Is There Healthy Food at McDonald’s?

Yesterday when the kids were watching Spongebob, a McDonald’s commercial came on. It showed all the happy kids, and then said that they now offer “Happy Meals with 1% milk, chicken nuggets made with all white meat, and apple slices“.

My translation:

YIPPEE.

• Milk with the healthy fats removed and replaced with powdered milk in order to get the milky consistency back – powdered milk contains oxidized (damaged) cholesterol…do we really want to give that to our kids? (Read more at the healthy milk post.)
• Chicken nuggets from chickens fed who-knows-what and raised in confinement causing them to be so unhealthy that they need all sorts of drugs to keep them alive, which we then ingest.
• Apples from who-knows-where and probably packaged months and months ago, but you’d never know it because of all the nasty chemical preservatives they’re floating in.

photo by Cosmic Kitty

Yes, it’s good that they’re trying to offer what they think are healthier menu options, but I just don’t want anyone to fall for it!

That Happy Meal is almost as crappy for your kid’s bodies as a typical happy meal:

• Burgers made with meat that is likely from thousands of different cows in every bite, all raised in confinement and fed junk, on a bun with refined flour and trans fats.
• Poison sticks made with potatoes that were probably processed months ago, fried in terribly unhealthy fat. (I don’t care if they end up offering a trans fat-free version, if it’s a newer oil, like canola, soy, safflower, etc., it’s still not a good option! Read about what Cheeseslave cooks her homemade fries in…yum!)
• A pop chock full of high fructose corn syrup, not to mention preservatives, artificial flavors & colors.

What about McDonald’s salads, you ask?

Compared to the menu items already mentioned, yes, the salads would be an improvement, depending on what’s in those dressings (watch for high fructose corn syrup, MSG, trans fats, etc.) But compared to a salad with fresh ingredients from the farm market or your garden and homemade dressings…no comparison! (No comparison in taste, either, as you probably know.)

Deep breath…Ooooh, this is fun to get going like this!

Hopefully I’m not annoying you as much as I do our teenager: “Mom, don’t start.”

OK, fine, I’ll move on now…

In a related article, read this from the Los Angeles Times: Panel OK’s one-year ban on new fast-food restaurants in South L.A.

• My other fast food post – hopefully this disgusting information will really help you break the fast food habit.
• Need healthier options than fast food? This is the list I refer to on those crazy days when it’s 5:00 and I have no idea what I’m feeding everyone.
• Enough about food (never thought you’d hear me say that, did ya?), let’s talk about babies. I take care of a sweet baby girl in my day care a couple days a week and get the best snuggles. Do you know anyone who is pregnant? They might like to read this post about natural parenting. (And good nutrition info for preggies and babies.)
• Speaking of babies, now let’s talk about sex…want to know why & how to get the spark back into your marriage? It relates to nutrition, honest.

(Many more topics along the right in the sidebar!)

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