Many parents struggle to get their kids eating right and many lean on prepackaged foods to get the job done.
But there’s new evidence that not all foods marketed for toddlers are actually good for them.
The Washington Post’s Laura Reiley warns parents to be careful of foods that may be getting kids hooked on sugar, salt and fat.
“It’s a phenomenon that’s happened because around the world, breast feeding is on the rise. A lot of the companies that make formula and baby foods have needed to find new markets, and that market is toddlers,” Reiley told WTOP. “Frequently, those foods are really front-loaded with sugar.”
She added that a lot of times the packaging may indicate a food is loaded with vegetables, such as kale, while it’s packed with sugars coming in the form of naturally-derived fructose, which can take the form of several different fruit purees.
“Because we’re such a convenient-food culture now, we have a tendency to hand a prepackaged snack into the back seat that’s essentially Cheetos for toddlers — or gummy snacks that are largely not about fruit, but about sugar,” Reiley said.
Some companies are taking a different approach and offering foods that are truly higher in vegetables. But those foods come at a price, Reiley said, and not everyone can afford them.
“Your culinary voyage is done by the time you turn 18 months old and you’ve already cemented your tastes for fat, salt sugar,” Reiley added.
