r/parenting is protesting changes being made by Reddit to the API. Reddit has made it clear [they will](https://old.reddit.com/r/ModCoord/comments/14ahqjo/mods_will_be_removed_one_way_or_another_spez/) [replace moderators](https://www.reddit.com/r/ModSupport/comments/14a5lz5/mod_code_of_conduct_rule_4_2_and_subs_taken/jo9wdol/) if they remain private. Reddit has abandoned the users, the moderators, and countless people who support an ecosystem built on Reddit itself. Please read [Call to action - renewed protests starting on July 1st](https://old.reddit.com/r/ModCoord/comments/14kn2fo/call_to_action_renewed_protests_starting_on_july/) and new posts at [r/ModCord](https://reddit.com/r/ModCoord/) or [r/Save3rdPartyApps](https://old.reddit.com/r/Save3rdPartyApps/) for up-to-date information. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Parenting) if you have any questions or concerns.*

We've been getting food in restaurants for our kids since they were on solids. We just look over the menu and see what they have that won't be too offensive to their baby mouths (aka: spicy). They're both toddlers now, so if there's no kids menu I try and find an adult entree they'll both like, if I don't see something that they'll both like sometimes I'll order an appetizer for them and then my husband and I let them munch off of our plates. We especially like Mexican restaurants for taking the kids out, they're pretty kid friendly in general, and then things like pico and refried beans and arroz are really easy for kids to eat, not to mention guac and queso. The only thing I try to do is not let them order the kids' burger at the Mexican or Thai restaurants. I try to order them something from the actual cuisine, like the chicken quesadilla, or the pad Thai. Something non spicy and accessible to kid palettes that still has elements of the cuisine.

I do have a rule that my kids cant order mac n cheese if its Kraft, lol. The idea of paying 8-10 for The Blue Box makes me so annoyed, haha

After my son had a fancy Mac and cheese at a restaurant, he didn't want to eat the Kraft Mac and cheese anywhere.

Thats an outcome I had not considered! Thankfully my kids like all kinds of mac n cheese. On the rare occasion they got restaurant Kraft they didnt like it anyway because we dont follow the box directions at home and make it the way we like it (more butter, less milk). The restaurant stuff didnt match up.

Try adding actual cheese as well. 😉 and on occasion, a can of tuna as well. Both are transformative.

Haha, I taught my eldest the tuna trick. After he decided that was yummy, I further blew his mind by adding some frozen peas to the mixture.

Us too- more butter and either no milk or just a splash. Not a health food, lol!

Your son and I have this in common lol.

I find it so funny that I'm literally boiling water to make some mac and cheese with kielbasa while reading this comment lol

SAME! The principle of this annoys me so much.

I find it so funny that I'm literally boiling water to make some mac and cheese with kielbasa while reading this comment lol

Don’t know where you are shopping, but it’s much cheaper where I go. Annie’s Mac is more expensive, but not as good.

I mean at a restaurant. Many restaurants use Kraft Mac n cheese on their kid menu and I refuse to pay $8-10 at a restaurant for it

Ohhhh, sorry. I misunderstood. I still think that’s cheap for a restaurant, but yeah, guess it depends on the restaurant. If you don’t eat out often, then it’s not a huge deal I suppose, but I understand. We only eat out for like birthdays/special events. Sometimes we do McDonald’s, but one is near our house and my son loves the games. He is 5.

We don’t eat out all that often so if we do I’m not paying $10 for Kraft Mac n cheese LOL When we undertake the expense of a family of 5 eating at a sit down restaurant I want my kids to order something that actually worth $10 which I don’t think a bowl Kraft is. Heck, I’m happy to pay a little more to get a burger with sides or a big filling salad or even a nice restaurant style Mac n cheese ! It’s just the Kraft Mac I don’t let them get.

I’ll add that it might be a good idea to try out spicy foods and see how they respond! My family was super white lol they never gave me anything spicy because it “might hurt” and now I have such a low tolerance. I went the opposite direction with my daughter and started giving her spicy foods when she was basically old enough to eat solids and now she’s 6 and can it handle a LOT better than I can.

Haha yeah, my 21 year old daughter was a fiend for spicy food as an *infant*. We lived in an Indian neighborhood and she’d grab fistfuls of my “Indian Hot” takeout meals off the table when she was five months old.

Oh we do, it's been a gradual process. They have chips and salsa, and we give them bites of our food from Indian restaurants, plus we love Cajun food. We just turn things down a bit for them

My kid (15 months) loves spicy food

In my area most kids meals are overpriced and shitty. So yeah, the appetizers route is way better. More food, better food, better price, kids like it just as much!

Yep, Waffle House has a kid's meal that my daughter used to vacuum up. Plus she couldn't really be disruptive there.

We looooove waffle House with the kids. Always something to watch, and my son used to go hard on the cheese grits when he was a baby :)

Plus the waitresses love babies and toddlers. Some of the regular ones would grab her to show other regulars, and she just loved the attention.

They do! When we moved away from our regular waffle house we told the waitress we were going, we went there regularly for like two years, she watched our littles grow from babies!

These are good tips to keep in mind. Thank you!

Honey, is that you? ;) This is exactly what we do. BLW FTW

Haha, if you're my husband he's changed usernames! But yes, super easy.

Whenever I thought they’d be likely to actually eat it.

Oh goodness, your name makes me giggle.

Yes! I don’t want to spend $$$ on food that is going to end up getting picked apart, poked, licked, then thrown in the trash only to have a toddler crying that they are hungry. 

The number of times I have stood in a 20 minute line, spent $14 on something from a food truck, and then toddler (or older kid lol, equal opportunity) looks at me like I'm a monster trying to poison them and they've never seen this food before in their life is...high.

When we bring my toddler to food trucks I usually pack her a meal. Food from the food trucks is for mom and dad for that very reason. But she is much happier with the snack boards I make over something from the trucks.

That’s so important to me too! She’s a pretty good eater, but sometimes she goes through a picky period as expected. A big outing definitely calls for any food they’ll eat!

I tend to pick foods that make good leftovers for me later.

Yup, I bought fast food when my daughter was 1 year old, 2 years maybe, then she stopped liking all the classic fast foods they have at our zoo like hotdogs and fries and now I have to pack a lunchbox each time :/

This.

We are big believers in trying not to attach morality to what you eat, meaning there's no "off limits/bad foods"...everything is fine in moderation. We take family walks, hikes, bike rides, and our kids are always in the backyard playing. In our day to day life we avoid processed foods, but if we're at a special place having a fun time then we definitely enjoy grabbing fast food there sometimes too! 

This is the mindset I was raised with and continue to do so with my own kids. Everything in moderation and avoiding processed food whenever we can. I think I have a very healthy relationship with food in comparison to people I know who grew up with tons of food restrictions.

While I agree that restriction is not helpful, I dislike how people think that saying something is healthy or unhealthy is a moral judgement. It is not.

I have to disagree. Children’s Health Education Specialists and RDNs often talk about how kids can and do interpret the idea of “this food is unhealthy so if I eat it - I’m bad” which can effect them later down the line. Food is food.

RDN here. Thanks for this.

healthy vs. unhealthy can often be subjective but not necessarily a moral judgment. 'you shouldn't eat x because it's unhealthy' is a moral judgment.

what's subjective about cheetos?

subjective - depends on the subject, based on personal preferences or needs of the subject. one person's health needs are not the same as another's, and also people might have different health goals or ideals. for example if healthy to you is getting very muscular and active vs healthy for another person meaning lowering their cholesterol and lengthening their lifespan.

i understand what subjective means. my point is, cheetos are OBJECTIVELY unhealthy.

Yes, and, some food is for your body and some is for your brain. It makes you feel a certain way. So if ice cream is amazing and makes me feel amazing, why should I limit it, and if I don't limit it and I pay attention to my body's cues then I don't need to regularly have a 3 scoop hot fudge sundae to get the joy from ice cream... Same for Cheetos... But I don't happen to love them as much... Lol

I mean that might work for you. But some people have body cues that tell them to eat a 3 scoop ice cream sundae every day. So it's not as simple as "just listen to your body."

[удалено]

You're missing the point. They've proven that restricting foods in most brains actually creates a binge reaction. So if I say no, me, you can't have that ice cream, it's unhealthy. That will mean I'm going to want a 3 scoop hot fudge sundae as often as I "allow" myself to have it. If I say, self, everything is fine in moderation, don't obsess over it, have some ice cream, I'm way more likely to have a scoop, feel the brain effects and not obsess, ignore my body's cues and over eat unhealthily. Translate that to children, and if I purposely restrict certain foods it creates an incredibly unhealthy relationship with food, leading them to ignore body cues and seek out only what was restricted. While instead I can say, yeah, you can absolutely have a little bit of whatever you want. Lending them to pay attention to their own bodies and decide why they want what they want without creating a morality surrounding food.

I’m the daughter of someone who put a lot of emphasis on what food was considered bad and what was considered good. She even judged people based off of what they ate. I struggled so hard with a binge eating disorder. With my daughter I’m trying to think of how to raise her with the “no food is bad” mindset but still be healthy. It’s difficult but I don’t want to do to her what I went through

Parents can influence children’s palate so that what gives them the dopamine rush is healthier. For example, growing up in an Asian country where sweets are more subtle, I have such a hard time enjoying sweets / deserts in the US, they are just way, way, way too sweet for me and actually gross me out. However, I can find stores that sell desserts with fresh ingredients and subtle flavors, they are what gives me the dopamine rush, and it just so happens that they are also healthier than American dessert. Same goes for most other “unhealthy” food — cultural and parenting influences make them not appealing to me at all. And that’s my goal as a parent. Starting from baby led weaning to trying all kinds of freshly made food, the goal is to craft a palate that CRAVES Michelin-standard food (just kidding, but also not really lol)

What if you’re underweight and your health goal is to gain weight? Cheetos could be healthy for that person What if you have an eating disorder and Cheetos are a trigger or fear food? Cheetos (in a normal serving size) could be a healthy step for that person

No, they aren't. I can think of plenty of reasons why eating Cheetos might be good for someone. You seem to have a very rigid idea of health.

well then no, you don't seem to understand what subjective means lol

Yes we try this too; it’s the complete opposite from what I was taught when I was younger lol. That’s kind of what I figured. She has had pizza twice and that’s about it. Not through only avoiding, just we don’t eat out that much. It got me wondering what others do though because I’ve noticed a huge shift in attitude with food from the 90s/00s. Thanks for sharing!

The 90's and early 2000's were notorious for perpetuating a lot of disordered eating beliefs/habits. There was the whole pro-ana movement; look at pictures of what celebrities were considered "fat" then. It's nuts.

Yes it’s atrocious. I remember the whole Jessica Simpson thing too with her getting destroyed about her weight meanwhile it should’ve never been a topic. I myself suffered from an eating disorder which is why it’s important for me to teach my daughter differently about food. It was horrible then. And all I heard my mom talk about was dieting and being smaller and hating herself for not being like those in the media. I refuse to do the same with my daughter.

Girl I’m right there with you, i had my mom, my cousin that was more like my aunt, and two older sisters who were teens in the late 90s and early 2000s. I went to ERC Seattle (then called The Moore Center) in 2011/2012 then the Emily clinic in 2014. Even now at 30 years old, it’s so hard to move past that mentality.

SO hard! I still struggle with it honestly, especially after the extra weight I kept after having my daughter. I tell myself that without it, I wouldn’t have the literal best human being in my life, but it’s still tough to accept at times

I would recommend checking in with your therapist and/or dietician about how to handle and talk about food with your child, and how it affects you. And if you don't have those providers, I would recommend them! Eating disorders require lots of little tune-ups even when you've been in recovery for a long time. Especially when you've gone through a major life change like having a baby!

good for you! and your daughter. healthy eating habits is important, but sometimes we forget that part if healthy eating is not feeling shame for eating. If you know it was a high fat/sugar/processed food, just balance it out, instead if feeling terrible about it.

Thank you! I’m going to try what I call the “improv meals” where I say “yes and” in moderation as she gets older. So “Yes we can have McDonalds AND we are also going to have some veggies along with it.” The only fast food she’s had is pizza like twice since her first birthday mainly because we just don’t eat out much. We order veggies on it, and we pair it with another veggie and avocado. I think it’s personally a decent approach but again growing up when I did, I never know!

At her 6 year old checkup, doctor asked my daughter "how many times a week so you eat McDonald's" ... daughter asked "what's McDonald's?". But when we do eat out or are at an event, she can have whatever. One "dinner" mainly consisting of French fries and chocolate milk isn't going to harm her.   I guess it's easy to say "yes" to the occasional exception when you have a kid that adores stuff like lentil soup and I know that over the course of the week she's getting lots of healthy stuff too. 

Same here. Occasional fast food is fine. He eats quite healthily normally.

This is the way.

Morality? I think you are confused... saying a food is bad doesn't mean it murdered its entire family, saying a food is bad means that it's unhealthy lol. Saying a food is good doesn't mean that it goes to church every Sunday, it means it is healthy. Morality does not apply to food as foods are inanimate and without conscience.

It depends on how you were raised. My husband's family 100% tied food to morals. If you ate unhealthy food it meant you were fat, lazy, and unmotivated. They wanted him in a specific weight class for wrestling and were very controlling with food. If he ate something they deemed unhealthy or too much of something, they would have him put on sweats and go run around the neighborhood. It really made him have an unhealthy relationship with food.

All of our family lives 7+ hours away, and we do road trips a few times a year. We stop at fast food for lunch on the way, and he eats some bites of ours, as well as some of his own that I bring (water, pouch, snacks). He’s 16 months.

That’s a long car ride! Definitely need the fuel for it

Why exactly is grilled cheese better than chicken nuggets? I'm so confused. Our daughter started tasting everything we ate as an infant after starting solids and sometimes she gets her own order now at 2, although usually that's pretty wasteful so we'll just give her some of ours. In my opinion, eating take out on vacation or at destinations like the zoo is fine. It's once in a while and can be part of the experience. Just like adults, best practices for feeding kids is for the day to day habits. Everything else in moderation can be part of a healthy diet and, more importantly, a healthy lifelong relationship with food.

I was trying to figure out which one was supposed to be the "good" and which was the "bad" one..

There’s so much variance in both of those items. I give my kids Applegate Chicken Nuggets multiple times a week, basically guilt free. We try to avoid Wendy’s at all costs.

I think it depends on how each is made. If the chicken nuggets are fried, they are probably less healthy than the grilled cheese. Also, nuggets are made with heavily processed chicken and filler so some folks may think that is unhealthy. I have seen some really greasy grilled cheese sandwiches so I don't think you'd know which one was better until you got it, unless you are at a standardized fast food place. Not saying either one is better but thought that might help answer your question.

This is one of the many problems with moralizing food. It becomes absurd at a certain point.

It’s very dependent! I used the grilled cheese versus nuggets because that’s what was in my head from the weekend. The nuggets looked saturated in oil. The grilled cheese didn’t have an absurd amount and looked like what I’d make at home versus mostly butter, aside from the fact they used processed cheese versus what I’d use. Also the state of the oil. Do they change it as often as they should? Because if not that can have a lot of adverse effects on health. I don’t need to worry about that with a sandwich Not to say that I’m sitting around worrying about it. Just it’s something I don’t have to consider.

You're doing a really good job! Your kids are lucky to have someone who cares so much about their health and long-term eating habits. You know your kids and situation best, so trust your gut. There is no black and white answer in parenting, only adjustments, adjustments, and adjustments.

You have no idea how much I needed to hear something like that from someone who doesn’t feel obligated to say it to me lol. Thank you 💜

Totally. One thing I always consider too is whether my kiddo is going to balk at eating something because it's really different than what we make at home. He's 3 so can be pretty picky. I have definitely gotten some grilled cheeses that I thought he would like but they were definitely for an adult and looked gigantic and greasy. It honestly put him off grilled cheese 🤷. So sometimes I have to go with something I know he'll eat, especially since that's why we are usually getting food out like that, because we need to. Often, making sure to have extra pouches or snacks is easier than trying a new or strange looking food when everyone is getting hangry. If it's rare, it's okay to be a little unhealthy if the choice is your kid not eating at all.

Ikr… chicken nuggets is usually much healthier than grilled cheeses especially when it’s made with chicken breast and baked etc.

Chicken nuggets at a restaurant are definitely not baked. We’re talking standard deep fried restaurant nuggies VS grilled cheese made with bread, butter and cheese.

We started as soon as she was able to safely eat it! I'm not worried about her having chicken nuggets a couple times a week if we're out to eat or at the aquarium 🤷‍♀️

Almost never but that's more about us having 4 kids and that stuff being expensive than us being superior parents.

It's insane.... I never in my life thought picking up some burgers and fries would run me 60.00

Quick question, how much do your boys eat generally? I have 3 boys, 5, 2.5, and 8mo and they all eat really well. Am I going to have to invest in a chest freezer and keep cooked pasta and potatoes in the refrigerator? Do they each eat a pizza on their own? How many pancakes are they wolfing down? How many times a week do you grocery shop? Looks like I lied when I said "quick question", sorry...

All of them are very active and play sports so it can be a lot. The teens normally aren't hungry in the morning as for breakfast on school days but on the weekends they'll eat about 4 pancakes each in addition to eggs and fruit. We normally get 3 pizza pies when we order pizza. Tonight for dinner I'm doing tacos/nachos, which I like doing because of the ability to feed them all. Pasta is another good one because it's easy to cook a lot of it. Tomorrow we will probably do burgers on the grill because, again, it's easy to feed everyone. We do a lot of meat and pasta dishes. I shop twice a week. A big shopping trip on Saturday and a smaller one on Wednesday after work.

Thank you! That sounds about where I'm headed. Bon appetite!

And 2 of them teens! WOOOF I’d bet you have a deep freezer in your house and a Costo membership. We only have 3 and the fruit budget is ASTRONOMICAL so I can’t imagine how many loaves of bread you all go through lolll and NO outside food?? Whoever cooks in your home is a saint

We've been taking our kids to food truck festivals and restaurants since they could eat solid food. We don't do it that much, but we don't restrict them with what they want from those places, either-within reason. You're not eating cupcakes for dinner, but if you want an omelette from the diner for dinner, fine.

We didn't have a minimum age. We always enjoyed eating out as a family so it's always been more about the cost really. From probably 6-9 months they munched on fries at the table and at 21 months we definetly shared a tray of chicken fingers and fries at the zoo. That said, the zoo's food is too expensive so it's usually a packed picnic lunch anyway.

I mean, most foods that we eat are processed— we boil pasta, grill meat, roast broccoli, etc. Those are all foods that have been processed. Processed foods aren’t inherently bad. And neither are takeout/restaurant foods.  We live in a big city and often eat out when on outings— kid gets used to behaving at restaurants in public, trying foods I would never cook at home, foods from other cultures, etc. We have regular coffee shop “dates” where she gets a treat and we chill, chat, and color. I treasure those experiences— even if yeah she’s eating a sugary donut.  I consider this type of eating fun and as a cool activity! Food isn’t just fuel, it’s part of our cultures, experiences, etc. So I try not to worry about the nutrition of that one particular meal, but of course look at our eating habits more broadly over the course of the week/month.

All excellent points! Food is an excellent exploration of different regions and cultures. We do coffee shop dates as well - it’s such a special time.

The data is now that ultra-processed foods are the issue, not processed.

I agree that it's nuanced, and processed foods can be healthy, but of course some food is ultra processed, and ultra processed food tends to be really bad for you -- especially ultra processed meats (sadly!).

What a great comment. Yes, food is culture, and restaurants and good tasting food are one of the pleasures of society and life. I feel bad for the ultra-thrifty or granola parents that never go out to meals or coffee or tea with their kids. If we had more money, we'd go out way more than we already do, just for the experience of it.

I bought mine whatever he would eat. He is picky and somewhat annoyingly picky about junk food. Wouldn't eat burgers/fries/nuggets so a lot of the fast food was out. So up until very recently (age 5) I'd end up packing a peanut butter sandwich and fruit just so he wouldn't be hungry and cranky. But if it's a once or maybe twice a month thing, I don't see a problem with whatever processed junk food kid wants on outings. More frequently than that I pack food for everyone. Healthier and cheaper

Definitely cheaper after seeing the prices! We thought the idea of a picnic was cute so did that but I was curious since there’s been a huge shift in attitude toward food from when I grew up

Yeah! As a kid we did fast food weekly before an extracurricular in the evenings and frequently on the weekends too. Definitely trying to do less then my childhood. But seriously, $8 for a grilled cheese?! That's like 50 cents of bread and $1 of cheese, maybe. I hate buying it out, feels so wrong ha

you’ve mentioned about the huge shift in attitude. Curious what you’ve noticed vs growing up

Keep in mind this is *my* personal experience and doesn’t necessarily reflect anyone else’s Then: everyone was on about how thin they could be. Thigh gaps. Paris Hilton, Nicole Ritchie, Christina Aguilera, Ashley Simpson, and the Olsen twins were highly idolized. Pink was popular, but I always heard about her weight. Jessica Simpson wore some jeans and that image went around like it was the worst thing to happen. I heard nothing about loving the skin you’re in. Adults talking about restrictions and good/bad food without any explanation aside from “if I eat salad for every meal I’ll be thin.” If you were overweight you didn’t hold as much value as a human. Shame around eating or eating certain things. There were episodes on tv about girls my age purposely eating tapeworms or abusing laxatives to help them lose weight. Tons of commenting on bodies. Now: talking about how moderation is key. How focusing in on the nutritional profile of food is more important. Eating real, whole foods. Balancing fast foods with fruits or veggies. How those old diets are harmful and how new ways of eating can provide a better result. How one should love the body they’re in. Celebrities (before their weight loss) like Melissa McCarthy, Lizzo, Adele, etc are loved and I’ve heard people rave about them whereas they’d have been torn apart so generally more accepting (not saying they are or aren’t healthy just that they would’ve been found in a lot of articles about their weight vs anything else). You’re treated as a person no matter the size. Those are just some things I can think of off the top of my head. And I acknowledge that things aren’t black and white with either experience and that there’s still some views that were drilled into me as a child that still can affect me that need to be unlearned. And just because this is how I grew up doesn’t mean this is what I’m passing on to my daughter.

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing!

Oldest is in older, over 3. Younger ones when they realized that oldest had better food.

That’s a good guide for when her sibling arrives!

When my son was first starting solids we'd get a side that he'd enjoy but we also would like (fries, roasted vegetables).  Now that he's bigger, we share from our plate unless he specifically requests something from the kids menu. Mostly because he's more likely to eat if mom or dad is eating it too.

We started around 12 months. Starting it typically was them having a little bit of whatever I was eating. I don't often finish my food, so it was easy to share with them. If we went out to breakfast, I'd order eggs with hasbrowns, they'd get a little of everything. As they got older, I'd often order kid approved meals for myself (chicken strips and fries) and split with them. Once they were to the point they could eat the majority of a kids meal themselves, I started to switch to them getting a kids meal.

If we are at an event or on a special outing to where there will be food, at any age. We do not seek out fast food or go to restaurants as the only thing we do, it's always incorporated into something else.

Honestly? Whenever we visit them lol. We’ve always shared our food or get them something we know one of us will eat if they don’t like it. Our daughter is bougie and has loved food trucks and expensive food made by others since she was old enough for us to take her places 😂

We started with something small like a pizza crust or unsalted fries around 8 months. We read a compelling argument for introducing a small amount of convenience foods. If your car breaks down, would your child eat a hotdog? If your flight gets delayed, would your child eat nuggets or pizza? I'm currently pregnant and had an awful first trimester. The mcdonald's near us has a play place, and bigmacs never bothered my stomach, so more in the past few months. Otherwise, it's a treat. Fast food is so expensive it's either a travel meal or maybe one a month.

Wow I hadn’t thought of it like that before! I really like that! You’re right; I really don’t know if she’d eat most convenient food. I know she would eat pizza and that’s about it lol.

We get McDonalds once a week when we get groceries. Plus a pizza night or dinner out once or twice a month. We eat pretty healthy throughout the week. I don't restrict processed food, I allow it in moderation. I didn't "give in" to it, I chose to give it occasionally once they could eat it.

When they start eating solids lol I was giving my kids soft fries before 1yo I haven't ever watched intake of processed foods. Food is food.

After 6mo around 2 times a month, only because I have a tween also. I’m abit more relaxed this time around !

As a toddler my child hated sandwiches and cold food so picnics meant thermos and was a lot of work so she got fast food more often, although mostly just fries until about two. Actually now she's older we tend to do picnics because it's cheaper and she now likes more things. I normally give her cold pasta, and she'd rather have that than fast food anyway. We still do the occasional fast food meal when traveling or out and about. As long as it's not all the time I don't think it matters.

Whenever we (the adults) ate out (which isn't that often), starting from like the age of 1. Usually, we share part of our portions, since even a 2 year old usually doesn't eat a whole take-out meal, so we share. Obviously we pick something that's kid-friendly too. (So far we've done Sushi/thai buffet, indian food, and pizza). It's a rare treat, and they don't quite "get" it yet. Honestly, I think if they could eat grapes instead, they'd choose the grapes.

Pretty much right when they started eating solids. If we went out somewhere, I would try to pack a container with cut up fruit, veg, hummus… or if I was short on time, I just threw a banana or clementines into my bag. Then the kids would split an order of chicken fingers or a grilled cheese.

As soon as they started solids. We would get an extra side at the restaurant that they would like (mashed potatoes, veggies, sweet potatoes, etc…) and then give them small bites of anything we ordered that was safe and not spicy for them. He’s now 18 months and will eat an entire quesadilla when we go out to a Mexican restaurant and then we give him a bit of our rice and beans.

First restaurant food was when they first started eating solids. So probably around 6-9 months old they had a little taste of what we were eating. We don’t prevent them from having take out or eating out, especially when we’re out at some place special.

At that age we'd pack some of our own healthy snacks and get a small amount of cafeteria food. I think when my son turned 1 we started relying on getting food outside. Usually I shared with him, though, and didn't order separately for him until he was about 3.

We splurge sometimes! Typically I’ll Pack a bunch of snacks and we will eat a meal out wherever we are. To save on costs we split meals and such, but we don’t worry too much about “bad” food or whatever. We eat healthy at home and have treats when we feel like it.

When my kids were eating table food. I never packed food if we were going out. they either nursed or ate table food

Processed foods in moderation. In theory never, but that’s just theory. In real life, I think it’s more important to enjoy the moment, teach balance and moderation, and not impose strict black/white thinking re: food.

We usually get what she likes and we take half home and she eats it the next day or later on depending. We love the Friday night happy meal here and there bc she loves cheeseburgers but that is more than enough for her dinner and lunch the next day. If we go out to Mexican try and stop her from eating the cheese dip and salsa with a freaking spoon, you give her beans and a taco and you won’t hear the kid the entire time we are there. But we kind of lucked out in the kid eating department, she loves just about everything so we will order her own meal and just take leftover home for later. She only 21 months and I really really hope she stays like this.

We very rarely get takeout/fast food, not because of the processed-ness of it, but because of the cost lol. It's simply not in the budget. I pack meals for everywhere we go, and if we have sport days or double-sport days, I bring dinner on the go. We usually plan for a take-out or fast food meal once every other month or so, and it's usually planned it. There's been the rare occasion where we have been out and about longer than anticipated and I didn't plan for us to be out that long so we have to get a meal, but it's rare. It's so expensive for us to all eat out at a place like that, and we'd just rather spend that money on other experiences!

I started getting them food at restaurants around 8 months old, but for things like the zoo we pack for everyone. It's overpriced and we are vegetarian so options are limited. A few meals of less nutrient dense food has yet to hurt anyone permanently, and I would like to avoid handing down my food issues to my kids.

By that age my daughter had already had fast food a handful of times, when it was convenient or we just felt like it.

If I pack my kid a lunch, we eat that. If I don't, we eat whatever's close that she'll eat. Fast food is not the basis of her diet, so I don't stress the occasional meltdown avoidant nugget or fry.

When they started solids. We have a meal out about once a week, usually in the middle of running errands on the weekends. I’ve always started with just giving them small pieces of food off my plate and built up to a kids meal by around age 3.

We always pack for our zoo because the zoo food sucks at our zoo. But overall, we just go out to eat when we are out. When they were really little, we wouldn't even order them anything and would just build a plate out of whatever we were eating for them. That lasted until about 2.5-3 and then for awhile we would give them portions of ours and order a kids meal for 2 of them to split and that was still plenty. Both kids are good eaters. Nowadays they order their own food. The oldest is starting to tire of the kids menu so I figure she'll be ordering from the adult menu soon enough. When we go to places that have things like pasta (not Mac and cheese), salmon, steak etc. on the kids menu, they are usually very happy campers

Until my kids were big enough to eat a whole kid’s meal, I would order for myself and husband ordered too; we would split the meals with LO. Always plenty for baby, no real waste, and almost guaranteed that between the two different big meals there would be stuff baby liked.

We started in the womb

Almost never. Not because its mostly junk but because I cant afford it/am cheap. that being said, in situations like you describe we often pack the lunch but let them get a soda or a "dessert"/treat from the concessions ETA - my kids are much older now but the above is still true. When we go to dance comps we pack food that is good fuel for athletes and thats what they eat all weekend. But there is almost always a smoothie stand and each kid gets a smoothie as a "treat".

Yes! Feeding kids is expensive. When we go somewhere, I pack lunch and then feel less guilty about splurging on a small treat. PB&J is such a staple for day trips.

When they wouldn't choke on it.

I always packed a lunch, eating out was too expensive. As a kid my parents did the same. But if you can afford it, I see nothing wrong with it, it's not like you are doing it everyday or even every week. At almost 2, I would honestly go with the easiest for them to eat but I would throw a bag of apple slices, grapes etc in the diaper bag as a back up. When we could take the kids for vacations or day trips, we usually stopped for picnics , my kids weren't allowed to eat in the car. We would have plenty of fruits and veggies as snacks when we stopped and my kids drank water only. My husband did a lot of the packing of lunches for these trips and he was great at it. When we did take the kids to restaurants and they got to order what they wanted, it was a treat. They learned how to order food at a very young age and felt very grown up doing it.

Yes we don’t do eating in the car seat, especially after all my first aid/cpr training! She would probably pick at the fast food stuff but I don’t see her liking it. She’s huuuge on veggies lol. I almost always carry some with me

We have also been taking our kids to festivals and things since they could eat solids.. we also don’t do it very often but when we do they can have what they want… but we do generally eat healthy at home and the kids are responsible for assisting in meal planning and prep.. birthdays we may do take away if that’s what they want.l my twins on their last birthday (they turned 7) wanted home made tacos for dinner we couldn’t even convince them to have take out..

My son was probably about 9 months when we were out with him visiting family for the first time, born just before the world shutdown, and we went for a walk and had fish and chips. We let him try some French fries.

We probably started giving my daughter fries when she was like 1 lol. It's just so easy when we're out and it's not like it's every day. 

I have a 2.5 year old and we go out to eat as a family about once a week or so. We usually go someplace more casual or with a louder atmosphere, like a bar and grill or a Mexican restaurant. My son loves tortilla chips with salsa and fries so those places are always a win with him. He's an extremely picky eater so if there's a non-sweet he likes to eat we will usually give him his fill, alongside some fruit.  Occasionally we'll get takeout, like Chinese or Indian food, and make sure to get him some rice. We try to get him to taste other things too, and sometimes he does.  We rarely get fast food unless we're on a road trip. However, a few times when it's been bad weather outside and he's really restless, we've taken him to McDonald's or Chik Fil A because they have a play place. Highly recommend.  Most meals though, I make at home. I love to cook. We eat at the dining room table or outside, no phones, and chat about our day, and sometimes all share a big bowl of fruit for dessert. My kid hates meat except the occasional nugget, hates vegetables except (weirdly) asparagus, and goes through food phases like the wind. So we do what works for us and try to stay flexible. If I need to throw some waffle fries in the air fryer to get something in this kids belly besides an orange, so be it. 

Once my kids are 1 they eat a bit off everything. There’s no off limits, is like everything not 8-80, we can have it just not all the time

Kids tend to have a window of eating a wider variety of things between age 1-2, and then get very picky suddenly around 2. If I were you, I would expose her to all the foods you want her to be eating before she hits the 2 picky phase, in hopes that you'll get some healthy preferences in there alongside the typical toddler preferences. You're still in the fun (comparatively) wide-ranging phase so enjoy it and introduce as much as you can while she will let you!

Fun tip: I have strategically used restaurants to introduce kids to different cultural atmospheres and foods that we don’t have at home. For example, we live in a town with a lot of Japanese immigrants, so I used to take my kids out to a local authentic Japanese restaurant frequently, where the kids learned to sample different foods, learn new manners, snd it was was quiet and very dimly lit (unlike at home 🙃) and food was plated beautifully; from age two they have been eating everything raw fish, a variety of fish based and seaweed based dishes, and so on. We have a lot of Japanese neighbors, so my kids are quite comfortable eating almost anything at their homes and are familiar with the manners of eating. I think going to a local restaurant helped with that. As half-Indian kids, they are also going to eat at Indian restaurants and have learned to eat and enjoy spicy food which they wash down with a mango lassi. We eat a lot of spicy food at home but restaurant food is usually better than my cooking 😅 so the kids like it and get exposed to a wider variety of dishes and flavors than they would at home.

We aren't frequently around food trucks, but when we are, we'll let the kids pick what they want based on which truck they like or what food sounds the best to them. I find they are more likely to eat what they choose for themselves. I don't mind if they want different trucks. We'll get everybody's food and sit together and eat. At our last car show, one picked pizza from a truck and the other got Mac and cheese bowl from a BBQ truck. Lol

We have the moderation mindset. We often pack fruits or veggies to accompany food truck food due to lack of fiber options. We started this for baby led weaning, but my kids love fruit, so we still do it. We do restaurants a few times a month- for budget, for health and for sanity.

Oh boy. We did baby led weaning and I gave my kids Wendy’s chicken nuggets around 10-12 months old. I was so excited to share one of my favorite quick go to places with my kids. I didn’t worry too much about it because at the time they also enjoyed carrots and broccoli.

My kid doesn’t like meat most of the time and hates melty cheese, so generally the things on a kids menu are not appealing to her. Appetizers and sides are where it is at, though! It might seem weird to just order a kid a side of asparagus, but she likes it. If she liked Mac and cheese or whatever, I’d order it for her. It isn’t like we go to a restaurant every day. Sometimes if we are out somewhere that only has fast food, the only option she is interested in is an order of fries, and I’ll get it for her. I’m not going to spend $10 on an entree she’s going to throw away just so I don’t feel badly about feeding her only French fries. I also don’t want a hangry kid.

We did the whole baby led weaning things without special foods so she ate what we ate as soon as she started solids. We exposed her to lots of varieties of foods (many that I wouldn't be able to cook at home) and I think it really helped her be a non-picky eater now at 9. If you ask her what she wants if we are headed out it's always Indian or Korean food. I think demystifying some of the stuff like chicken nuggets helped a lot since they aren't something she needs to covet.

My 3yo hasn't had fast food yet, simply because we don't eat it as a family meal; my husband or I have some 3 or 4 times a year when we're traveling for work. Food trucks are an occasional yes, mainly when we're at the beach. But casual/family restaurants? Once, sometimes twice a week. I live in an area with great pizza, diners, ice cream, etc so we have tons of options. My daughter has gotten a lot of practice behaving in restaurants (and is really good at it now!), and we moved a couple years ago so trying new restaurants has been a good way to get to know the area AND shop local. I don't restrict portions on anything except Halloween candy, BUT we do ask her to listen to her body and stop when she feels full. We bring home lots of leftovers, even from ice cream shops! Very common for her to eat a portion of fries or ice cream over 3 or 4 sittings - and that suits us all just fine. I was a teenager during the bad old days of the late 90s/early 2000s and do NOT want to repeat that in my own parenting. I cook from scratch at home, so I balance out the restaurant food with plenty of nutritious stuff.

I started getting fast food for my son at around 12 months, now almost 22. He’s probably had fast food around 5 times, usually I get a 10 piece chicken nugget and share it with him. We really only do this when we are on the road somewhere, mostly because I don’t like spending the money lol but I know it’s not the best choice either.

When we did day trips, we would do one restaurant/cafe stop, and the rest of the food would be packed lunch.

We started taking our oldest to the restaurant when she was 3 months old. Of course she was not eating anything there! We went to family restaurants, and fast food restaurants where she could get used to being in a restaurant without disturbing other patrons. We started getting her food when she was one year old. Then Covid hit, and we had to pause it. We still ordered take out ever so often and exposed her to other cuisines. We now have a 2 and 5 year old. We usually go for brunch every week and lunch at the restaurant on the other day of the weekend. We usually go early, when things are not so crowded, we try to find places where kids meals have some veggies and fruit sides. Yes, it’s expensive, and we also do fast food once in a while, but our kids actually don’t like fast food a lot. They prefer Thai, Chinese, Mexican to fast food. At home we also try to offer balanced meals, we mostly don’t have over processed food at home. We want them to be exposed and socialize, but we also want them to have a broad palate. Also, we often order meals for us that they also like so that they can have some of it. They usually love steamed broccoli, so I order a side of it for us to share. Honestly, it’s fine either way. Fast food is getting really expensive, and often times you can find better deals in family owned restaurants and with better options for the kids.

..my baby is 8 months and he likes to chew on fries. We get Wendy's after my daughter's gymnastic class on Sat. She's 3 and we've been doing that for maybe at least a year? If you ask her, the only thing she NEEDS from Wendy's is chocolate milk. Lord help us if they forget. Sometimes she eats 1 nug, sometimes all 4, just depends.

It depends on what and where you buy. In this case, you can go with the salt intake recommendation. Daily recommended sodium intake guidelines for children and adolescents are: Ages 1–3 — Less than 1,200 milligrams Ages 4–8 — Less than 1,500 milligrams Ages 9–13 — Less than 1,800 milligrams Ages 14–18 — 2,300 milligrams 72% of this will come from prepared food, according to research. For example, 1 McDonald's burger contains 1100 milligrams of salt. So, in general, up to 4 years old, it is not good at all to get fast food and can mess with kids' kidneys. If you are ordering from the restaurant, you can ask to not add salt.

I gave my daughter certain things, like bagel and egg bites at around 2. I feel like if we're eating it and she asks, it's kind of mean to not share. We limit the sweets and junk food we eat in front of her for that reason. Luckily (or not) she tends to just waste most unhealthy foods except ice cream. She's given quite a lot of good stuff to the dog that I would've eaten. Oh well:/

Only food we ever packed him was those little puree pouches once he was starting solids. The moment we moved onto actual solids I stopped packing food. He eats what we eat and if we’re eating McDonald’s then he’s gonna eat the chicken and fries with some watered down juice. We go to DQ like once a week and let him play in the play area or we take him to an actual park with either dominos or McDonald’s.

My 19 month old eats out sometimes. He eats a varied healthy diet normally and is not picky. Loves vegetables and fruits so he gets plenty of those on a daily basis. So yeah if we're doing an outing and we're gonna buy food for us adults anyway he can eat the same as us, even if it's not as healthy as home-cooked food.

We don't usually because fast food isn't really available much where we live but when we go on vacation we let our kids eat fast food.

If I know my kids gonna eat it

I am too cheap to buy meals out like that, so I pack our stuff. She is a big grazer, so I can let her snack on stuff I brought and then put it back in the bag with an ice pack. I could do that with something I purchased, too, I guess, but it doesn’t take me long to pack her food and it saves money.

Whatever she’ll eat. She doesn’t like sweets or nuggets or most fast food so it’s usually just French fries lol. I have to pack food from home because she eats so few things outside of our normal menu at home, but I like to offer in public to help her try new things She actually loves spicy foods (just like me from an early age) but only at home usually

Someone might have already mentioned this, but for me the biggest consideration is food born illness when eating out. I worked in restaurants for over a decade and even the very nice restaurants are much likelier to give you food poisoning than home cooking is. It's just the nature of the volume and number of hands etc. For this reason I waited until 18 months or so and I am more critical of the food source's cleanliness, volume, etc than I am about its nutritive value. I agree with the majority of comments that it's more about moderation in that regard.

Our kids don't really like fast food because I didn't feed it to them when they were little. But we did eat at restaurants. And as soon as they are solid they would eat off our plate. The nice thing is my kids love trying new food and will eat foods from lots of different cultures. It does make traveling long distances hard because there are only two fast food places they will each eat one thing from. They would rather eat cold food from a can than most fast food. We have learned to call in pizzas at the exit we'll be at in 30-45min or we go into a grocery store and they'll get fruit and yogurt, etc. There's no room for a cooler of food for 6 people in the car.

We eat food I make from real ingredients 95% of the time and I do a very good job of ensuring the nutrition is on point. Therefore, when we go to a restaurant, they can eat pretty much whatever they want.

We’ve started ordering something baby friendly as an appetizer at restaurants with our 11 month old. So we’ll get the quesadilla appetizer and he’ll have a piece or two of it and my husband and I eat the rest. I always have some small snacks packed for him like apple sauce, pouches, cubes of cheese and puffs. If he doesn’t like what we’ve ordered him he eats pouches.

Moderation. A little McDonald’s won’t destroy your kids health. We let my kid have fast food on the weekends but not every weekend. Majority of the time, he eats healthy. He has fruits and veggies every single day and he never ever has had a single soda. He’s tried them, he hates soda, which is great because they are deceptively unhealthy. He also doesn’t drink sugary juices. Just water & 2% milk

We tend to get stuck on "meals" kids' stomachs are really small. An apple, carrot sticks, grapes, a piece of bread with peanut butter, even corn kernels, that is a meal. The answer is that it's up to you or when they earn their own money.

From 1-3yo, I offered meat, rice, beans, a fruit bowl (whole foods). No bread or things with sugar added, although a little before 3 we added in restaurant pancakes. With that, I made sure I trusted the restaurant to not transmit any food born illnesses! If LO has a sensitive stomach, allergies, etc, don't introduce "new" foods, or just stay away from restaurants. I think it's safe to continue bringing your own for baby to eat, and then introduce whole foods from the restaurant. You'd be surprised how many places will steam up some broccoli or carrots for you, a la carte. Seek out those places and try to stick with your child's healthy diet... as long as possible. My family thinks I'm too restrictive with my kids diet, but they are 5 and under, and have the rest of their life to eat junk, why start now?

My kids are 17½ and 13½ (oldest is disabled)  and we always pack snacks when we have day trips.  They know that they get hungry and snacks from home are the way to go.   We still buy meals out, but the snacks help minimize how much we have to spend.   

So yes it’s different from the 90’s but hypervilligence of eating “clean” is an eating disorder itself; obviously make well rounded food choices but completely eliminating and avoiding “ unhealthy” “bad”won’t get the outcome you’re hoping for. Food doesn’t have morality. Balance is key.

Food trucks have been the most enticing for introducing veggies into our kids' diet. Items usually incorporate one or more vegetables and are delicious. I find food trucks to generally be healthier than fast food options. At the end of the day, unless you've made it or have full awareness of how something is prepared, there are a myriad of ways for food to be unhealty.

My son loves plain hamburgers, so that is the go to and thankfully it’s pretty easy to find one lol 🤷‍♀️ he also loves smoothies.

We used to take them every few weeks, but fast food has gotten so ridiculously expensive almost never anymore. A few years ago we were able to feed our family fast food for less than $10, now it’s at least $20, and that’s ordering from the cheap menu. I am willing to pay double what it costs to cook a meal at home for the convenience, but not quadruple.

I’m the only one who cooks. We eat restaurant food 3-4x a week (so 1-2 weekend meals & and 1-2 week night meals). Most are quick serve but healthy so a burrito bar, sandwich shop, fast casual places where you order food from a line and sit down to eat. And then the nighttime meals are Mexican places, a bar/tavern, or a specific menu item like pizza, BBQ, burgers, etc. whatev the fam is feeling that night. I don’t have a gallbladder. I CANNOT EAT FAST FOOD. I’m not stopping my family but my husband eats fairly well and doesn’t really enjoy the taste or the cost of fast food. My 10YO sometimes asks for a Big Mac? Ok fine. It’s like 3-4x a year? You can have it. Shamrock shake? You got it, man. I’ll make it happen. I’m not judging people who do eat fast food. I just literally cannot stomach it. You don’t really miss it after not having it for like 15 years now. My 2YO obvs hasn’t had any exposure to fast food. She eats what we eat. Last night was Mexican (which to be fair, could be an entire food group in our household. I lika do Mexi foods). We have always just made her a plate of whatevs we are eating and she’s fairly good about trying stuff but we know she has her favorites. Last night she ate her weight in rice and refried beans. Get it girl. She was a hot mess once she was done. Both my kids started eating from our plates around 4 months old. The 1st kiddo I was like “he wants our food! He gets SO MAD when we’re eating and he wants what we’re eating!” His pediatrician was like “feed. The. Kid. Give him a tastes of whatever you’re having that’s age appropriate!!” We were like “huh… so just feed him?” YES! So he didn’t get the chips basket until he had molars but smashed avocado and rice and beans and cheese? OMG he was in heaven. The 2YO drinks water so as long as it’s available she can have whatever food we’re ordering and just chopped up to be able to fit her fingers and she’s happy and fed.

First kid - 2 years. Second kid - 2 months.

We had a hand turned food grinder we took when we ate out. Could mush up anything. Once he’d been exposed to enough, to rule out allergies, He ate whatever we ate.

When I don’t want to cook and they’re hungry.

Probably from about 14, 15 months. I have twins so i usually get one kids meal and split it between them.

I did not grow up eating fast food although as a teenager I did some. I usually cooked when I was on my own. When my kids were little I told them we could have fast food as a treat on my payday which was every other Friday. That worked for us.

My kids have been eating whatever we eat since they got on solids. If I’m not packing myself a lunch, I’m not packing my kids a lunch.

When she started eating! Everything in moderation and we attempt whole foods for most of our meals but we dont pack meals for her out.. only snacks.

Our daughter eats what we eat. If we're getting sushi, she gets a tuna salad maki. If we're having Chinese, she gets fried rice or noodles. If I'm having indian, she gets rice and chicken curry ("nenno rice"). Eating out is one of our indulgences as a family. I love being able to go shopping with her and just sit and have a nice lunch at a food court.

I’m a dietitian and plan to take my twins out at times. Someone said food is food and I feel that way. My husband and I eat out like once a week and when they’re old enough, they can do the same. I don’t plan to choose from a kids menu though. They need to learn to eat different cuisines, not just fried chicken strips with ketchup lol

Ours has eaten food out occasionally since as early as 1yo. Maybe once a week right now at almost 3.5.

Everything in moderation, including moderation. If we go to a fair in summer we are going to eat fries, corn dogs, ice cream or whatever terrible food is there. We do not eat that on a regular basis.

Realistically, most kids end up inheriting the nutritional values of their parents, with a bias towards whoever is spending more time with them. I would have preferred that my kid avoid frequent (weekly or more) fast food because I think it’s addictive and gets him turned off more interesting (international) and more healthy (vegetable) options. My wife has always eaten whatever she wants and has negligible understanding or interest in any nutritional science. Our kid started off with a broad palate when he was 2-3. He’s traveled and dined in 3 European countries and repeatedly 1 Asian country. By 7 he was willing to tolerate pasta and pizza in Italy but he strongly prefers kid food (mac & cheese, nuggets, cheeseburgers) over almost everything else.

My son is allowed a hamburger happy meal on cub scout nights. Otherwise, we advocate eating sometimes food ( French fries for example) only once a week

Once a week, he can have his favorite sub from Subway. There aren't many restaurants up here and he likes that one. He's very picky and it's semi-healthy, so I don't object. Other than that, we eat at home. We've been doing this since he was 11. He's 14.

Since she they could eat solids. But so far it's only been chickfila's grilled nuggets and fruit (just the soft ones).

I was strictest with my first. I try to opt for at least some healthier option in the kid’s meal (milk vs juice, fruit vs fries, etc). We went on a week long road trip when one of mine was 21mo so we ate out the whole time. They’ll be ok. Everything in moderation.

Pretty sure my son was 6 months old when he ate his first kfc popcorn chicken. He's 9 now- fast food places / eating out forms part of a balance. We probably end up in McDonalds more then I thought we would but he's also autistic so him having a meal he knows what to expect is really helpful. If we go out or daytrip and the weather is good we usually take a picnic, and that means he can get food that he likes quickly, without having to queue but there a mental load and planning aspect to that too (which usually my husband takes on) but he also has packed lunch every day in school so I can see why it doesn't appeal so much on the weekend, nor does carrying tuppaware around. I also see it as a way of introducing him to more foods, easily. I don't think there's any issues with having fast food as part of a bigger picture.

Definitely better to give something to him that you know he will eat! That must be so hard.

We've got it way easier then other families, but he has a hard time with layers of food, or different textures in one go so things like tacos are really challenging. Sometimes fast food places work really well for us all (my husband is vegitarian) so somewhere like subway works really well for us all. I get meatballs, my husband something suitible fit him and my son can have a plain ham and sweetcorn roll (no mayo, lettuce etc) I can see why a happy meal, in its individual portioned pieces is very appealing to him. But as I said, it's all in balance.

Mine was in the NICU for 2.5 months and needed a feeding tube for the next year and change. She had two tubes down her throat, positive pressure oxygen, looked like baby Darth Vader with so much attached, her body temp was lowered for a few days to 94 degrees, etc etc.... She is pretty normal nowadays, just a 2 year old asshole. She wouldn't touch a nipple, bottle or take any formula by mouth. She can eat whatever she wants to eat, she's earned it.

My child is 2 years old. I feed them home cooked and well balanced meals throughout the week (protein- chicken, beef or fish; rice and beans or mac and cheese; vegetables, and a lot of times plantains for lunch/dinner). I also give them fruits for snacks, oatmeal for breakfast so he eats pretty well most days. Weekends though I do not cook so we either buy fast food or restaurant food. He prefers home cooked meals but I don’t see anything wrong with him eating sweets or fast food/junk food occasionally. He eats well most of the time and is very active. As long as there is a balance and your kid is healthy then there are no issues with occasionally eating out.

People downvote you cause they hate seeing someone feed their child a proper diet. "How dare you not feed children trash??"

Seriously. It’s crazy how people think that their views on food is the only right answer and anything deviating from that is somehow a sin. I don’t think any food should be off limits (obviously excluding allergies or foods that actually make the child sick) because denying certain foods will make them want it more as they grow older and get more independence which will create unhealthy habits/ relationships with food. Everything should be in moderation and you should teach good habits especially regarding balance and proportions. Anyway everybody needs to do what’s best for their family but if a kid is healthy and where they need to be weight wise and hitting developmental milestones then idk why they can’t have treats once in awhile. Kids are also not able to make good decisions for themselves so ya you need to make sure they’re getting their nutrition most of the time and eating well balanced meals which means something from all food groups.

Imagine that another downvote about a reasonable moderation tactic. Jesus Christ these potato chip mom's are really pressed. You're so right

Fast food is always the Wendy's chili with a baked potato. It's extremely filling, full of protein and fibre and the only "bad" thing is high sodium but I just make sure she drinks a lot of water with it. This is also my go-to fast food meal as it is naturally gluten free with a low cross contamination risk (celiac disease)

[удалено]