The Adventures of Baby Arthur

by Lincoln

I was surfing through Netflix's Instant Playlist the other night when I decided to watch the documentary, Food Inc., for no particular reason. (And almost on cue, an article about faulty beef treatment with ammonia showed up on the NYTimes.com.) The 94 minute documentary covers a broad number of issues, but to make a long story short, we don't really think about where our food comes from do we? Food Inc. attempts to follow the trail from the supermarket to the source and it exposes an alarming number of issues that everyone should know about.

The story of Kevin Kowalcyk resonated deeply. Kevin was a perfectly healthy 2-year old child until he suddenly became ill and died in a span of 12 days. The diagnosis: E.coli O157:H7 poisoning, from several hamburgers he had eaten during a family vacation before he passed. Since then, Kevin's mother, Barbara Kowalcyk, has made it her mission to prevent such a tragedy from happening again. Her efforts have resulted in the sponsorship of new legislation, appropriately named Kevin's Law, that would empower the USDA power to shut down plants that repeatedly produce meat contaminated with E-coli or other deadly pathogens. But the story is the same as it is for many issues in this country. The bill is not currently on the Congress floor as a result of resistance from the powerful meat lobby.

How did this all happen? Over the last few decades, the food industry has undergone consolidation and production of our food has moved away from the small farmer towards several extremely large and powerful corporations, such as Tyson and Cargill. Almost everything we buy in the supermarket can be traced back to these mega-companies. The mechanization, automation and factory line style production was introduced in order to maximize profits. Animal feed is engineered so cows, pigs, chickens and other produce can be raised from birth to slaughter in the shortest time possible. The feed used is often unhealthy and unnatural, which has led to the introduction of bacteria like E-coli into the system. To make matters worse, the animals are often crammed together in tight spaces and they are basically standing in their own feces for their entire lives. Add these two factors together and what you end up are the mass contaminations that we've been reading about in the news for the last 10 years.

To combat this problem, some companies have been washing the meat with ammonia! (NYT Article) Food Inc. attributes many of the health problems we see in this country as a direct result of all the various chemicals that are introduced during the factory-style production of our food.

The documentary really enforced what Liz and I have been trying or best to do when it comes to groceries since Arthur was born. When given a choice, we always buy the organic option. However, it's pretty impossible to only eat local and organic foods in our society and I do enjoy a McDonald's meal every once in awhile. But we won't be feeding Arthur that anytime soon!

I also started thinking about our trip to Dutchess County (Day 2) and remembered the farms we visited, the fresh food and just how clean and simple everything was. You see the animals grazing and that's where the food is from... not from some dark, busy factory plant somewhere no one knows about. I'm glad that the small farmer lives on.

It might be worth the added cost of seeking out the local options and buy from places like Fleischer's Meats and stick to grass-fed beef. I'm glad we're lucky enough to have such options here in NYC at least. I think even doing this half of the time will probably be better than not at all.

Labels: feeding, food, parenting

by Lincoln



If we had to pick a favorite "Arthur first", the first taste of solid food would rank up near the top. Let's face it, a baby's reaction to first tastes can be priceless! (Above: That really is Arthur's first solid food experience, and he did NOT like his applesauce!) And I'll never forget how his face turned so red after trying a taste of Chana Saag! I didn't think it was that spicy! But, entertainment value aside, Liz and I love to eat and I enjoy cooking as a hobby. Food and mealtime is an important part of our family life, so once Arthur was able to eat some good solid food, we were excited.

We started Arthur on solid food at precisely 6 months of age after Dr. Frenchy gave us his dissertation on solid foods:

Dr. Frenchy: "Just let him eat what you eat. And then he won't be a picky eater later on, trust me."

Us: "Wait, eat what we eat? He doesn't really have teeth, do you mean blend up whatever we're eating?"

Dr. Frenchy: "Yeah, do that."

Us: "How about Congee? It's like porridge, it's a rice dish."

Dr. Frenchy: "(Angrily) Just let him eat what YOU eat!!"

OK, so the exchange didn't quite happen exactly that way. Dr. Frenchy didn't know what Congee was and mistook it for the baby rice cereal, which is the kind of special "baby food stuff" he meant for us to avoid. Dr. Frenchy's approach to allergies was also a bit different. His position was to: 1) Let the baby try whatever the food is. 2) If he has a reaction, then stop feeding him it. 3) Try again later to see if he reacts the same way. If he does, then he's probably allergic.

We 100% bought into Dr. Frenchy's philosophy. It made a lot of sense to me. I've never avoided eating anything in my entire life and I have no known allergies. When I was in the 5th grade, I was diagnosed by a pediatrician to be allergic to just about everything! I mean he said I was allergic to tea, grass, and a whole slew of other things that I don't even remember. Even at that young age, I laughed it off and completely disregarded the doctor's orders. My mom surprisingly went along with this and I ended up fine. You could say that it's not my philosophy to coddle. I think a little fun in the mud with the germs can go a long way too. And here was a doctor that agreed with me!

Arthur has never eaten a bite of baby food in his entire life. It's not like we didn't try (organic with all natural ingredients of course), he wouldn't eat it! At first we gave him a heavy diet of Congee made with a variety of different meat and vegetable combinations. As time went on and he grew more teeth, we would blend up whatever we were eating. By about 12 months, he was eating his food "nearly" as-is (also an exciting day!). Nearly meaning we would still dice up the meats and serve him softer foods that he wouldn't have trouble chewing. However, the blender was out!

Through it all, I would only serve him food that I would personally eat. I would put the same seasonings that I would put in my own food, despite the objections of Grandma, who firmly believes that children shouldn't eat anything with flavor! I've been fighting Grandma on that one. Although I wasn't able to fight off the meal of oatmeal mixed with eggs (YUCK!!), overall, Arthur has been eating what we eat as Dr. Frenchy ordered. Besides, he has already figured out how to SPIT out whatever he doesn't like!

His top favorites:

-Porridge with pork and frozen vegetables
-Steamed flounder with ginger and scallion with white rice (True to a Chinese baby, Arthur LOVES rice)
-Yams
-Sweet Corn - he cannot get enough of it. He literally will grab the corn and not let it go.

There doesn't seem to be a heck of a lot of actual research on whether or not certain types of foods should be emphasized or avoided. You can find "expert advice" on spicy foods and guides for making baby food. The American Academy of Pediatrics does provide guidance on certain types of foods (that not all pediatricians agree with!). Many seem to think that rice cereal is the best first solid food (To the chagrin of Dr. Frenchy!). But I think there is evidence, even if it's anecdotal, that the guidance on baby food is mostly driven by culture. I've heard from friends and TV of Korean and South Asian children eating super-hot food from a very young age!

Regardless, Arthur has proved to be a really great eater with an excellent appetite. Luckily, we haven't encountered any food allergies either. I look forward to the day that we can go out for nice juicy porterhouse!

Labels: feeding, food, parenting