What to Expect the Toddler Years (183 page)

Peel nonorganic potatoes (before or after cooking), say some experts, to remove the sprout-inhibiting chemicals on the skin. These same experts say that, contrary to what has been commonly believed, most of the nutrients will
not
be lost with the skin.

Choose imperfect produce. Fruits and vegetables that aren’t completely free of blemishes are more likely to have been
grown and shipped with a minimum of chemicals. You don’t have to look for worm-eaten apples, but do try to bypass those that look too good to be true.

Wash produce thoroughly before it is eaten. Use a sudsy solution made from water and a few drops of a special produce-washing liquid (sold in health food stores) or dish (
not
dishwasher) detergent to remove as much surface chemical residue as possible along with any microorganisms and dirt. Follow up with a
very
thorough cold-water rinse. Scrub vegetables that can take scrubbing with a sturdy vegetable brush. Break up broccoli and cauliflower, and separate spinach, kale, lettuce, and the leaves of other greens, before washing. Discard the outer leaves of head lettuces and cabbages and peel fruits and vegetables when practical; trim the leaves and tops of celery.

Cooking does reduce chemical residues somewhat; unfortunately, it also reduces the nutritive content of foods to some degree. So alter nate between cooked and raw fruits and vegetables.

Feed your toddler as varied a diet as possible in order to reduce the risk of repeated exposure to the chemicals in any one food. (The pesticides and other chemicals used vary from fruit to fruit and vegetable to vegetable.)

If you’re still using “junior” foods for your toddler (they’re convenient but otherwise unnecessary), buy organic varieties, such as Earth’s Best, when pos sible. Not only are they pesticide-free, but they don’t contain the sugar, chicken fat, and sodium found in many other commercial toddler meals.

Be wary of irradiated foods. Though irradiation, which can kill dangerous microorganisms, has been approved by the FDA for use with certain foods, some experts believe more study is needed to prove definitively that foods so treated are entirely safe. Until more is known, it’s your judgment call; you may want to err on the side of caution.

Avoid processed foods containing questionable chemical additives, such as Acesulfame-K, artificial colorings, BHA, BHT, propyl gallate, saccharine, and sodium nitrite. Since some individuals turn out to be sensitive to sulfites, MSG (monosodium glutamate), and HVP (hydrolyzed vegetable protein), it’s better not to serve foods containing these additives. Likewise, since young children should not be limiting calories, foods sweetened with aspartame (Equal, NutraSweet) or made with the fake fat Olestra (potato chips, for example) are not appropriate for children under two. After that age, they should be allowed only occasionally—because these foods are rarely nutritionally worthy, and because long-term effects on growing children are not yet known.

Don’t serve your toddler beverages containing caffeine. It is a stimulant, and not suitable for young children. Likewise, don’t give your toddler sips of beverages or bites of food containing alcohol—alcohol is a drug and can be toxic to children.

Meat, poultry, fish—and dairy products.
Many of the same chemicals that contaminate our produce also contaminate animal feed, the water animals drink, and the lakes, rivers, and seas fish live in. In addition, meat and poultry may contain residues from antibiotics or hormones fed them during their lifetimes (to prevent or treat illness or to promote growth or milk production). To reduce the risk from animal products contaminated with this mix of chemicals:

When possible, buy meat, poultry, and fish that is certified organic or chemical-free. (Free-range, incidentally, doesn’t mean chemical-free.)

Alternate serving meat, poultry, and fish. If the beef has traces of hormones,
the poultry of antibiotics, and the fish of PCBs, at least your family will be consuming less of each chemical.