As parents of young kids we naturally want the best for them. If this isn’t the case with you and your child stop reading this because I don’t want to be associated with you, I’ll hold.

Alright - We want the best; the best experiences, enrichment activities, friends, education, toys and wait for it….. FOOD. We want the best food for ourselves & our children.

“Like all great debates start, my wife & I recently watched a couple documentaries…. ”

I understand balance is key, such is everything in life, however I humbly believe the system is stacked against us and encourages all of us & by extension our kids to fail. 39.8% of Adults & 13.7 Million Children & Adolecense are obese, …..that is 13,700,000 kids (We know socio economic status, race & location, play a role in some of this conversation, that isn’t what this blog is focusing on). As a whole, we as adults can do better, we are not setting a good enough example for our youth, many of our school systems feed our kids garbage & most food within every aisle of every grocery store is complete empty calorie bull-shit.

Kids ‘added sugar’ intake is recommended to be about 25 grams of sugar / day. That allows for a single juice box (I’m generalizing), or bowl of cereal & cup of OJ in the morning, or 64% of a can of Coke. If I were a bettin’ man, which I sometimes am, I bet most kids consume more sugar than that. In some cases I would go as far as saying they consume so much more that their bodies aren’t given a chance to burn off that sugar (enter the obese population). For our kids, it's often not the classic argument of, ‘we need to be more active’ it is often a lack of education, resources, proper teachers & an industry of food encouraging otherwise.

Like all great debates start, my wife & I recently watched a couple documentaries….

I know, I know…. Take it with a grain of salt (or sugar) for what it’s worth. We watched, That Sugar Film & Fed Up, both films focusing on sugar in our diets, kids diets & the food industry as a whole. I highly recommend a watch. Both films shine a light on the shortcomings of the food we eat & feed our children.

After watching these films & dedicating an entire Wake. Dad. Drink Repeat. podcast to: Raising Kids on Sugar with a very special guest: Licensed Dietician/Nutritionist Karen Lacey MS, RD, LDN. I have come away with some settling points &:

Possibly Good Parenting Advice to Raising Kids on Sugar:

We Must Lead by Example:

If we don’t have ourselves under control and caring about what we eat, our kids won't succeed. Kids are sponges & are forming their habits & understandings each & everyday. If their teacher doesn’t walk the walk…. it’s harder to follow. There is always something inherently off with a dentist with messed up teeth or an out of shape personal trainer... maybe it’s just me.

Address the Food Habits Not One Package of Fruit Snacks:

Let’s be honest, sweets, desserts, fruit snacks, gummies, chocolate, cake, ice cream, pies, popsicles - are DELICIOUS. Telling your kids they should never eat any of this is setting them up to fail & develop an unhealthy relationship with food, you will end up with a confused kid and a kid that is missing out on some very tasty foods in life.

As Registered Dietitian/Nutritionist Karen Lacey said on our podcast, Raising Kids on Sugar “Food is just food, it has a caloric value & it has nutritional value, but it has no moral value”. Let kids pick out their ‘treat’ & let them know how special tasty treats are. They also need to know that they are treats and our bodies need healthy food to grow up big & strong.

There needs to be a solid pattern of good behavior to help them grow a better understanding of not only what ‘healthy food’ & ‘treat food’ is, but also develop self discipline & a better understanding as to why they should care.

“Kid’s are more likely to eat healthy foods if they help prepare it”

Off Track? Aim for Small Wins:

Guess what - all is not lost! We all slip up from time to time. Our goal should be aiming to be better tomorrow than we are today. Hell, that is what Wake. Dad. Drink. Repeat. is all about. If you are wondering, “How the hell did I get here with my kids food?” start focusing on small wins.

Acknowledge the detox phase - Sugar is addictive & triggers reward centers in our brain. It will take some grumpy arguments with your kids to make the transition. It doesn’t take long but know there is light at the end of the tunnel.
Start with the food in your kitchen - You are the gatekeeper for the food in your house. Are you wondering how to keep your kids from eating ‘X’, stop buying it! Need help starting? Remove 2 sugary snacks from the grocery list and replace it with 2 fruit or vegetables. Grow from there.
Keep veggies & fruits prepped, chopped and ready - If it is readily accessible it has a higher success rate. *Sounds obvious, but this works for adults too.
Know the proper portions & aim for less - My daughter LOVES fruit snacks…. so do I. I use to give her a pack after school & a pack with lunch…. (that’s 22g of sugar, fyi). Now I give her 6 pieces with lunch & that’s it. That is about 4g of sugar. She hasn’t even noticed the change.

Think about that… how many places can we do something like this. What a dis-sevice I was doing for my daughter, sigh… parent fail...

Picky Kids? -

Kids are more likely to eat healthy foods if they help prepare it - (paraphrasing the great Registered Dietitian/Nutritionist Karen Lacey.)

Have them help make healthy smoothies. Have them smash the buttons on the blender.
Pick out fruit & veggies to prep & cut to have ready for snacks
Mix trail mix together
Layer out an awesome fruit parfait together

Make it visually appealing. Tell your kids to make the most colorful plate they can of fruits & vegetables. Focusing on the visual appeal of the food presentation can be just the ticket to helping kids overcome the veggie fear.
Never stop introducing fruits & vegetables. You might be unsuccessful today but keep at it. Always have it on the plate and be happy with small victories.

“All-in-all let’s take a deep breath, aim to be better tomorrow & maybe I should just calm down & Wake. Dad. Drink. Repeat. ”

Maybe it’s because I’m a new dad, maybe it’s because I saw two documentaries, maybe I worry for when my kids enter the school system, maybe it’s because talking about & ‘Defining Today’s Dad’ is what we do here at Wake. Dad. Drink. Repeat. ….I don’t know. But I do know, in a time when life expectancy is actually decreasing & we as a society are becoming more sedentary we should care more than we do. So let’s all agree to take a deep look at our practices, think about how & where we can do better. Not only for us but our kids as well.

All-in-all let’s take a deep breath, aim to be better tomorrow & maybe I should just calm down & Wake. Dad. Drink. Repeat.

Michael saying good-bye for now…

Wake. Dad. Drink. Repeat.