Kids & Company Blog

Stopping the Sweet Tooth

The Kidco Kitchen philosophy includes no added sugars in any of our delicious meals, this is because we know the importance of stopping a sweet tooth from developing at a young age. Added sugar in baby’s diet sets them on a path to a lifetime of overeating, because the earlier your palate acquires the taste for sugar the more it’s going to want it!  Processed sugar (all sugar not found naturally in fruit) is sugar that has been stripped of its fibre causing our body to digest it much more quickly than in its natural form.  The daily sugar recommendations is no more than 4 teaspoons a day for preschoolers and about 4-6 teaspoons a day for children 4-8. To help put this in perspective, one 12 oz. Tropicana orange juice has 8.25 teaspoons!

 

We all have a sweet tooth because we are biologically programmed to like glucose! This is why those red velvet cupcakes look so mouth-watering through the store window…. However, by limiting your baby’s sugar at a young age you are greatly reducing their palates affinity towards high sugar foods. Excess sugar suppresses the natural hormones that tell our bodies when we’ve eaten enough, a key regulatory system in avoiding obesity, diabetes and other weight related diseases.  The problem is that the current food market makes it extremely difficult to avoid sugars, there are over 56 food label names out there just for sugar!

Although sugar is everywhere, there are ways to avoid sugar for you and your little one. Drinks are enemy number one! As you read above even the healthiest of juices are packed with sugar, try to stick to milk and water for your little one. Read food labels CAREFULLY. If there is an ingredient that you do not know take a moment to look it up on your smart phone when you’re at the grocery store, there is a good chance it is sugar! If your little one is craving something sweet try giving them fresh fruits such as strawberries and blueberries or sweeter vegetables such as snap peas and carrots. These foods contain healthy sugars and are packed with vitamins! Try the Kidco Kitchen Monkey Pudding next time you are craving something sweet, it has no added sugars and the bananas give it a naturally sweet flavour!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kidco Kitchen Monkey Pudding

*Makes 6 portions

 

 

What you need:

-       1 ½ cup mashed bananas

-       3 cup unsweetened applesauce

-       1 ½ cup plain yogurt

 

What to do:

1. Be sure to wash your hands before you begin.

2.  Peel bananas and mash in bowls.

3.  Mix in applesauce and yogurt.

4.  Enjoy!

 

Cheers,

Chef Lisa Ruscica

Chief Food Ambassador

 

Posted on: Wednesday September 10th, 2014

Posted by: Lisa Ruscica