While my biological clock continues to click and my quest for a
suitor has been put on pause, I’ve been welcomed with the task of
watching, feeding, changing, playing and bathing my niece Layla
Sherrell. Though I didn’t birth her from my loins, I suppose it’s true
when they say that you better be careful what you name your babies,
because names hold a lot of weight. Ms. Layla is fiesty, independent and
stubborn. All signs point to the traits of moi. And though we’ve had to
have a discussion (mostly she staring at me as I speak), of how she
can’t eat my iphone or chew on my locs, her most recent obsession, we
both agree on one thing: food.
Baby Layla isn’t very particular when it comes to what she eats. But I
am. I swapped out her bag of items her mom supplied me with in favor of
some organic versions of the mush she adores. After all, if she were
mine, I’d want the best so I give it.
I can’t help but ponder if my obsession to go organic is plagued with
too much rhetoric and not enough factual evidence that backs up my
belief that toxic exposure begins during childhood and reducing it as
much as possible is a necessity.
Here’s a little taste of what I found to be true about why we need to go organic for baby:
On Good Health,
a published site of Seton Healthcare, the article suggests that through
conclusive studies organic baby food is in fact healthier and contains
less pesticides which can be “extremely beneficial, especially before
the age of two when baby brains are developing at a rapid rate and the
organs are most likely to be sensitive to exposure to harmful
substances.”
With the growing number of children facing the autism epidemic (1 in 88 to be exact; see here), it’s a fight out there to make sure our kids are getting off to a healthy start. According to an article on BabyCenter
pesticides contribute to a wide range of health problems, including
cancer, lung disease, reproductive problems, and possibly disorders of
the endocrine and immune systems and not to mention have been found to
cross the placenta and therefore are a direct threat to pregnant women.
Layla and I will stick to our natural and organic baby food and
continue to convince her mom to trade in her Costco bargains for greener
pastures (usually $.25 or $.50 cents more than traditional baby food). A
change is gonna come.
Sherrell
Dorsey is an eco-glamour expert, writer, speaker, social entrepreneur
and creator of the blog OrganicBeautyVixen.com – “A Brown Girl’s
Guide to Eco-Glam Living”. Sherrell believes that going green with
your beauty routine doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice your fierce and
fabulous style. Connect with her on twitter and facebook for all things beauty, green, eco-friendly, organic, sustainable and of course… Eco-glam.
I use Plum, Earths Best and I tgink its called Ellas kitchen. My DD loves it! She hates Gerber and Gerbers organics isnt really orvanic to me!
I would definitely have talked to the mother first before switching the baby food, but your intent was good. If I have kids I think making my own purees would be in line with theveffort I would bevwillingbto exert to raise a healthy baby
Congrats on new baby… You are so right there are so many things we have to look out for I tell my inlaws that all the time you were in Jamaica and had natural, fresh foods not the processed chemical laid versions like today. It can be a little much at times but it's well worth it!
We have given her Earth's Best Organic baby food but she will not even eat any jar food. Spoiled her with the real deal.
Wow, Michelle B, I thought I was the only person who puréed food and put them in ice cube trays to freeze! Lol like you say, it is time consuming but at least I knew exactly what my baby was eating! I also have a spray that washes away pesticides and toxins that I spray my fruits and veggies with before eating myself or when I puréed his baby food. If I just didn't have the time or patience one week, I'd buy store bought organic baby food. My favorite brands were Ella's Kitchen from Target, Plum Organics, and it's another brand from Target that I can't think of right now(darn it)! I'm pregnant again and I will be doing the same thing with this baby. Ppl back in the day didn't have to worry about as much as we do now because they were able to grow their own food
My post keeps erasing???
My daughter is 9 months now she is fully breastfed and has only eaten organic foods. I actually make my own baby food. Once or twice a month I buy fruits, veggies and organic free range meats from the whole food market. Usually on a Sunday I prepare several different foods and meals, I puree the foods and freeze it in ice cube trays (works great for portion control) I then bag & label them. This makes a month’s worth of food in one day. People say I'm only like this because she's my first child but I feel whether it’s your first or fourth you should want your baby to have the best. There are so many harmful chemical and things in our foods now a day that you have to protect your child as best as you can. I started off saying I was going to just buy organic baby food but because I’m so anal I thought why not make my own and that way I know exactly what’s in it. And it’s very easy. I try to be health conscious when possible, so why not do it for my child. It is sometimes difficult when dealing with family especially my in-laws (Jamaican = great food). It’s always something they are saying she should be eating now that she can eat solids, they always want to feed her different things and I have to be tough and say no, I only give her organic foods. When she turns 2 I may ease up a little idk…
FYI: For those who don't drink cow's milk like me (please research how unhealthy it is) and are looking for a healthy alternative after breast feeding, that has the high fat content needed by toddlers to continue healthy development, coconut milk has very similar nutritional effects as breast milk. It has a healthy caloric, calcium and fat content and the best part is it contains a fat called "Lauric Acid" which is the main fatty acid in breast milk. It's what makes breast milk easily digestible and also protects baby from infection and boost immune system.
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No kids as yet, but this feature reminds me of a funny episode with my nephew when he was approaching 2, he's now 14. One day I decided to give him soy milk. Without tasting it, he looked at me and the bottle and began to back away. He definitely knew the difference in milk.
I agree with PP that said when you know better do better. While all my children eat table food, we have a garden every summer, I can our produce and try to buy from local produce stands when possible. The taste is so much better IMO! Of course I live in BFE. Although I have yet to find free range cattle locally I am still searching as long as the price is right. Thanks for the post.
FYI: Costco sells a large variety of organic foods.
I like organic and grain fed with no hormones injected. There is a big difference in the taste to me and freshness as well. If I have children I will most likely make their food by blending it, fresh organic veggies and fruits.
Megan Montgomery
While I will agree that some companies are playing game with their labels: 'cage free' to give the impression of healthier chickens, try your best to buy foods that are 'certified organic'.
I once bought a bag of oranges from those guys that sell produce from a truck for a dollar and I swear to you it had a warning label in the bag. It turns out the damn thing had so much pesticide that it was outlawed in 3 states…..oranges!!! so no, not all fruits and veggies are equal.
My kids are 3 and 14 months. My 3 year old ate traditional baby food until he wouldn't eat it anymore and moved to table food. My 14 month old never ate pre-pureed food. I made her food myself.
I think the organic thing has become a tad bit commercialized and everyone is labeling their food organic. I didn't concentrate on that too much, I was more concerned about the food being processed and preserved. The labels say there are no preservatives but, how can that be? You can't put natural food in a can and it still be good months later without a preservative.
I dont have kids as yet but many of my friends have children and I'm not sure if they give their kids organic food but i will definately suggest it to them. The way I see it is that the earlier children learn to eat healthy, they will continue to eat healthy throughout their lives. Very informative article.
My 8-month old is still breast fed as well as I make 99% of his food mixed with an occasional store bought organic meal made by Plum Organics. While I pregnant, I made sure that my diet consisted of of healthy foods and organic whenever possible. I followed the Bradley Method which helped with making sure my nutrition was on track.
I have a 1 year old & 3 year old & I personally didn't or don't feed them organic food. How do I know if it's truly organic or just being labeled that way. I feel that as long as I'm feeding them their fruits & vegetables & dairy then I'm doing right by them. I don't see anything wrong with it, it's just something I choose not to do.
Brooke B.
I have a 4 yr old and a 9 month old, and I definitely buy organic veggies/fruits/meats when possible. I made a lot of my own baby food for my first since she was in a home daycare. My youngest is in a traditional daycare which requires baby food to be pre-packaged so I buy organic baby food, which is fine since he mostly gets breastmilk anyway. Some good organic brands that my baby loves are Earth's Best, Happy Baby and Sprout.
I don't have kids yet either, but in my line of work we talk a lot about a term called "preconception health", which really just means taking optimal care of our health BEFORE pregnancy, as what you do to your body over a lifetime can and will eventually effect your child. For this reason, I feel that in addition to knowing how health conditions and risk factors could affect a woman or her unborn baby, we should probably ALL consider the harmful effects of chemicals and pesticides for when we are ready to conceive (especially since most pregnancies aren't planned!) All that to say, I try to eat organic with most of the "dirty dozen" but tend to go cheap with the less vulnerable foods. It's definitely a sacrifice.
I have an 11 and 2 year old and I breastfeed and made my baby own baby food. It's time consuming but it's cheaper and alot healthier! Just do your research and figure out what works best for you.
Very relevant article!! Currently, I do not have children but plan to practice this lifestyle when I do.
I had my daughter 20 years ago. Back then there wasn't too much concern about the types of foods that were best for your baby. I mean I remember being told about the health benefits of breast feeding over formula. And I knew not to feed my child table food when she was able to eat. I did stick to baby food, and baby cereal, etc. But there wasn't much of the organic thing going around.
However, when and if my daughter decides to have children. I will definately try to sway her to feed her children; in a much healthier way than I did with her! My motto is, when you know better, do better!
Interesting read! Although, when my daughter was on the mushie food, I neve rbought organic I do frequently blend and jar small portions of our meals for her. Now that I think back, she was eating good! LoL
We are planning baby #2 and I think I may try the organic thing with this one. I am shocked to find they are only pennies in the difference.
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