There’s no way around it: yogurt-covered snacks are imposters.
They’re fakers, pretending to be healthy, but they’re not quite the real deal. And even when they’re not “so bad,” (i.e. they’re homemade), yogurt-covered snacks foster the wrong habits.
(Please accept my apologies if you’re a yogurt-covered-lovin’ fan but, read on…)
About three years ago I wrote about yogurt-covered snacks, and it continues to be one of my most popular posts.
Who knew so many people were searching for info on this topic?
If you’re a regular reader, either you can remember or you can guess what I said.
- Yogurt-covered snacks aren’t really coated in yogurt. They’re coated primarily in sugar and oil. YUM!
- Treats like yogurt-covered (or really, oil-covered) raisins teach your kids that both raisins and yogurt should look and taste like candy.
- Give your kids yogurt-covered foods occasionally. When you do, teach them to think of them as the treats that they are, not the healthy foods they are claiming to be.
If you’re a new reader (or need a refersher), read: Is “Yogurt-Covered” Really Yogurt?
Why bring up yogurt-covered snacks now? It’s simple: I want to talk to you about proportion.
Proportion is one of the main lessons you want to teach your kids about surviving the holidays with their healthy eating habits intact.
You can’t get proportion right if you’re not…
- Absolutely honest about what constitutes healthy.
- Paying attention to the kinds of habits you’re fostering.
Proportion=eating really healthy foods more frequently than marginally healthy or down-right junky foods.
The way to get proportion right over the holidays is to bookend heavy-eating days with really healthy days.
That’s right: you don’t have to worry about how unhealthy one particular day is if the days around the junk-food-fest are healthy. For more on bookends, read Tips for a Healthy Thanksgiving.
Are Yogurt-Covered Pretzels Healthy?
By themselves, pretzels barely pass the Potato Chip Challenge. But when they’re covered in sugar and oil? Not so much.
Yogurt-covered pretzels benefit from the health halo that surrounds yogurt. But health halo foods can ruin your kids’ habits.
Do Yogurt-Covered Pretzels Foster Healthy Eating Habits?
Turning nuts into a sweet treat, for instance, by giving your kids yogurt-covered almonds teaches them to eat sweet treats—not nuts. In other words, yogurt-covered snacks might just be a gateway drug.
I’m not against real yogurt-covered snacks.
Although you might be surprised by how much sugar goes into them. I’m just saying that during this heavy-eating, holiday time, it’s best to skip the imposters—the pretend-to-be-healthy snacks—in favor of truly healthy snacks, used to bookend the heavy-hitters.
~Changing the conversation from nutrition to habits.~
