Coloring Agents to Avoid When You Buy Food

Artificial colors do not occur in nature. Many are made from coal tar and can contain up to ten parts per million of arsenic and lead and still be approved by the FDA. Still they make food attractive. Babies and kids like brightly colored foods and it is easy for them to want these foods more than things that are healthier for them because they tend to be motivated to put things in their mouth that have visual appeal.

Still foods with artificial colors are terrible to feed any member of your family. They can cause allergic reactions, hyperactivity and ADD in children, may contribute to visual and learning disorders or cause nerve damage. The use of coloring in products normally indicates that other natural ingredients that may contain the color, like oranges, have not been used.

Here is a list of the worst coloring agents –
Blue #1, found in baked goods, candy, and soft drinks, has been shown to damage the chromosomes in a cell's nucleus and cause retardation in both kids and adults. Stay away from giving your kids those popsicles or Freezies that have this blue coloring. Jell-O brand products also contain it.
Blue #2, which is found in candy, may cause brain tumors.
Citrus Red #1 is sprayed on green oranges to make them look ripe so even if you are making juice or puree for your baby you could be giving him or her poisonous chemical additive that causes cancer. Wash and peel the skin off citrus fruit to be safe.
Citrus Red #2, used to color the skins of some Florida oranges, can cause cancer if the peel is eaten.
Red #3 is often added to canned cherry pie filling, maraschino cherries, baked goods and ice cream. Studies have linked this dye to nerve damage and to thyroid cancer.
Red #40 is found in soda, candy, gelatin desserts, pastry, pet food, and sausage, and is a suspected carcinogen. Be careful when serving Baby Jello.
Yellow #5 is the second most widely used colorant, and it contributes to behavioral disturbances in children, and can cause allergic reactions. It is found in gelatin desserts and baked goods.
Yellow #6 can cause tumors in the adrenal glands and kidneys. It is found in beverages, sausage, baked goods, candy, and gelatin.

If you want healthy kids, with good memories and attention spans that are happy and disease free then make sure you are reading labels.

Parenting Tips
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Why You Need to Teach Your Kids to Eat Well

Eating well starts and ends with you. You need to teach your kids from a very young age when they are toddlers how to eat well so they do not end up like so many of the fat young American teens that you see everywhere today.

Eating well is a process that starts with you. First you must shop and cook well for your child and then you must teach him or her how to shop and cook well too. Teaching them about organic and whole foods keeps them healthy.

A child that eats well from a young age tends to be a healthier individual who is less likely to suffer from any kind of a disease. Kids that are well nourished tend to be more do better in school and have better memories. They also are more emotionally balanced and have a better ability to concentrate. This is especially true of the child that is not raised on sugar. He or she tends to be a calm, productive person who can retain information and focus on one thing at a time.

If food is approached in a positive way without being made into a reward then your child will grow up with a healthy self image. He does not need to resort to behaviors like anorexia or bulimia. You will also raise a child that is not going to use food for comfort.

Teaching your kid to shop and eat well has another benefit. Your child will have more money in the bank than most because he or she will not be spending a lot of extra cash on expensive junk food the craving and desire for bad foods that are laden with sugar, salt and fat will simply not be there.

If you raise your child to have a healthy lifestyle he or she is also less likely to get sick. He or she will be less of a burden on the medical system and also be able to keep money that might have been spent on medical bills.

Feeding your child well and teaching him or her good lifestyle habits is a gift that will last for a lifetime and keep on giving good health for many years to come. Even better those good habits will be passed down from you through them to their kids when they have them as well.

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