I’m torn. This is a topic I mull over constantly. It’s the struggle between my life as a nutrition professional and my life as a working parent in a busy household.

Build it and they will come:

Diet Coke. Millions of women drink it. There are also millions of women who suffer from osteoporosis (brittle bones), which is in part caused by a lack of calcium intake throughout women’s lives. Simple solution, right? Add calcium to Diet Coke. The women keep drinking Diet Coke and at the same time get more calcium. Problem solved.

This week, Sara Lee announced they are adding omega-3 fatty acids to some of their breads. This type of omega-3 fatty acids may help with brain development as well as provide protection against other diseases like heart disease. For parents, this seems like a great thing. After all, it appears easier to convince a child to eat bread than salmon, herring, anchovies and sardines, which are natural sources of these beneficial fats.

These are just two examples. This is done all the time. Single nutrients, which have health benefits, are added to foods, making it convenient for all of us to take advantage of the benefits of these nutrients.

The Other Hat:

But then I slip into my role as a dietitian. At the end of the day, what I want is for people – including those living in my household (okay, maybe not the guinea pig) – to eat and enjoy a variety of foods which are naturally loaded with beneficial nutrients. So I want my son Jack to drink milk and eat yogurt and cheese to get his calcium. I make banana bread with whole wheat flour to bump up the fiber. I want to become good at cooking seafood. As a health professional, I believe whole foods, those closest to nature are the right choice.

The struggle:

But what I want isn’t always reality. Jack still refuses to eat broccoli, despite my role modeling, my serving it in 10 different ways, my work to introduce it to him again and again and again. I travel some for work, and really, who knows exactly what my husband serves when I am gone. While health-minded, he will tend to take Jack out to eat or pick up a pizza for dinner when I am traveling. And like many of you, by Friday, the toll of the week has gotten to me, and a fresh dinner, with half my plate filled with beautiful vegetables accompanied by salmon cooked to perfection isn’t in the cards.

So what to do? What I do is try my best. I make rules (milk is served with every meal in my house), I take Jack to the local Farmers’ market so he can appreciate where food comes from, and I make sure there is plenty of healthy food is in my house. But I buy fortified foods, too, to round out what I might not be getting right. Even in my house, it’s a work in progress.

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