Are your kids eating right at camp?

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Are your kids eating right at camp?

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Heavy on sugar and light on nutrition, the food at many summer camps won't

properly fuel children's canoeing, swimming and sailing

 

By LESLIE BECK

Wednesday, June 23, 2004 - Page A15

 

 

If you're sending your child off to camp this summer, you might want to

give some thought to how well he or she will eat. A survey of 15 camps

across the country revealed that only three have menus that adhere to

Canada's Food Guide.

 

The biggest failures were in providing enough milk products and vegetables,

with many of the menus supplying less than half a child's daily recommended

calcium intake, and some offering no more than two vegetable servings a day.

 

The end of the school year marks the start of summer camp for many kids.

For one week, two weeks or as long as a month, they will leave behind their

cellphones, computer games and MP3 players in favour of swimming suits,

paddles and mosquito repellent.

 

The veteran campers among them will already know the menu choices by heart:

Entrees such as hot dogs, hamburgers, spaghetti with garlic bread, grilled

cheese, submarine sandwiches, pizza and chicken pot pie are regular fare,

usually followed by a sugary dessert. Fruit juice and fruit punch (aka bug

juice) are common thirst quenchers. Vegetables are hard to come by, unless

you count potato salad or corn.

 

Most kids don't spend a lot of time thinking about the food, beyond what's

sold at the tuck shop. They're more interested in reuniting with friends,

being outside and staying up late.

 

But many teens are concerned about gaining weight, especially if they're

staying at a camp for more than a couple of weeks. And vegetarian kids

wonder if their meals will supply the protein they need each day. In my

private practice, I work with a number of teenagers who want to learn how

to make healthy food choices.

 

I contacted 20 camp directors or co-ordinators across the country to find

out what's on their menus (camps for kids with diabetes were not included).

Two camps refused to participate. A few didn't return my calls.

 

At the end of the day, 15 camps participated in the survey and 11 of them

agreed to provide their menus for summer, 2004. The camps vary in size,

accommodating between 60 and 225 kids for anywhere from one to seven weeks.

On average, the camps -- some co-ed, others girls only or boys only --

cater to kids aged eight to 14 years.

 

According to the Ontario Camping Association's guidelines for resident

camps in the province, all menus should be based on Canada's Food Guide.

The association also recommends that camps avoid foods with excessive

sugar, and that a dietitian be consulted to help plan the menu.

 

Surprisingly, only three of the camp menus I reviewed provide the

recommended daily number of servings from dairy products, fruit and

vegetables, grains, and meat and meat alternatives.

 

Kids aged nine to 18 years need 1,300 milligrams of calcium each day. In

food terms, this translates into four servings of dairy (250 millilitres of

milk, 175 millilitres of yogurt or 50 grams of cheese are each the

equivalent of one serving). Seven out of the 15 camps offer milk only once

daily. Add to that a serving of cheese, a daily staple on all camp menus,

and these kids are getting roughly 600 milligrams of calcium each day --

less than half the recommended daily intake.

 

The remaining menus serve milk at two meals each day, bringing daily

calcium to about 900 milligrams. That's okay for an eight-year-old, but not

enough for older kids.

 

Only five of the menus offer kids the minimum five daily fruit and

vegetable servings. A few camps make it easy for kids to get fresh fruit by

serving it at meals and making it available for between-meal snacks. For

some of these camps, serving fruit juice at meals bumps up the numbers.

 

In fact, vegetables are in short supply on most camp menus. Only a few

camps dish up more than two vegetable servings each day. Caesar salad,

tossed salad, coleslaw, and carrot and celery sticks are the vegetables of

choice, usually served daily. (Fat-reduced salad dressing is offered at

only one camp.) Two camps provide a salad bar at lunch and dinner with

assorted vegetables, beans and egg.

 

It's no problem for kids to get their daily grain servings from any camp

menu -- pancakes, toast, cereal, muffins, buns, and macaroni are staples.

All the camps surveyed indicate that they offer whole-wheat bread in

addition to white. One camp even banished white and serves only whole-grain.

 

When it comes to meat and alternatives, beef, pork, chicken, turkey, and

eggs are regular foods. Few camps provide options for vegetarian kids such

as tofu, soy " meats " and beans. Most camp cooks simply remove the meat and

serve the meal up. One chef told me that if hamburgers are on the menu, the

vegetarian kids will get Cheez Whiz with their bun.

 

If your child is a vegetarian, call the camp and ask about the veggie-meal

alternatives. Do they offer protein, or are they just meatless versions of

the featured meal? Some camps will supply soy milk if you ask; others

require campers to bring it themselves. Find out what foods your child is

allowed to bring to camp.

 

Sugar abounds on camp menus. Fruit juice, fruit punch, cookies, cakes,

brownies, pie, ice cream, donuts, Rice Krispie squares and Jell-o are daily

foods. About half the camps serve a sugary dessert at both lunch and

dinner. Sugar even shows up as regular breakfast fare on one camp menu in

the form of chocolate croissants, Danish pastries and cinnamon buns.

 

Sure, kids are physically active at camp. Yes, they need to consume more

calories at camp than they do when at home sitting in front of a screen. A

very active 12-year-old boy needs 2,800 calories a day; a very active

12-year-old girl needs 2,600.

 

Are some kids getting more empty calories than they need? A few glasses of

fruit punch, dessert at meals and a sugary snack can put a hefty dent in a

kid's daily calorie intake. Active kids do need more calories -- but

nutrient-packed calories from whole grains, fruit, vegetables, dairy

products and lean protein foods

 

Out of the 15 camps, only two said they use a dietitian to help develop

their menus. Not surprisingly, these camps had two of the healthiest menus.

And these were the same two camps that reported noticing, over the past few

years, an increase in concern over the nutritional adequacy of their menus

-- concern from staff, parents, and sometimes kids.

 

Summer camp is all about learning, fun and physical activity. Camp meals

should energize and nourish kids by providing wholesome, nutritious and

balanced meals. Given what we know today about nutrition and health, let's

hope that more camps become pro-active and alter their menus.

 

Sample menus

 

Some examples of the kinds of foods most children eat at the 15 camps surveyed.

 

Menu No. 1

 

Breakfast

 

cheesy scrambled eggs

 

hash browns

 

fruit juice

 

hot/cold cereal

 

2-per-cent milk

 

Lunch

 

chicken-noodle soup

 

grilled-cheese sandwiches

 

French fries

 

tossed salad

 

Kool-Aid

 

Rice Krispie squares

 

Dinner

 

caesar salad

 

spaghetti

 

garlic bread

 

fried rice

 

apple pie

 

milk and fruit juice

 

evening snack: cookies and

 

juice

 

Menu No. 2

 

Breakfast

 

bagels with cream cheese

 

fruit salad

 

cereals, toast

 

juice

 

2-per-cent milk

 

Lunch

 

chicken burgers

 

onion rings

 

carrot and celery sticks

 

Kool-Aid

 

granola bars

 

Dinner

 

beef and rice soup

 

macaroni and cheese

 

coleslaw

 

tossed salad

 

rolls

 

2-per-cent milk and fruit juice

 

chocolate cake

 

evening snack: muffin and

 

juice