Most mothers teach their kids to eat a diet that is relatively high in carbohydrates... We emphasize whole grains when we can. Is this the right message?
One of the cruel tricks nature plays on most of us is that our systems tolerate a high-carb diet quite well for a while... Most (though sadly, not all) 18-year-olds can get away with eating lots of sugar and starch. But, just as we cannot expect our eyesight to get better and better as we age, our ability to tolerate the USDA's recommended diet does not get better and better. In fact, it declines. By the time our kids turn 30 or 40, most will be struggling to remain lean and healthy with the very diet that seemed to work when they were in our homes eating corn flakes at our breakfast tables. This is a rude awakening... just as our children take on the responsibilities and pressures of careers and families of their own, the diet we taught them was 'healthy' begins to cause their health to deteriorate.
Why teach your kids to eat 'wrong' -- to eat in a way that will not stand the test of time? The USDA's diet clearly does not work for most adults. If you do not believe this statement, drive to any mall and look around at your fellow shoppers. So why bet on the diet that has been in place for over three decades and has proved to be an epic failure? Why bank on the notion that your kids will be among the lucky few who can eat a carb-rich diet into middle age without health issues? The odds are stacked against your kids.
Skip the USDA's recommendations, and instead serve vintage food that has stood the test of time. Build habits now that will actually work for your kids when they are your age. Eat vintage. Real food. More fat.