Q&A about "Living Green" by COPA's Caroline Gutmann, MD, FAAP
It is important to stress that “being green” doesn’t just mean to buy organic, wear organic cotton or hemp, or avoid using plastics made with BPA. It’s much larger than that. It’s a way of intentionally making a decision with the health of the environment in mind. Sometimes that improves our health and our children’s health; often it improves the health of future generations.
We tend to focus on what we should buy to optimize our children’s health. That’s important but can be expensive. There are many easier and more fulfilling ways to give our children a healthy lifestyle! For example, walk to the playground, to the store, to school. Walking to school is more time consuming, and sometimes gets boring, but it’s great fun when you look for pennies on the sidewalk or have a dandelion blowing contest on the way. Bike to a friend’s house—go with your child once in a while. Riding a bike on Bend’s roads can be a little frightening with all the big trucks and SUVs. Riding one yourself will make you much more careful of cyclists, young and old. Plant a garden with your kids, and water and weed it together; then eat the vegetables from it together.
Give your child healthy leftovers for school lunch. If she gets a subsidized school lunch and if you have the time and energy to do it, lobby for healthier school lunches. Wouldn’t it be amazing to have a real kitchen in every school and to have students from the COCC Culinary School volunteer their time to prepare amazing lunches for the kids?
Each family has to decide what it wants to do and can afford to do. Try not to obsess or stress about every potential exposure in food. Our food, generally, is very safe. Instead, try to exercise, sleep longer, play, laugh, drink lots of tap water, and enjoy yourself and your kids.
Is organic formula better?
As far as baby foods go, we all know that breast feeding is by far the best option. Some mothers just can’t do that. Don’t feel guilty! Again, if you can afford organic formula, go ahead. If you can’t, don’t worry! It’s much more important that you enjoy your child and being a parent than that you can’t afford organic formula. Remember, at four months, you can start solids, and that you can make yourself. It’s easy…steam some veggies, puree with a hand-held blender, put into the freezer in an ice-cube tray, and each cube is a serving. Your friends and relatives will be so impressed!
There is no really organic formula. The reason they get the organic label is that most of the ingredients are organic. You cannot produce all the ingredients organically. For example, the fatty acids that added into it, like DHA and ARA. Some of the sugar added is not organic, but since the majority of them come from the common protein and other ingredients they’re labeled organic. Organic is not superior to regular formula, but if a family believes in it and can afford it, they can do it, but don’t do it because you think it’s healthier or safer.
Should I feed my toddler/kids ORGANIC MILK?
I don’t buy organic milk, and I don’t like the taste of soy milk. Eberhardt’s milk is local, tastes great, and like all milk produced in Oregon, it has no bovine recombinant growth hormone in it. It’s important to know that all milk produced in Oregon is bovine growth hormone-free, so you don’t need to buy organic milk that comes from somewhere else in the Northwest.
I’ve heard animal milk is for animals and that we should give our kids soy milk only. Is this true?
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that parents give soy formula only to infants who cannot digest cow's milk or to those whose parents wish them to follow a vegan diet. For the majority of infants, the AAP says cow's milk formula is still the next best thing to breast milk. Yet the popularity of soy formulas among U.S. parents has increased, with 1 in 4 now opting for soy, according to the academy's estimates.
With growing attention to the possible health benefits of soy products, parents may be choosing this type of formula thinking it's healthier for their babies. But the AAP says it may not be so. And while the academy doesn't claim that soy formula will lead to the development of health problems, some experts aren't so sure.
The main concern about soy formula is that it contains high levels of phytoestrogens -- estrogen-like substances found in some plants. People who are worried about soy formula fear that these substances could interfere with a child's development and even cause early puberty, thyroid problems, breast development in male children, or other difficulties. Because of these concerns, a consumer group in New Zealand tried to have soy formula removed from the market in the mid-1990s. That didn't happen, but the New Zealand Ministry of Health did issue an advisory opinion to parents in 1998 recommending cow's milk formula over soy.
Should I feed my kids ORGANIC MEAT?
Buying grass-fed beef is important to our family. The meat tastes great, is leaner, and has more omega-3 fats in them. The animals aren’t fed in a feed lot, so the land and water benefit. It is more expensive, but we should all eat less meat and more veggies, they say! We like Oregon Country Beef— grass fed, free range, with no antibiotics and no hormones. I also try to buy eggs from people who have free-range hens, mostly because those eggs taste amazing! Antibiotics are used to promote growth in livestock, and those drugs may make it into your system too. And most American beef comes from cattle that is corn- or grain-fed, which is not healthy for us. Organic, grass-fed beef tends to be leaner and has five times the omega-3 fats, which are good for the heart.
As a pediatrician, what would YOU do to avoid BPA?
Another question some new parents ask is whether they should worry about BPA. In Europe, the use of BPA in children’s toys and bottles has been banned for years. Glass bottles are spendy but probably worth doing. A cheaper option could be to heat formula or breast milk in glass and then put it in a plastic bottle. A patient’s mother told me a few months ago that some dental sealants contain BPA too—seems like it’s everywhere. A dentist I called confirmed that it is in some sealants but BPA-free options are available. Ask for them! Also, pack your leftovers in glass or remove them from plastic wrappings before heating in the microwave.
At my house we also make an effort to store and heat almost all food in glass. My son gets his leftovers for school lunch packed in glass or in foil, not in plastic if it has to be reheated.
But I can’t afford to buy everything organic. What should I do?
One question lots of parents ask is whether they should buy organic foods or formulas. That’s a loaded question. If you can afford to, sure. Again, I think it’s more of a commitment to a healthy environment than to a healthy kid. If you can’t afford to, don’t stress about it!!! Spend your money on healthy, fresh or frozen fruits or vegetables instead. Go to farmers’ markets and support local farmers, even if they are not organic growers. Try not to buy prepared, processed foods.
The new Dirty Dozen: 12 foods to eat organic and avoid pesticide residue
You can reduce your exposure to pesticides by as much as 80% if you avoiding the most contaminated foods in the grocery store. This list is published by the Environmental Working Group and is routinely published in a variety of publications:
1. Celery
2. Peaches
3. Strawberries
4. Apples
5. Blueberries
6. Nectarines
7. Bell peppers
8. Spinach
9. Kale
10. Cherries
11. Potatoes
12. Grapes
The Clean 15: Foods You Don't Have to Buy Organic
Onion
Avocado
Sweet corn (Frozen)
Pineapples
Mango
Asparagus
Sweet peas (Frozen)
Kiwi
Cabbage
Eggplant
Papaya
Watermelon
Broccoli
Tomato
Sweet potato
Organic baby food is more expensive than is regular baby food. Does that mean that organic baby food is better?Whether organic baby food is worth the extra expense is up to you. Organic foods are intended to be produced without conventional pesticides, chemical fertilizers, antibiotics or growth hormones. Feeding your baby organic baby food may limit his or her exposure to these substances. Generally, however, long-term studies haven't shown organic foods to be more nutritious than nonorganic foods.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides organic seals for products that contain various percentages of organic ingredients — but the USDA makes no claims or guarantees that organic foods are safer or more nutritious than are nonorganic foods.
Some parents prefer organic baby food because it's environmentally friendly. Others feel that organic baby food is healthier or simply tastes better. What's most important, however, is a balanced diet. Offering your child healthy foods from the beginning — whether they're organic or not — will set the stage for a lifetime of healthy eating