TuscMoms.com

Looking to grab breakfast to go with your LO? Check this out. It breaks down what's in breakfasts at some of the most popular fast food joints such as McDonald's and Burger King. I am happy to see my beloved Egg McMuffin on the "best" list. LOL. I have loved Egg McMuffins since I was a child. I don't eat them often but oh what a treat when I do! Ahhh, Dunkin' Donuts...sadly there aren't any in these parts. I miss it so much! Anyway...

http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/best-and-worst-fast-food-breakfasts

Wow - some of those numbers are incredible. And the sodium on the "best" choices is still very high. And why didn't they include trans fats? Any trans fat is too much, and that is certainly something people should know about before they eat fast food.

I am with LawMommy. One place I love here that is completly trans-fat free is Jason's. You can call in an order and pick it up. They have a yummy salad bar too.

Trans-fats are something everyone should be aware of and avoid if at all possible. I don't buy anything with partially hydrogenated or fully hydrogenated oils. The great thing is alot of companies are finally making their foods with whole oils again. Five years ago, when DH and I started eating right, there weren't very many options without hydrogenated oils.

I will say I don't do fast food unless there is no other option. I eat out less than once a week. There is sooooo much sodium in these foods. Lots of people with high blood pressure can lower it by just eating a lower sodium diet (which usually means not eating out). Subway, which has a huge campaign ad with such good for you low-fat sandwhiches, has atronomical levels of sodium in 75% of their sandwhiches. On average one sandwhich is at least 50-75% of your daily allowance of sodium. Some have even more sodium in them. And if you eat more than one sandwhich a day-well do the math. So you may lose weight, but you will gain high-blood pressure-what good does that do? Most all prepacked foods contain very high levels of sodium. One can of LOWER SODIUM tomato soup contains almost 50% of your daily allowance, and that is if you are eating 2,000 calories a day.

Ok, I am getting off my soapbox . I just get worked up at companies that don't seem to care what they put into their foods (or campanies who say this is good for you, when it really will just cause other problems), and at people who don't pay attention to what they are eating. I love Kashi and Nature's Valley. They have really healthy options, and they care about what is put into the food they make. All the foods I have tried are yummy to. I just wish more people would pay attention to what is in the foods they buy.

Amen, Ronadlsmom! Now that I have two children, we do buy a bit of prepackaged things, but I try to stick with the natural, organic if possible, products. The sodium in sandwiches you talk about - bread is frequently a hidden sodium-packer, but the deli meats are very high in sodium, not to mention the chemical preservatives. I avoid all preservatives if possible, and that is very difficult to do if you're eating fast food and big-brand prepackaged foods.
I'm a diligent label-reader, and I am amazed (and appalled) at the contents of a lot of what's lining the grocery store shelves.
Just Sunday, my 7 year-old was lamenting to me, "why can't you be like other moms?" as we shopped at the grocery store and I had to tell him "No" several times to items he wanted to try. He's not deprived by any means, and I let my kids have sweets and other treats, but not the ones full of (or even containing) trans fats and artificial junk.
btw, just because a label lists 0g of trans fats doesn't mean it doesn't have any in it - only that one serving contains less than .5g, but if it has hydrogenated oils in it, it has trans fat, and it adds up quickly as you eat more than one serving.

You know, I often wondered how labels can say partially-hydrogenated oils as an ingredient, and on the front the package it could say trans-fat free. Thanks for the tip.

I am dreading when my LO is old enough to do the same to me. You LO will soon be old enough to explain your reasons, whether he cares or not is another story .

We usually have a garden every year and grow lots of our own veggies, and put what we can in jars to avoid as many preservatives as possible. I hate buying store produce, because I know most of it was grown the year before and has been "preserved" in one way or another (organics are great, but they are still a little expensive). We try to buy all frozen veggies (there is a great new product called steam fresh-where you steam the veggies right in the bag-which saves on water from washing dishes and on trash in the landfills).

The thing that appals me the most is the crap they pack into kids foods. The Gerber tubs and prepackaged dinners have a third of an adults daily allowance of salt in them, which would be at least half of a toddlers daily allowance. And the jelly fruit bits have partially-hydrogenated oils in them. I do love their freeze-dried fruit bits (and so does Ronald), but some of their items are shockingly bad for our kids. Alot of parents don't know these foods you would assume are good for your kids, (cause why would Gerber put ingredients in their foods that was bad for children) can be harmful. It is soo frustrating!! UGH!

You'll notice the products that list hydrogentated oils as ingredients will say "0g of trans fats" not "trans-fat free", since the first is true but the second is not. It's very sneaky and a short-falling of (I assume) the FDA, who left a loophole in the packaging requirements.
We have a garden also, and that is another way to promote vegetable eating in LO's. My daughter is much more apt to eat something she picks herself than something I cook for her from the fridge. We belong to a local organic CSA, which is a great resource for organic produce and cuts down on grocery-store produce shopping a lot.
I agree that the foods that are packaged for and marketed to children are some of the worst out there. Just look at a label on Lunchables! Yuck! Full of sodium, hydrogenated oils, preservatives, saturated fats, etc. And don't get me started on school lunches...
Yes, my son is old enough to understand now, but every once in a while he still gripes about it, especially as he gets older and goes to friends' houses more and sees what other parents let their kids have.

What is is CSA, and what do they do? If it helps me buy fresher food, and makes life any easier, how do you become a part of this group?

CSA stands for community supported agriculture. They are farms that are supported by their members. There used to be two local CSA's, but the Tuscaloosa CSA closed recently, and Snow's Bend Farm is the only one operating right now, at least as far as I know. Here is a link to their website for more info.
http://www.snowsbendfarm.com/

Thanks a bunch. I will check it out once it starts back up.

I think they're already full for this year, but the season is about to start, so there won't be a new one until 2009, but you could check if you're interested and see if they have any room left this year.

There is another CSA that's starting up this year - Northfork Farm. I don't know much about it, but you can call them at 205-242-7707.

I had heard there might be a new one but hadn't heard specifically. I just found this info on it, if you're interested.
http://www.druidcityonline.com/BullSloughBulletin/080219-northforkcsa.htm