Kids and Paleo

So, I often get asked how in the world I have gotten my daughter Hannah to "eat the way I do." I always chuckle a litte inside when I hear this and more times than not my answer to them will be, "oh, you mean REAL food?" No disrespect meant, but really, that is what I eat! Real food.
After cleaning up my own diet and doing tons of research in the process I knew that the next hurdle was getting my family on board. My main focus became Hannah's diet and what I could do as a parent to make it better. I started by talking to her about why we should avoid certain foods and what havoc they can cause to our bodies. At first she was mainly focused on the fact that the Eggo waffles were no longer in the freezer. I compromised and bought the Gluten Free ones knowing they taste like crap and thankfully she thought so too. I slowly (read 2 years) began ridding our pantry of items that I would NOT compromise on. Such as ANYTHING with high fructose corn syrup and partially hydrogenated oils (trans fat.) This is just a major deal breaker for me. The few times she does go to the grocery store with me she won't even think about asking for a particular item until she has turned the package over and read the ingredients. Even if it doesn't contain one of those two things if it has more than 5-6 ingredients she knows the chances are slim that I'll approve it cart worthy!
Now, all that being said, I would like to point out that Hannah DOES get to have food that is not Tara approved nor Paleo. I am not a complete jerk:) However we TALK about when these times are going to occur and what our choices should be leading up to "hopping off the paleo wagon." For example, we had a graduation party last weekend and I was not about to tell my daughter she could not have a piece of cake. So, I let her know ahead of time that she could certainly have some cake (one piece!) but because she was going to be eating cake I was very strict with her choices leading up to the party. This was an excellent compromise in her eyes.

My goal with her has been to not take ALL the bad stuff out of her diet but to teach her there are better, and more times than not tastier, choices. Lately we have had some very in depth talks about some of the issues associated with the consumption of grains and dairy. I have found a way to explain it to her in terms that she can understand. I guess I just feel strongly that it is our job as parents to educate our children on good food choices. I do not let Hannah tell me what time she goes to bed or when she will study or practice her guitar. Those are rules that I set. Why on earth would I let HER determine what foods I will purchase for her? I mean we put our kids to bed at a certain time because WE know they need plenty of sleep. We make them do their homework because WE know that it must get done. We make them practice their instruments because WE know practice makes perfect:) Why then do some parents let children dictate what ends up in the grocery cart, and ultimately in their little bodies? Many times I have heard parents say, "oh I do not know what little Johnnie would do with out his"...(insert crappy processed breakfast food choice here!) Ummm, guess what? Little Johnnie will learn to eat real food when you make the decision to buy it and prepare it for him. I am sure some will be offended by my post but I really cannot help that. The truth is we know more now. Just as you have control over whether or not your child wears a helmet when he rides his bike you also have control over what food you choose to let him/her eat. It really is that simple.