European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 21, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 14 kids won t eat by Linda Lowe Morris the Baltimore Sun maybe you think you have exhausted every weapon you had in the Battle to get your kids to eat something that is Good for them. You have tried barter bribery blackmail coercion reverse psychology and still you can t get those precious Little Vitamin and Mineral packed morsels that you Laboured so Long Over Down into their stomachs. Now along come Michael Jacobson and Laura Hill authors of the new Book Kitchen fun for kids Henry Holt hardcover with a Radical plan you can persuade your kids to eat healthier food by teaching them How to Cook it. Quot if kids Are involved in cooking foods they re likelier to want to eat the foods Quot said Jacobson a nutrition advocate who is co founder and executive director of the Center for science in the Public interest in Washington. Quot they re less Likely to say a i done to want to eat vegetables if they be prepared them. They become friends with the  the authors wrote the Book after conversations among the staff at the Center indicated that not very Many children know their Way around a Kitchen. Quot we were concerned that cooking was becoming a lost a Quot he said. And because so Many families have both parents working these Days Quot there in t much time to introduce kids to cooking. Kids will just scream until they get to a fast food restaurant or pull a Box out of the Freezer and stick it in a microwave oven and think that a cooking. Quot children Are really brainwashed by to advertising in particular to want fast foods to want convenience foods All the packaged foods that generally Are not that healthy As Well As being More expensive Quot Jacobson said. Quot ads Tell kids that foods come in boxes or come from  but increasingly parents Are worried about this. Quot they think it s shameful that companies Are targeting their kids with ads for foods that Are bad for their kids health Quot he said. Quot it s really an invasion of the  parents Are fighting Back he said not Only by turning off the television sets but by working to get better foods into the schools by introducing their children to nutritious foods and by getting them involved in the Kitchen. Although the authors found a number of cookbooks for kids already in the bookstores they discovered upon Reading them closely that they were often filled with recipes that contained Large amounts of sugar and fats in them a things like cakes brownies and fudge for example. Their goal was not Only to teach children How to Cook but to also help them get accustomed to healthy ingredients. Quot but we also really try to suit kids tastes we did t expect them to want an austere  Jacobson suggests that parents and their children pick out a new food things like rutabagas or collard greens or some of the unusual fruits each time they re in try teaching them to Cook the grocery store. Quot if you select it at the grocery store and a then Cook it you re totally involved in the  what might Surprise adults preparing the foods with the children is Many of the recipes taste Bland. That was intentional Jacobson said because Many kids do not like spicy foods. Just a Little bit of spice is enough to turn them away from a food. But they encourage kids to gradually become adventuresome and add spices. The Book includes sections written for kids on Basic nutrition and on safety in the Kitchen. They include a list of Basic safety tips and encourage parents to go Over this list with their children. Quot As we were developing these recipes a chopping fruits and vegetables using a mixer sometimes turning on the oven to 400 degrees a we realized How dangerous a Kitchen can be Quot he said. Quot we Don t recommend giving this Book to a child for a birthday present and then turning the child Loose in the Kitchen. A child can get into a lot of trouble. Instead we urge parents to work closely with their children. And to really make it a joint Effort in preparing the  if children learn the basics of cooking and nutrition Jacobson believes they will be less Likely to succumb to the temptations of unhealthy foods. Quot if you Start on junk foods you re going to be accustomed to foods that Are Salty and Sweet and Greasy. But it could Start out  the self Reliance children gain from knowing their Way around a Kitchen will serve them Well throughout their lives he pointed out Quot adults who done to know How to Cook Are really dependent on the processed food Industry and restaurants to provide their food. But if As children you introduce them to cooking somewhere in the Back of their mind  remember it and be Able to Cook with much More Confidence As an adult. Quot like Riding a Bike. They learn How to ride a Bike they get a sense of balance. They May not ride a Bike for years but they could get Back on a Bike immediately and pick it up  for feeding children by the associated press Here Are Basic food groups and recommended daily Servings for children Ages 2-6. A kid sized serving is one fourth an adult portion or one tablespoonful for each year of age. A breads cereals Rice pasta six Servings. A vegetables two Servings. A fruits two Servings. A milk. Yogurt cheese three Servings. A meat poultry fish dry Beans eggs nuts two Servings. Here Are some tips for feeding children from the food marketing Institute the american Academy of paediatrics and the american dietetic association a eat healthfully yourself a buy Only the foods you want the child to eat. A follow the governments recommended dietary guidelines. A Don t worry if a child skips a meal. A let the child eat what he or she wants even it if is the same thing every meal As Long As it is wholesome. A have bread Rolls or fruit available at each meal so there Are choices that the child likes. A avoid pressuring the child to eat new foods. Attention to finicky eating habits reinforces them. A continue to introduce and reintroduce new foods Over time. Most children eventually try them. A give less than you think the child will eat. He or she will ask for More if hungry. A if traditional breakfasts Are shunned try a breakfast shake of blended Low fat milk fruit and ice a Frozen Yogurt bar Peanut butter on crackers or even leftover pasta. A for snacks try fresh fruit Cereal with Low fat milk bagels Graham crackers or raw vegetables. Healthy snacks must be convenient by Carrie White Cox news service snacks Arent incidental for growing children. They Are a fact of life. Quot if kids in Junior High never snacked i done to know How they would fill their nutritional needs Quot said Stephanie Campbell a registered school dietitian. Campbell does no to believe in snacks for snacks Sake but she goes for snacks that count one such snack is ants on a log that she once made for her kids. Those Are made by stuffing celery with Peanut butter and Topping it with raisins. Quot kids Are so inundated with unhealthy things Quot Campbell said charging that television is the big culprit. Making nutritional foods readily available though can combat some of that propaganda. Quot put out a bowl full of fruit instead of a Jar full of cookies Quot suggested Tammy Baker a dietitian with the Dairy Council of Arizona. Popcorn pretzels and fruit juice Are nutritious options to High fat foods such As potato chips ice Cream and gooey cookies she said. Baker also pointed out that parents Are a big influence on How a child eats and consequently snacks. Quot Twenty five percent of the children in this country Are obese Quot Baker said. That figure is significantly higher than in the past and Points not Only to bad eating habits but also to a Lack of exercise she said. Again television is a major Factor. Kids looks for foods that Are convenient and visible Quot Baker said. It s important then not just to have the right snack but to have it in the right location. Which Means in or on a cupboard that s easy to reach or on a Low refrigerator shelf Quot kids will say a there a nothing to eat in its not accessible a Baker said. Keeping dip and a Container full of Cut up vegetables on a Low shelf in the fridge is a Quick fix for those after school munchies. Quot i be always kept Yogurt around Quot Campbell said. Quot when they were younger i used to make a Popsicle out of Plain Yogurt and Frozen juice  when it came to a Sweet tooth she looked for cookies with some redeeming nutritional qualities such As Fig newtons Graham crackers or Ginger snaps. Shelf stable foods Are another afterschool option providing children can be trusted with a microwave. But Campbell noted that May of those foods have a High sodium Content. So read the Label. An individual s daily Salt intake should not exceed 4 Grams or 4,000 milligrams. Quot those fruit Roll ups Are promoted As fruit but they re really sugar Quot Campbell said. As for prepackaged drinks some of those Are just 10 percent fruit juice. Quot a lot of times children see foods As either Good or bad Quot Baker said. That response is taught. But Baker believes variety is More important. Quot you can make Good foods fun Quot Baker said. For sandwiches cutting out shapes from meats and cheese or painting faces on cottage cheese using raisins nuts or fruit Are just some examples of making food fun. Instead of ice Cream Yogurt Para to made with Granola and fruit Are another after school option. Plus they re appealing in appearance something you always have to be conscious of when getting children to eat. Other Good snack foods for children after school include a muffins and bagels these can be made ahead and stored in the Freezer then left on the counter to defrost during the Day. A soup a Good Choice if children Are of an age that they can use a microwave. A crackers and cheese portion control is important Here. If this is the snack of Choice you might want to leave a set number of crackers wrapped in foil on a counter and chunk the cheese leaving it covered on a Low shelf with the child s name on it. A Finger Gelatin Many recipes use Flavoured Gelatin which is High in sugar and Low in nutrients. Instead use in Flavoured Gelatin and replace cold water with unsweetened fruit juice concentrate. A Trail mix Combine raisins pretzels roasted peanuts and Sunflower seeds and store in cupboard in plastic Container. A fruit festival make a tropical fresh fruit bowl by mixing grapes and Cut up apples oranges and bananas. Grocery stores push healthy foods for children by Diane Duston the associated press Job. Pratt or. Makes a living off what is sold at his Oklahoma grocery stores but he s often appalled at what people buy from him a particularly what they a buy for their kids. Carbonated soda Salty snacks fatty foods. Quot i could see All this garbage that people were buying Anh giving to their children without thinking Quot he said. Pratt is no Ordinary grocer. He was trained to be a medical doctor. Although he dropped out of a medical residency in 1973 to work in the family business he a trying to incorporate what he Learned about the body with what he knows about food especially for children. He a not alone. Pratt foods is one of 50 supermarket companies in the United states participating in the food marketing Institute s new Quot healthy Start Quot Campaign for children Ages 2 to 6, designed in cooperation with the american Academy of paediatrics and the american dietetic association. Paul Bernish at Kroger s corporate Headquarters in Cincinnati Ohio who helped create the Fri program said the interest in child nutrition grew out of the Industry s involvement with food Banks and services for the poor. Quot we realized there was t a lot of information available for people interested in providing healthy meals for kids Quot he said. Cherryl Bell at Safeway s corporate Headquarters in Oakland Calif said her company was convinced of customer interest by the popularity of an Issue of the Giveaway Safeway Magazine devoted to child nutrition. Pratt says parents of 2-year-Olds should grab the Opportunity to establish nutritious eating habits. Quot when they get about 7 or 8, we have a problem Quot he said. Before Fri unveiled its Campaign last Spring Pratt already was offering especially healthy Box lunches for toddlers Grade schooners and Young teens. Since then his stores have added health food samples for kids brochures on nutrition and juice machines for customers who like to sip and shop. Quot i came out with my own shopping list that i attach to the brochures which a Mother can carry around with her in her pocket Quot he said. He also has a children s playroom with activity books that show the Basic food groups. He s been promoting the program with local paediatricians dietitians and schools. Next month hell Start publishing a newsletter on nutrition for children. Pratt says the reality of the grocery business is that to attract customers the Salty fatty Sweet snacks and beverages must be on the shelves. Quot we Are addicted to these foods Quot he said. Quot but if in a going to continue to sell fruit loops i can Point out the whole  sue Borra of Fri says flavor is still the top reason Consumers give for buying particular foods but More and More marketing will be directed at health and nutrition. It was not until recently that the health professionals agreed on what comprised a healthy diet basically less fat and More grains vegetables and fruits. The stars and stripes to january 21, 1992 the stars and stripes