Do Your Children Prefer To Eat Fast Food?

Introduction

I have a problem. As an only parent, my life has always been filled with busy days, hours, and minutes. I have never had the continuous luxury of spending a lot of time at home doing what the traditional stay-at-home mother or the contemporary stay-at-home parent did and does as it relates to meal preparation.

Before I took an early retirement, I had an extremely demanding career as a school and district level administrator and adjunct professor. I balanced my professional obligations with motherhood. That meant a lot of driving including taking my daughter to my parents home for child care as well as driving her to school, to her athletic programs and social activities, and to our church related and family events. Now that I am self-employed, my daughter’s schedule continues to guide my time. In addition, we absolutely love taking road trips and long drives together.

Because of our active and hectic lifestyle, it has always been feasible to eat a lot of our meals on the go. Whether it has been for breakfast, lunch, or dinner as well as snacks, I have always prepared and packed delicious, appealing, and healthy meals and delicious beverages for our journeys in the car. Sadly, most of the meals that I prepare for my daughter continue to go to waste.

When I am able to cook meals at home, a lot of the food that I give to my daughter also continues to go to waste, too, despite the fact that I prepare beautiful dishes. She will place unfinished and covered plates, bowls, and saucers of food in the refrigerator and freezer that I randomly discover. That is her attempt to save it for later. But, by the time I find her food, the idea of later has long expired and the food must be thrown away.

Here is the reality that I continue to struggle with. Food is wasted when we are on the go and when we are at home because my daughter prefers to eat fast food. This has caused me to be troubled and frustrated.

The Allure of Fast Food

I continue to ask myself why my young teenage daughter prefers to eat fast food instead of enjoying what I put my heart, soul, and creativity into by preparing meals especially for her.

Here are the reasons why I believe she is so attracted to the food we pick up at the drive thru window. (Other children and young people are attract to fast food for the same reasons, too.)

1. My daughter and I am sure other children and young people are attracted to advertisements shown on television networks and their social media platforms. Cunning yet creative advertisers use tantalizing techniques to reach this target audience. Because of this, it is as though these young consumers cannot live without the fast foods that have been advertised.
2. The taste of fast food appeals to younger consumers. They love the various flavor and texture combinations of these foods. Whether it’s hot, sweet, spicy, crunchy, chewy, cold, bubbly, tart, or smooth, these young consumers enjoy this type of food.
3. The packaging that holds the fast food is fun. Since meals are packaged individually, younger children have a sense of responsibility from the moment they reach for it.
4. Portion sizes are controlled in child sizes so that young eaters get the right amount.
5. Child-sized meals include activities and games that contribute to a fun experience while eating on the go.
6. New food creations and ideas are introduced on menus to give young consumers greater food variety.
7. Fast food restaurants have included healthy food selections on their menus for children. This ensures that the eating experience remains fun and enjoyable while consuming foods that contribute to good health.
8. It is so convenient for parents to pick up a meal to go instead of spending so much time cooking at home. This is especially true when a parent has had a long and challenging day, perhaps on the job. Older children tend to know this intuitively and, in their unique way, will encourage their mom or dad to purchase fast food when they ask for it. I admit that there have been times that I have not felt like cooking and my daughter knew it. So, she asked for a meal while we were out because she was hungry and I purchased it. For me, there was a sense of relief knowing that a meal did not have to be heated or prepared at home.

This explains why I believe fast food continues to be the culinary preference for my child and many other children and young people.

My next question is what can be done about their appetite for this type of food?

By Writing This Story, I Think I Solved This Puzzling Problem!

Sometimes it’s hard for a parent like me to compete with enticing fast food restaurants. However, the power of reflection has made me believe that I can. Anyone struggling in the area can compete with fast food, too. Some of my thoughts support this.

1. While I have regularly served my daughter’s food with a creative flair, it was easier when she was very young because fun and age-appropriate colorful and thematic eating utensils, dishes, and cups enhanced her eating experience at home. Now that she is much older, my food presentation to my daughter still includes some creative elements. For example, I once introduced her to toast points as a way of making breakfast fun when she was very young. She still loves and expects her toast that way when I prepare it for her. (I don’t mind giving her toast points!)
2. I was recently frustrated about my daughters’ almost nagging request for fast food when we were away from our home even though a great meal that I prepared earlier was waiting for us. This frustration caused me to say, “…if you want fast food, you’ll have to pay for it.” The ironic thing was that she did. So, when our children and young people lead us to believe that their life depends on eating fast food on demand because they are starving and their little bodies are beginning to shut down, they should simply pay for their meal as often as possible. Now that I recall using that strategy a few times, my daughter’s desire for this type of food dissipated when she knew she was required to use the money she was saving for special purchases.
3. There have been times that I have imitated fast foods that my daughter especially loved by preparing the items at home. For example, the first time I grilled and served a “Frisco melt” just like one of her beloved restaurants did, my daughter told me that she loved my version better than the fast food place. (She gave me more kisses than I was able to count because she enjoyed it so much!) So, copying fast food menu items in my kitchen provides a great alternative to the grab-and-go entrees.
4. I can remember the times that I prepared very special dishes that gave my daughter something to look forward to. During the time that we were out and about, she let me know that she was saving her appetite for my food. She refused fast food in favor of the food I cooked even though she was very hungry. I am sure other parents will join me in becoming more committed to preparing more recipes that our children cannot resist enjoying.
5. Nutritious foods are always a part of the meals that I prepare. Whether it’s interesting fruits or vegetables, a cut of meat that we have never tried, or the use of new herbs, spices, seasoning blends, or flavorings, I always expose my daughter to interesting, healthy recipes. Proof of that is the recent broiled bananas recipe that I prepared and she loved it. Even though these attempts may fail, just like the time we ate kumquats because she was intrigued by the name but hated everything about the fruit, allowing my daughter to try new healthy foods also helps solve the fast food dilemma.
6. Keeping nourishing snacks in the car like nuts, granola, juice boxes, or fresh fruit helps along with packing meals that include sandwiches.
7. Being a good parent involves teaching children boundaries. Oftentimes, we simply have to tell our children “no” when they ask for fast food while away from home. I do.

Teaching children about the importance of making nourishing is a critical function of parenting.

My Final Thoughts

The fast-food industry has used advertising and other sales gimmicks to attract children and young people so that they become loyal consumers.

Parents like me have been confronted with the problem of our children having an insatiable appetite for fast food. In most cases, their desire for this type of food is more powerful than their desire for a delicious home-cooked meal.

While I did not mention this in the story, the challenge with my daughter comes after her rigorous athletic training sessions. Despite my struggles with my daughter’s preference for fast food, I realize that there are things that I can do to solve this problem. A mixture of good parenting and culinary strategies is what is required. I offered these suggestions in this story.

Thank you for reading it. I hope you were amused by my anecdotes and I hope these suggestions will help parents and grandparents who need them.

This story was originally published on Medium.com in ILLUMINATION-Curated.