As she was drinking it sitting on the picnic table outside our camper, I snapped a picture of her on my phone.
My mind started wandering and pondering as she drank. I have seen news headlines questioning whether children should be given chocolate milk or any flavored milk. Chef Jamie Oliver has built a name for himself by pot stirring on this topic, specifically around flavored milk in schools and that being a key trigger to childhood obesity.
When I visited Wife of Dairyman and their family dairy farm earlier this year, Nancy and I watched Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution television show the night I was there. It’s the only time I did. From the one episode, I became acutely aware that suddenly chocolate milk had a black eye. Then last week after my colleagues and I toured the oldest dairy in California while being hosted by my dairy farmer friend Dino Giacomazzi, I thought of where milk comes from and why I don’t thinking adding a little chocolate or sugar really takes from the milk or harms them in any way.
To top it all off, my friend Aimee at Everyday Epistle posted on Milk Wars, discussing competitive parenting and the wrestling between conventional vs. organic food choices.
As my mind raced on these topics, Miss A kept drinking her chocolate milk. She looked up at me with big milk mustache grin and announced “All done!”
My time to think about chocolate milk was complete. We were back to bike riding and park playing.
I didn’t have much else to consider. My pondering on the chocolate milk debate was summed up in my mind.
It’s chocolate milk after all. Kids should drink milk. It’s healthy, nutritious and if a little chocolate makes them drink it then I am all for it opposed to not drinking it. Chocolate milk will never be the brunt of the problem of childhood obesity issues in America yet is taking the bullets.
Aren’t there kids starving in our cities, counties, states, country and of course, globally? We should not be wasting too much energy debating the good and bad of chocolate milk. Regardless if it’s lack of food or too much food, we need food choice education and outreach more for families. We need less finger pointing and less bullets with more positive outreach to change conversations about food.
Every day for me, milk is milk. It’s from cows, cared from and raised by farmers I know and trust. My kids drink plain, strawberry or chocolate milk, with their meals and for a snack, on a cold day and on hot days. Now, let’s get on to the next debate and not fire bullets at moms or schools or anyone who choose chocolate milk.
What do you think is the real “food revolution” that is worthy of discussion and debate?
Katie
I agree with you! I do not have any children, but if I did I would let them drink chocolate milk. It would be hypocritical to tell them “NO”, when I the hubby and I are a huge fans of chocolate milk. I am not a big milk drinker, but will pour a glass of chocolate milk. I enjoy its sweet smooth coolness and think to myself “I can have a “treat” and still get the nutritional benefits of milk that my body needs!”
I’m with you Katie. I grew up on a dairy farm and with that had milk in every possible way. 🙂 My little girl drinks her milk the same way – any way she can get it….so does her mama. 🙂
Miss you guys!
~Aimee
My son had chocolate milk and cheeto’s for lunch yesterday. NO that was not the wisest choice but that is what he asked for. He is almost 3 years of age I think its great to let them express their own wants sometimes and receive them. We were having a day for him anyway. He jumped at a bounce house for 2 1/2 hours! Besides where we were didn’t have any healthy choices. If we were home he would ask for turkey sandwich with cheetos and grapes! And don’t forget the chocolate milk!
My biggest thought on child obesity is its the parents! We are the apple of their eyes or McDonalds of their eye. If we make good decisions they will make good decisions!
Miss A’s timing could not be better – after a hard day of “bike riding, park playing, train riding, zoo watching, Storybook Land touring”, research now shows that chocolate milk is a fantastic post workout recovery drink! Check it out! http://www.whymilk.com/fitness_article/athletes_rethink_drink
Thank you for your support of the dairy industry! Cheers, Miss A! I had chocolate milk as my treat last night! 😉
I just read an article yesterday on CNN that juice is a major cause of childhood obesity. I always try to water my juice down bigtime with water. But that’s difficult.
Feeding kids can be hard. Thank you for saying what I have been thinking about chocolate milk. Definiately not my go-to beverage for Murray, but every once in awhile he will get it!
Lori
http://www.wom-mom.com
I am so tired of parents being guilted about this choice or that choice. Chocolate milk has the nutritional info on the side of the bottle/carton and any mom can read it and see that the good far out weighs the sugar content. As parents, we are responsible for those decisions and shame on Mr. Oliver for trying to confuse parents (and schools) into thinking chocolate milk is the same as eating a candy bar.
I used to really enjoy Mr. Oliver’s cooking shows before he decided to take up this “mission” which feels much more like the agendas of those before him– making money off of the fears of parents.
My kids are so scrawny. The “chunkiest” one is only in the 10th percentile for weight. So now I’m thinking I should give them chocolate milk. Maybe a dosage of 3x a day? 😉
At any rate, I say let them drink chocolate!
I agree! If my kids preferred it, I’d say let them drink chocolate milk. But, for some reason, they both like white milk better. Every once in a while, my daughter likes to go for the strawberry flavor, but not very often!
I grew up on a dairy farm and drank 1 if not 2 glasses of chocolate milk a day along with numerous glasses of white milk. My 3 girls LOVE milk, but I never give them chocolate milk.
Why? Here is where I am totally irrational and I absolutely know it.
I’m afraid they will prefer the chocolate milk and stop drinking white milk. I would die if they stopped loving milk. This dairy farmer at heart couldn’t handle it!
It makes me so happy the days I pick them up from daycare and I find out they had chocolate milk there 🙂
Coming from a dairy farming family, one would think my kids would LOVE milk….I have one that does and the other, my son, who at age three began to refuse consuming milk other than in his cereal or a smoothie.
Luckily, he ADORES chocolate milk, and to control the amount of sugar {and to cut down on the cost}, I mix it myself, here at home. It’s amazing what only a little bit of chocolate {and sugar} can do! It doesn’t take much of the chocolate syrup I use for him to gobble up his glass of milk.
When our family goes out for treats, out to dinner or lunch, or to any event, both my kids choose chocolate milk as their ‘treat’ or drink of choice over anything else.
I’m happy to have found a way for my son to be nourished by a daily supply of essential vitamins that milk contains.
I LOVE giving Adam chocolate milk made with Carnation instant breakfast. It’s LOADED with vitamins. We actually prefer the strawberry version, but the chocolate is good, too. He easily drinks 3x as much milk when it has the carnation in it, and with the extra vitamins, I am glad!
I am glad i’m not the only mom continuing to give her kids chocolate milk (as I have been for ten years) and not really feeling guilty about it. As I wrote on my blog last week, can’t I be pro-chocolate milk?