunch at school on week days and dinner four nights a week at the fast food place where he works. At home he eats pretty much what I eat - which is low-carb.

Or do you think food scares frighten people unnecessarily?

Ironically, people seem to be afraid of real food - and turn to processed food as a safe alternative. My workplace provides a monthly newsletter with healthy lifestyle suggestions. The recipes make me shudder.

Are most foods OK as long as they are consumed in moderation?

Maybe. I think if I'd eaten less of the highly refined and easily digested carbs I've been living on my whole life, I might have delayed or lessened the effects on my body. But ultimately they'd have caught up with me. Possibly if I'd limited my intake of these foods to once in a blue moon, they'd have been ok for me.

Have we lost control of what our children eat?

Yes.

[ruthla]

My family has been on the Feingold Program for over 3 years. We all know darn well how artificial additives make us feel- so we don't eat them!

I have most certainly NOT "lost control" over what my kids eat- although I'd hardly set out to "control" anything about my teenager's life. Instead I offer her guidance and trust her to make healthy choices (and most of the time she does.)