s if the day weren't hectic enough with one meeting after another, then traffic is backed up for miles on the way home, stretching your 25-minute commute to one hour. When you finally walk through the door, the kids are cranky and hungry. So are you. And there is no dinner.
jfk_series_spons
''Pizza!'' shouts one child. ''McDonald's!'' intones another. Wandering in with a handful of peanuts, your spouse weighs in with, ''Chinese?'' At that moment, anything sounds better than cooking. But are you being a bad parent if you give in to any of these temptations? And which option, if any, is the least ''bad?''
There are no really bad foods, say the experts. It's all a matter of moderation. You can still raise healthy children while occasionally taking advantage of some shortcuts that make life a little easier. ''In your typical American family now, no one is at home cooking,'' says Gina Hardiman, a dietitian in the nutrition clinic at Children's Hospital in Boston. Adds her colleague Jill Fulhan, ''I talk to parents in clinic who don't even know how to cook.'' Still, little adjustments go a long way.
One is to teach children how to negotiate the supermarket (see related story), and how to read food labels. Another is to make some substitutions so children eat what they like, but perhaps a more healthful version of the dish.
Even with the alarming rise in childhood obesity - contributed to in part by the fast-food industry and its appeal in frantic moments - nutritionists will not tell parents to eliminate certain foods, only to limit them. ''All foods can be part of a healthy diet,'' says Jeff Hampl, professor of public health and nutrition at Arizona State University and a spokesman for the American Dietetic Association. ''It's more of a balance of moderation and serving size.''
Limiting sugary beverages is one way to maintain good nutrition. ''Kids start drinking juice, juice drinks, and soda at such a young age, and they don't drink milk any more,'' says Hardiman.
Some fruit juices have valuable nutrients; many are empty calories. ''We encourage eating fruit, rather than drinking it,'' Hardiman stresses. Apples, bananas, and pears give fiber as well as vitamins.
Soda - the bane of most parents' existence - is worse than juice and tends to displace beverages like milk, whose calcium, protein, and Vitamin D children need. If your kids are clamoring for soda, say the experts, offer carbonated water mixed with a little juice or some lemon, and reserve the real stuff for special occasions.
''Soda is a reflection of how our diets have changed,'' says Fulhan, the Children's Hospital nutritionist. ''Parents drink more soda, and kids see that.'' And what parents do, children do.
Parents eat breakfast in their cars, lunch at their desks, and stop for pizza on the way home (or for McDonald's after a child's soccer game). But that isn't necessarily a bad thing. ''Fast food can fit into a healthy diet,'' says Hampl, the Arizona State professor. ''But more parents are relying on it. Fast food should be a treat.''
''It's all a question of moderation,'' says Fulhan. ''Portions now are so big. That's how foods get labeled `bad.' It's largely a quantity problem.''
Some people think chicken nuggets are a healthful alternative to cheeseburgers (they are very high in fat). But if children won't eat meat, says Hardiman of Children's Hospital, ''a chicken nugget is not so bad. On the other hand, if you have an obese adolescent, any fast food is not the best choice.'' Low-fat chicken nuggets are easy to make at home by coating chicken tenders in bread crumbs or crushed corn flakes and baking, rather than frying, them.
Pizza is also not a bad option - there is calcium in the cheese and there are nutrients in the sauce and toppings - and it's easy to make at home. Ready-made doughs are widely available, and you can also make pizza on bagels, English muffins, pita rounds, or French bread.
It's never too late to change bad habits, says Hardiman. ''Make it a family goal,'' she suggests. ''Keep healthy snacks in the house, and set aside at least one night a week as family night, with a home-cooked meal.''
So the next time you walk into the house and find the kids hankering for carry-out, pull a baguette from the freezer, open a can of tomato sauce, grate some cheese, and have fun solving the dinner problem.
