Q&A
Ultraprocessed Food Is Linked to Obesity and Disease — So Why Are We Feeding It to Our Kids?
Talking to Bettina Elias Siegel, author of ‘Kid Food’
As a parent of two children, aged 6 and 10, I can say this without hesitation: My kids are always hungry. Whether they ate 10 minutes ago or two hours ago, their bodies seem to physically ache for food.
And that means I am always feeding them. When I pick them up from school, I try to bring healthy snacks — a banana, sliced apples, some pretzels and hummus. But I’m not always near a fruit market or a kitchen to make something. So I grab some Pirate’s Booty (not a real food), Veggie Stix (there are few veggies in there), or a granola bar that I know is mostly sugar. They’re fed and happy; I am guilt-wrecked.
At restaurants, when my son wants the grilled cheese off the kids’ menu with fries and a sugary drink, I relent. I don’t want drama, and I don’t want to spend money on food he will waste. So he gets the kids meal, and I shovel a little more guilt onto my plate.
Bettina Elias Siegel gets it. The author of the essential and thoughtful new book, “Kid Food: The Challenge of Feeding Children in a Highly Processed World,” Siegel is a former lawyer and mother of two who became a journalist and took…
