Food Question

Luckily for me my 2 year old does not like fast food at all. She won't even eat a french fry or nugget. Because of this, I don't go to fast food places nearly as much as I use to sans kids.

once in a while... we do more arby's than other places... but I try to have meals at home most of the time... usually cook extra so I don't have to cook every day!

Never believe it or not. My 4 yr old doesn't even know what a "McDonald's" is let alone a drive-thu! LOL

I agree with Barbilee.

We try to avoid it but occasionally we have fast food for dinner or lunch. My in laws and parents live 3 hours away so on road trips down to visit we have stopped for fast food. I don't like McDonalds, Burger King, Taco Bell, or KFC so my daughter hasn't had any of those. I love the salads at chick fil a and my little one will get chicken nuggets and a friut cup. It also comes with a milk. (One thing I love about chick fil a is they give out those plastic sticky placemats to cover the tables) We tried giving my daugher wendys chicken nuggets once but she won't eat them, not that I can blame her they looked gross.
I think as long as it's not an all the time thing a little fast food wont' hurt. I'm sure tons of people will disagree but sometimes people are busy. My husband and I each work 2 jobs and we try our best to make dinner every night, but sometimes it's just not possible for us to do, or we are to exhausted not to be selfish.

No. I used to. But now that I know the truth, now that I know what really happens inside the body, no way no how!

But don't' take my word for it watch:
Supersize Me (you can watch pieces on youtube for free

Food Matters - www.foodmatters.tv

Food Inc

H., your family your choice, but please educate yourself.

B.
Family Wellness Coach

Never. Okay, maybe twice / year out of "necessity" now. I let my son & myself have it maybe every other month b/c of convenience. Then I watched Food, Inc. I haven't eaten it since. Have you seen the internet pic. of the McD's burger & fries that are a year old? They look basically brand new after 1 year. No decay, no mold, no flies or maggots or anything. The fries look exactly the same! Basically, it's not real food b/c it doesn't decay...who knows what's in it, etc. According to Food, Inc., there could be meat from over 100 cows in 1 McD's burger. So, it just grosses me out & I'll take the extra few min. to walk into Subway if I need to. My family pretty much doesn't eat any fast food like that anymore.

When my children were little they would receive McDonalds as a special treat for lunch once a week, when in preschool and kindergarten. The school lacks an adaquate parking lot so we had to use the McDonalds parking lot next door. We also ate there 2 times a year when the school did a fundraiser with them, % of sales goes to the school.

The more educated I became, the less and less we ate at fast food. Now in grades 8 & 9, we only eat fast food 3 or 4 times a year.

If ever, maby once a year and only if we were traveling and that was absolutely the only option. The grease is so thick at McDonalds, I can't even walk in there without my skin feeling greasy! I think it is gross!!! Burger King and Wendys is just as bad. And, it makes you feel lousy after eating it, so we pretty much avoid those places. If we are in a pinch when traveling, I prefer to stop for pizza or a subway. I have never heard of Chic-fil-a.

We gave my almost 2 year old son fast food 1 time and it was totally by accident. We didn’t realize that McDonalds is the ONLY choice at Crayola Factory. If I had known, I would have brought lunch with us. I got him a grilled chicken sandwich and a fruit-and-yogurt parfait. He liked it a lot, but I would only do it again if it was an absolute last resort like it was that time. When we are traveling, I use our nav. or my phone internet to find a restaurant 20 minutes ahead of us on our trip and call and order a to-go healthy meal for him (normally a grilled chicken breast or a pasta dish). This is no less convenient than fast food. I’ve also discovered that salad works makes GREAT kids meals, so we always look for those when we need “fast food”.

I wish I could say less but we hit McDonald's about once a week for the kids. Usually on the weekends as a treat (when hubby and I are tired and need a quick lunch or dinner). The silver lining is that one son loves the apples. We'll get one meal with apples and one with fries and they'll share. Chic-Fil-A is so darn close that I usually go there once a week for a quick lunch. I do typically order a kids meal and a side salad in hopes to make it a bit healthier.

Maybe 1-2 times a month.

H.
I absolute abhor McDonalds! I think they have single-handedly destroyed children's nutrition. I also recommend SuperSize Me if you haven't seen it.
I don't mind Chic-fil-A once in awhile.
Unfortunately, since my boys are 15 and 18 now I can't stop them from going to McDonalds with their friends sometimes. But they sure know how I feel about it!
Victoria

Only Chick-fil-A - none of the others. Now, about 1 time a month - they are 9 & 12. When they were younger, about 3-4 times a month.

Of course, I just had 2 Fresco Bean Burritos from Taco Bell for lunch today because my left overs just didn't sound good to me.

We're probably at 2 times/month currently.

I don't believe in restricting my kids from knowing what fast food is - in my experiences, it only makes them want it more. We also practice what we preach at home, too, though and seldom have mac n cheese, hot dogs, etc.

I honestly can't remember the last time our kids had McDonald's, but they always eat their apples before anything else (because that's what they like on the table best). I personally love Wendy's salads and anything from Subway with lots of veggies on it.

My office is across the street from a hospital that has a great "restaurant", so we often walk over there over lunch and get a salad. I can't beat a $4 salad and glass of water that I can make myself and know it's fresh.

pretty cool question...i eat at fast food on average of 1 time a week to everyother week, that is my treat when i go grocery shopping. It is usually just a drink and a cheeseburger, sm fries or 2 soft taco supremes. There might be healthier chooses, but nothing taste better than a McDonalds cheeseburger with fries on top. My lil boy gets to eat out bout every other week or so. we do not Super size it. oh, and he is allowed what he wants, since we do not do it often. He usually gets, chick nuggets or cheeseburger, fench fries or apple slices, choc milk. :)

We go to Chik-Filet once every couple of months but that is it and honestly, I think they are so excited about playing that they've only eaten a very minimal amount. They don't ask for McDonald's etc. because they've never had it and I intend to keep it that way as long as possible. We eat really well at home--very healthy meals etc. but they get their share of "special treats" because I have a major sweet tooth. Everything in moderation.

The big draw to McDonald's and chic fil a for my kids is the playing. So when we do decide to go to a fast food restaurant, to meet friends or just to get out of the house we go in between meals. This way we can all get a small treat, an ice cream or yogurt parfait... But we rarely eat there. Maybe once every 3-4 months. If that, it seems like my kids won't finish a fast food restaurant meal. So not only is it unhealthy, for us it's a waste of money.

Your right, they do offer salads and other "healthier" options but sadly if you look at the nutritional value, you might as well eat a cheeseburger.

Now that the weather is warmer it is much more inticing for us to pack a lunch/dinner and head to the park.

We eat fast food maybe once a month, and I let him have pretty much whatever. My son is 2. I prefer Chick Fil A, but he's had others. I try to pick healthy, but I believe in all things in moderation. People would be surprised how many "healthy" options are often the worst thing on the menu. I try to encourage what I think is better, but don't worry about it too much. I try to skip the french fries and get him fruit, but prefer that it be a banana or apple slices and not fruit coctail in heavy high fructose corn syrup. I'd just as soon he ate fries as that stuff. He doesn't get soda, just milk or juice. Even if there is not a healthy juice option available, I get him juice or lemonade so that he doesn't get a taste for soda. I've only done that once or twice though. Usually there is milk or juice.

Once or twice a month with my son... we drive to the McDonald's [farther away from home] that has a play place. If there weren't any play places, I would never let him eat fast food.
I, on the other hand, stop and get a coffee after dropping him off at daycare at least once or twice a week.

We go about 2 times a month. When we do go, I get them the apples (without "dip) instead of fries and chicken instead of burgers. I don't go to McDonalds anymore because of the way they produce their meat. I won't completely gross you out here, but there is ammonia involved. We go to chick fil a more than anywhere else because I like the salads. Everything in moderation, right?

We do not do fast food at all. my kids ate a little when they were small because of grandparents. My kids dislike most fast foods now (12,15,17) They do like subway. That's the only place I will do. Chipotle uses good ingredients and big portions. Saw Foods Inc and Super size me. Fast food is a last resort. I make sure I have healthy quick choices at home and in the freezer.

I would say not more than once per week. My son is into the wraps at ChikFilA right now in a BIG way.

We have fast food about once a month - maybe. It's a special treat on half-days of schools (they get 2 per school year so not a big deal -- last day before Christmas break and last day of school), when travelling, on their birthdays, etc. The kids have to stick with juice until 5 years old - my 7 year old gets the orange hi-c. I don't care if they get fries or not becuase it's so infrequent but the girls (2 & 4 years old) always pick apple slices over the fries (and then eat just a few of my fries). Our oldest didn't ever have fast food until he was about 3 years old but, like pretty much everything else, the 3rd kid got it earlier - probably a year or so old (just chicken nuggets and apples at that point, though). And we only go to McDonald's. The kids never want to go to any other fast food place and we let them pick since it's a special event.

That all said, I think we're a bit odd. Many of my friends (and my children's friends) go out to eat at fast food places 2-4 times a week! I think that is nuts because that would just get WAY too expensive. We go to a non-fast food restaurant maybe once every 3-4 months (pretty much only on trips) because we'd rather cook at home to save $$.

We eat at fast food maybe once a month, or if things are really crazy, 2x per month. The cost is kills me, so I fight it whenever I can (which usually requires planning, LOL, so it doesn't always work! Like, making sandwiches, healthy snacks and packing drinks/water). At least now, you can pick slightly healthier options (yogurt, fruit cups/apple slices, chicken without the batter coating, etc.) than you used to--but even those you have to really take a good look at to be sure..... It's a guilty pleasure for me, for sure.

I tell ya what, if you ever watch the documentary Food, Inc. you'll never eat another fast food hamburger again in your life! I'm not kidding. I haven't eaten one since seeing the movie. I highly recommend that all Americans see it.

Very rarely do we eat fast food, although I'm known to go to Taco Bell in a pinch. We are vegetarians, and fast food is often not vegetarian friendly (have to be really creative at some places). Fast food is such a foreign concept to my almost 3 year old daughter, in fact, that she calls McDonald's "bananas" (because of the golden arches). And she will often "pick" the bananas as we drive by and offer them to her Daddy and me.

Our family does no more than once/week. This also includes Subway & Chinese. Most of the time we end up eating fast food on the weekend when we are doing a bunch of shopping and it is just easier. Other times we will grab sandwiches and eat at the park so at least the kids are getting to run around a bit after eating the not so healthy items.

We eat there at least 1x per week. Mostly what we get for my son is chili from Wendy's. I don't opt for the healthier options when eating out because my son is pretty good about eating fruits and veggies and cheese snacks at home. But sometimes I can't get him to sit down and eat dinner with my husband and I and I want him to have protein. So we may end up having chili (sometimes I make a big batch, but my husband and I really don't like it) for him twice in a day. It's less than $1.50 so I don't think it costs that much more. I, on the other hand, will have a Big Mac 1x per month or so. Sometimes fries. My husband almost never eats fastfood because I pack him lunch almost every day, and he doesn't enjoy fastfood. My son also likes crunchy tacos or cheese rollups from Taco Bell. He will ask for a cheeseburger and fries from McD's, but almost never finishes either.

we eat at those type places probably 2-4 times per month (mostly we eat at home) and we almost always eat off of the dollar menu, or get a side salad instead of fries (apples for the 8 year old).

Probably about once a month when my husband travels it is a little treat. McDonalds seems to be the healthiest choice (I have scoured the nutrition facts) although we also love Chik-Fil-a. The hamburger is actually better for you than the nuggets. A Hamburger, apples (they don't know about the caramel sauce) and a white milk is really not a bad choice for a meal for a kid.

We do it when we have to. For example my kids belong to a charter school and we had a field trip. Well we had to be 1.5 hours from home at 530, and I worked till 3, so there wasn't exactly time to sit down someplace better and eat, so we hit the drive through, they got chicken nuggets, fruit and milk, while i got a salad. my kids are older though, the baby is 7, so i don't worry about it when it isn't something we do even once a month.

everything i've ever heard or read speaks of moderation, if 80 % of your diet is healthy whole foods, there is nothing wrong with treating yourself the other 20% of the time.

We ususally do fast food - Mc'D about once a month or so... it is a treat for the kids when they are good. They did start getting it just after a year old. We use to eat out more, but since I lost my last July - money is tight & we cut out a lot of the "extras" which included eating out.

My kids usually get the nuggets & fries, but sometimes they get a cheeseburger & apples - it's their choose since we don't go out much & it is a treat.

In my life, it varies. I try NOT to make it even a weekly visit. I really don't feel that fast food is even a good value - we spend more at one visit at McDonalds for 5 people than I would to just pick up some chicken breasts at the store & grill them at home. I do admit, though, that my family will order pizza almost every Friday night! Not sure if pizza is really that much better!

I don't ever take my 2.5 year old for fast food. When I am in a pinch I would rather get take out at a restaurant in our neighborhood and share with her - it ends up being cheaper than a happy meal and a few things of the $ menu and healthier, too.
I know that my hubby takes her every now and then though, usually no more than once or twice a month though and I am ok with that - just isn't my choice.