OPINION and NEWS: Kids' Lunches Harboring Bacteria--So What?

I was watching CNN this morning when I saw this bit on kids' lunches and how they are too hot and harboring bacteria by lunch time. CNN's chief medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen, reported on how the University of Texas in Austin conducted a study and found 98 percent of the lunches tested were too warm by lunch time. The study was done on 700 packed lunches of 3- to 5-year-olds attending day care.

CNN.com in this article quotes Dr. Steve Abrams, member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Nutrition as saying, "This is a red flag. This means that the recommendations for food safety are not being followed."

Simple recommendation is to pack more ice-packs into the lunch-bag, and one pack may not be enough.

What the article fails to show, and the blurb on TV for the most part, is to say why should we care if our kids eat a little bacteria? Isn't it good for them to eat a little bacteria now and then to get their bellies used to things not being 100 clean? If my daughter is encouraged to eat dirt once in a while, what's a little warm turkey sandwich going to do? Make her burp a little? Maybe boost her immune system so that if she visits Mexico one day she doesn't automatically have to run to the bathroom after the first piece of unfiltered ice chip slides down her throat?

Aren't we getting a little too sterile and scared of a little not-so-fatal bacteria? Ok, I wouldn't be giving sushi to my kid for lunch without tons of ice-packs being involved in their lunchbox, but I probably wouldn't waste sushi on a child's palette anyway.

In my unmedically sound opinion parents are way too concerned about bacteria and a little dirt: hand sanitizer in every corner of every library, classroom, and playzone and anti-bacterial soap in every bathroom. I know superbugs are not a real concern just yet in this country, but it seems to me they will be one day and we're doing all we can to create them. Let the kids eat some warm sandwiches once in a while, let you kids play on the ground and get a little dirt under their nails, let them eat some bread that fell off their highchair from lunch, their kids they're supposed to be growing an immune system not living in a bubble.

Opinion: Waste of Money

Ok I admit it, I spend way more on my daughter's clothing than on my own. I still have shirts from high school for crying out loud (yes that was over a decade ago--couldn't you tell by the "crying out loud phrase?"), then again I did live in Rome, Italy so some of them are still damn nice shirts.

Anyway, the point is I went to Burlington Mall today in Burlington, Mass. and went into a chain baby store. Yes, the clothes are well put-together (which is funny cause their adult line isn't half as nice as their baby line), and yes the clothes are ultra cute, but seriously why would I spend $20+ dollars on a WHITE dress for my infant? Who is doing this? If you are, stop immediately, it's a total waste of money--unless of course you're rich.

I'm a huge fan of Target, eBay, Amazon and even Gymboree has great sales most of the time--and they give you duckets off with their Gymbucks. Sure there is a need to totally geek out and get one or two super cute summer dresses for the little one, but I refuse to spend more than $15 on something (and usually it's more like $8 tops) I know is only going to fit for a few months and probably wind up with a big green pea stain on it.

I wonder what's the most ridiculously expensive baby item out there...I'll have to do some research.