I read a rather disturbing article that stated American children eat 22% of their total calories in pizza! Based on a study in the latest Pediatrics Journal, the nutrient intake of children ages 2 to 11 and 12 to 19 over a seven year period revealed that they received nearly a quarter of their energy intake (calories) in the form of pizza, sugar, saturated fat and sodium. Much of the food comes from school lunches or fast food meals. We are not doing right by our children!
Although most people enjoy a slice of pizza every now and then, nearly one out of four meals our children are being served are made up of white flour and processed ingredients. It’s no wonder our children are growing obese at a pace faster than ever before.
There’s no reason to completely prohibit pizza as a meal but it should eaten in moderation (not one out of four meals!) and use healthier ingredients. Substitute non-gluten grains for white flour or cauliflower for the crust, raw mozzarella and use organic vegetables as toppings. Use the pizza topping to paint a vegetable canvas. Make the pizza look as delicious as it is nutritious.
While you’re changing the look and make up of pizza, make mealtime a family event. Have your children learn to enjoy new vegetables by adding them as toppings. Use strips of colorful peppers, zucchini strings that look like cheese, sliced mushrooms and onions – you’re only limited by your imagination. Have the kids, depending on their age, help chop vegetables, assemble the pizza, set the oven timer and any other task that can make them feel like a pizza maker.
Controlling the amount of nutrient-sparse food your children consume will help control their weight, set them on a path to better nutrition for a lifetime. What they learn at home in the first seven years of life is the foundation for the rest of their lives. You can make a difference in your child’s future by developing good nutritional habits now.
Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
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