Well, I did it. I officially became known by teachers as that ‘crazy’ mom and my son is only three. Perhaps crazy is too strong a word, one that’s a bit over used these days. I prefer to think of myself as well informed, choosing to make sure my son eats only things that will benefit his overall well being, instead of making him susceptible to illness.
I don’t really think I am irrational about it either. If there is a special occasion, like a birthday, I am not going to single my child out and say he can’t have a cupcake (and if you do, I think that’s ok too!). Lee (my nickname for my son) gets his fair share of treats, and certainly isn’t deprived, at least not by my standards. So, when he started preschool and the teachers were giving him school provided snacks, I figured I would just go with the flow. All I knew from Lee was that he was getting goldfish and crackers. Not my favorites, but it was only two days a week and it could be worse. It was when I volunteered to be the class mom for a day that I found out that the “crackers” were Cheez-Its. No big deal, right? WRONG.
Included on the list of ingredients is TBHQ, and when I saw it listed, I freaked. If you have read my previous post on the chemical, you’ll remember that TBHQ is a form of petroleum (butane), and is used as a stabilizer in oil fields among other things. The FDA says that TBHQ must not exceed 0.02 percent of its oil and fat content. Death has occurred from the ingestion of as little as 5 grams (Winter). Ingestion of a single gram (a thirtieth of an ounce) has caused nausea, vomiting, ringing in the ears, delirium, a sense of suffocation, and collapse (Winter). Thus, this is not something I want my children eating.
The next time I took Lee to school, I asked the teachers not to give him any food containing TBHQ or artificial food dyes. I provided them with the same information about TBHQ that I stated in the previous paragraph. I was met with a question that, sadly, I think many other people might also ask, “well how many grams of TBHQ is in Cheez-Its anyway?” There was no percentage or numbers on the box and I didn’t say it, but I was thinking, “why on earth would anyone put it in their body, much less the body of a three year old after learning that it can be deadly?” and “So putting even .02 grams into his body is ok, because he won’t die from that?” The teachers then asked me to go through the ingredient list of everything else they sometimes give the kids: Items such as Oreos and Teddy Grahams. The look on my face must have shown my dissatisfaction about these foods being given to the kids, if not for the sugar content alone. I was also shocked because almost all of the snacks on their list contain TBHQ; I don’t buy those foods for my family, so I had no idea that it is in so many products targeted at kids.
Unfortunately, so many parents don’t know that the majority of the non-organic, main stream snack foods contain harmful chemicals such as cancer causing food dyes and TBHQ. I often feel like people’s first response to this is, well it’s FDA approved and on the shelves so it can’t be that bad. BUT the FDA’s first interest is NOT you or your child, it’s money and politics. AND back in the 1600′s to early 1800′s, and still some in the early 1900′s, the same was said about cigarettes and look how many people have died from the effects of smoking. (I don’t know how many grams of tobacco it takes to kill a person, but we do know that inhaling the approximately 0.7 grams in one cigarette per hour or per day, does kill people over a period of time!)
I think that people believe that if these snacks and cereals are on the shelves and other parents are feeding them to their kids, then they must be ok. Because parents often do not see their child reacting to the chemicals in the products right away, they think that their child can tolerate them and they must not be a problem. But, some of these additives take years of accumulation to create a problem – quite like tobacco buildup causing cancer!
I am well aware that Lee’s school isn’t the only one feeding kids these types of foods. I know that even the local YMCA provides snacks like these, and worse. I just can’t fathom not changing what kids are fed after doing just a little research, or even after reading an article like this and seeing the possible long term effects these foods can have. After all, don’t we owe our kids, who can’t yet make educated choices about food for themselves, the best possible foundation to healthy eating and, thus, a healthy lifestyle? When you know better, you can do better. So go ahead, help your family make wiser food choices now that you know!
You have a voice and you have a choice: Choose healthy snacks for your kids and insist that their school and daycares do to!
SOURCES AND RESOURCES
Ruth Winter.1978. A Consumer’s Dictionary of Food Additives. Crown Publishers, Inc., New York. http://food.oregonstate.edu/glossary/t/tertiarybutylhydroquinone.html
FOOD INTOLERANCE NETWORK FACT SHEET: http://www.fedupwithfoodadditives.info/factsheets/Factantioxidants.htm
TBHQ found in chicken nuggets:http://www.naturalnews.com/032820_Chicken_McNuggets_ingredients.html
Excellent article Dawn! Are they actually going to stop feeding that to Lee and the other kids? I hope so. These foods are detrimental to everyone-young and old.
I am brought in organic snacks for Lee, something they don’t usually let people do unless they have a food allergy. I have told them numerous times that they can use the snacks I provide for the entire class. I am not sure if they have or not. It seems they don’t really get it, as they labeled his placemat with the word organic, quite like they label a food allergy. Shouldn’t all kids have the opportunity to be eating the chemical free foods? Shouldn’t they all have a no chemicals label? This has me thinking about how I can reach out to pre schools and daycares to get them to change the types of foods they are feeding the kids. I know that some school districts, starting from kindergarten, have changed their menus to be healthier, however, I am not sure what the extent of these changes are, so that’s something to look into as well.
Awesome article! My son is only 2 so I don’t have to deal with preschool yet, but trying to convince my husband and his family that “I’m not crazy, just well informed” seems impossible! We visit our families every other week or so and I’m always sure to pack at least one reusable grocery bag FULL of organic snacks and meals. I’m sure everyone thinks I’m nuts, and ya it’s only for a couple days, but those couple days, every other week, adds up fast! Just glad to see I’m not the only “crazy” one!
Excellent post! BHT and BHA are other preservatives to be aware of as well. These 3 preservatives (TBHQ, BHT and BHA) are derived from petroleum and cause numerous side effects when ingested. My family follows the Feingold diet which eliminates all petroleum based preservatives as well as food dyes and artificial flavorings. We started this because of my daughters behavioral/neurological issues and it has brought amazing changes. I can’t imagine ever allowing these toxic additives back into our diet. Thanks for spreading the word! And don’t feel alone…I’m THAT mom too. =-)
Thanks for your comment. I am familiar with the basis of the Feingold diet. What I find ironic about it is the fact that it even has to exist! I mean we shouldn’t have food that we need to worry about avoiding due to there being harmful substances in them. The Feingold diet is the way people used to eat before all the junk was added to foods! It is good that has shows people what to avoid. Does he include a list of foods that contain these substances? I was thinking about making one and providing substitutes.
Yes, the Feingold Program has an extensive shopping guide that is continually updated with names of products that are “safe”. Unfortunately many times these preservatives are not even listed on the packages, so you can’t always tell by reading labels. Just one example, in most cheese sticks the inside of the individual packages are lined with chemical preservative which leaches into the cheese stick. Since it’s not technically in the food it doesn’t have to be disclosed, Preservatives are used to line/coat many commercial packages or used in the oils that are listed as an ingredient. The ingredient is listed, but not the additive it contains. =-(
The Feingold Program encompasses even more than preservatives in food and because of the constant product research they do, there is a fee to purchase their materials. It is well worth it in my opinion.
By the way…I don’t get any benefit or get paid to advertise for them. =-P I have just seen amazing results in my daughter from getting these poisons out of her body.
I worked in a daycare center for 7 years and the food (if you can call it that) that they serve is deplorable. The center I worked for had to meet USDA guidelines and they still served a different variety of cracker and juice for every snack. I know work in an elementary school and the lunches are so deplorable that it has me considering homeschooling! People think I’m nuts but I don’t want my kids to a) be tempted with the crap or b) try to learn next to 20 other students loaded with sugar and various other chemicals. The chocolate milk carton alone sends me over the edge daily! Does no one care that, on the ingredient list, right after milk is listed sugar then high fructose corn syrup? And don’t get me started and sun chip’s “breakfast blend”.
Wow… I actually thought dyes and all those number-y thingies were bad, but you can actually buy food containing petroleum in the US! Europe isn’t that bad after all. Good on you for setting them straight. I still can’t understand why schools etc give that kind of crap. You can give them delicious healthy stuff for the same price, and it’s not like they’ll be asking for it if they have something more yum to eat
What a great post! My husband was the first to get on the no TBHQ bandwagon when a few years back he saw that his beloved Girl Scout cookies had it in their ingredients
He quickly learned that the cookies sold two hours away (where his cousin lives) weren’t being made with it and started buying from them instead of the neighbor girls 
I love that I now have a post to reference for friends and family who start asking questions about TBHQ. Thanks!
I am glad you have a reference too! Can’t believe the cookies from two hours away don’t have it! That’s interesting… now I’m curious…
Happy New Year! Wow I am so glad I blog hopped over here. This past year I have been working very hard to become a more natural and organic family (still working on hubby a little). I have no idea where to start and like most people figured that the food on the shelves was okay. I have never really read all the ingredients before so thank you for pointing it out. I look forward to reading more of your blog.
Wow,
definitley something to think about. I strive to be a much more healthy conscience mother. But it is everywhere. How do you avoid it? I am thinking about going home and throwing away every snack food I have. Might as well begin with getting the kids out of the habit of eating these types of foods first, then start integrating more healthier options into our household. I think if I go cold turkey and then bring the healthier options in I might face resistence, but if they have to go a while with nothing maybe the healither options will seem more appealing. Any other suggestions on how to turn my family around?
Start a little bit at a time! Not sure how old your ids are, if younger make it so that they can’t have a snack before having some fruit or baby carrots or something, or snack can be cheese and cracker, apple dipped in organic peanut better, etc. If older, at least you can explain things to them. I find that many junk snacks have healthier versions made by different companies. What are some snacks you have that you want to replace? Maybe that will help me offer suggestions.
Well I have a 14 , 10, 3, and 9 month old. So I am across the board. My older boys love chips, and will pass up the fruit bowl every time and they basically go into the refrigerator at will. Now my 3 year old she obviously cannot get snack with out my help, but she loves yogurt (usually the sweet kind), muffins and gold fish.
I am so thankful for your posts. They are helping me to be better informed. Thankfully, my daughter’s preschool did not see it as a problem for me to provide her snacks. I would just prefer to control her access, rather than ask to see every label of what they are giving her. We aren’t perfect, but we do as much as we can with the resources that we have.
What a great post! My hbasund was the first to get on the no TBHQ bandwagon when a few years back he saw that his beloved Girl Scout cookies had it in their ingredients He quickly learned that the cookies sold two hours away (where his cousin lives) weren’t being made with it and started buying from them instead of the neighbor girls I love that I now have a post to reference for friends and family who start asking questions about TBHQ. Thanks!
Hear, hear! I am also THAT MOM
I worekd in a daycare center for 7 years and the food (if you can call it that) that they serve is deplorable. The center I worekd for had to meet USDA guidelines and they still served a different variety of cracker and juice for every snack. I know work in an elementary school and the lunches are so deplorable that it has me considering homeschooling! People think I’m nuts but I don’t want my kids to a) be tempted with the crap or b) try to learn next to 20 other students loaded with sugar and various other chemicals. The chocolate milk carton alone sends me over the edge daily! Does no one care that, on the ingredient list, right after milk is listed sugar then high fructose corn syrup? And don’t get me started and sun chip’s “breakfast blend”.
I’m not sure if we have TBHQ in food products in Australia because I’ve never heard of it or seen it on an ingredient listing. But I will look out for it now. My solution would be to bake for the class on those days and bring in simple yummy baked treats. That way, some kids learn that snacks can come from *gasp* a home kitchen and they can taste good too.
Thank you for the article. I am just starting to research this because we are having unexplained behavioral issues with our five year old daughter and we found ONE connection to when the problems occur … she had Eggo Waffles that morning. The problems were only occasional and random, but then intensified. Since we eat very well for the most part and something like an instant waffle is only an occasional “treat” we were able to pinpoint it. When researching we discovered the TBHQ link. Now after reading through these comments I will be reasearching the Feingold Program!
Kids, my “crazy” mother in law started educating me back in 1973 when our first son was born. I was drinking diet Coke and pretty much starving myself to maintain my figure. I was sick all the time. She sounded so off the wall then, but we LOVE our babies, right? I wanted to do whatever was best for them. My kids got oatmeal cookies with raisins and sesame snacks for treats, my daughter told her kindergarten teacher that white bread “makes you “atarded” according to G-ma! That son is now a Naturopathic physician, and he attributes it to the old adage at our dinner table: “You can be excused when you have eaten all the green stuff”. Grandma was ahead of her time. I think it gets harder all the time to feed your kids ‘right’ but the behavioral difference will blow you away. Artificial coloring, artificial sweeteners of all kinds, and sugar in any form but organic honey are going to cause problems, now and in the future. And put them to bed at 8:00, people! If it makes you unpopular, tough. Your job as a parent is to do what is best for your babies. Little people need a LOT of sleep to refresh and renew, they are growing an an enormous rate! Okay, this Nana is finished now…
Could this be a link to the childhood obesity epidemic?? Thanks for writing this and making me more aware. I definitely need to get more educated on this topic!
Make your kid exercise. That’s the main link.
There is no secret. Get them outside.
This is why I had to quit working in the daycare system- it drove me batty seeing the foods they fed kids; knowing that their parents didn’t even care. My son might start preschool in a couple of years and I will be proud to soon be known as ‘that mommy.’
I have been feeling SICK to my stomach every time I’ve had a few (or MORE) Cheez-It snack crackers lately…then I looked at the ingredients. TBHQ – I did a little research online, and also found your article while roaming around, looking for WHY my stomach had so much pain after eating those crackers. It might be the TBHQ, which I didn’t even know was in them.
Thanks for your caution – the bag went into the garbage can, after about the third time of my stomach feeling pain. I didn’t make the connection until today. We had received the crackers, along with some other food items…but we won’t be eating those anymore. I’m not sure what to do to feel better…am drinking water and eating a raw apple now, hoping to ‘counter-act’ whatever caused this pain. ick.
How can we change peoples minds. It is just as you said, The FDA approved it so it must be ok! Sooooo far from the truth. Is it really too much to comprehend that this world revolves around money?? People look at me crazy for trying to tell them that diet soda is worse or that gum has cancerous chemicals in it. I have been researching for 7 years now going on 8. The things I have found are astonishing! But its so much easier for people to just go with the flow and not stand up against the current and use their voice. Shouldn’t we who eat have a say in how our foods are produced. Or grown! Not made by some scientist in a lab!! ugh makes me so heated lol
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