Preschoolers Don't Need Special Foods

Companies that sell baby food have a problem, babies quickly grow up into wobblers, toddlers and pre-schoolers. This means that baby food companies constantly need to find new customers. You may have noticed that they are working on solving this problem by introducing snack and entree meals just for very young children. Gerbers has Graduates for Toddler (finger foods) and are now introducing Graduates for Preschoolers. These are similar to Karft's Lunchable Juniors.

The only thing these foods have going for them is convenience, but the cost to you, your child and the environment is tremendous. These convenince foods cost way more than the same foods you slice and dice yourself and the packaging cost are probably higher than the food costs. Don't be fooled by suggestions of nutrtition, a slice of fruit is always healthier than dried fruit leather. These meals and snacks are also high in sodium and low on fiber. After age one, children can eat a wide variety of foods, preschoolers (after age 3) can eat just about any food that a school age child eats. They don't need "special foods"-- especially ones that are not nutritious.

Don't let these and other companies fool you into trying and buying their products. Do you know what the Nestle's senior vice-president for infant nutrition said about you "Once we make the consumer need apparent, mothers will understand it." (Business Week, 8/18/08) They admit that they are trying to create a need, dont' fall for it and become addicted.

Get the answers you really need from a regiestered dietitcian and mother, at my website and in my book "Simple and Savvy Stragegies for Creating Healthy Eaters. (http://www.creatinghealthyeater.com/)