Have Your Cake and Eat It Too
Making Healthy Food a Part of the Party

Julia Turner, MMSc, RD, LD

Providing safe and healthy food choices for children at home is manageable when parents have control over food selection and preparation. But what about birthday parties, family reunions or classroom celebrations? How can parents ensure healthy food choices for their children at these events?

Eliminating problem foods from a child’s diet can help improve behavior and language skills, increase eye contact, and improve sleep and digestion. Sticking with foods that are best for your child’s health and behavior is especially important for children with food sensitivities or allergies, as well as children with learning and social issues. The good news is what works at home can still work when your child is at an event. It does take some planning and a few extra steps, but it can be done.

The most common foods that may cause problems are:

Casein (a protein in the milk of mammals – cow, goat, etc.)

Gluten (a protein in wheat, rye, conventional oats, barley, spelt, kamut)

Soy (a protein found in soy flour, soy milk, soy protein isolate. Soy oil and soy lecithin don’t contain the protein and are usually tolerated. Fermented soy as in miso and tempeh also usually tolerated on a rotational basis.)

Eggs

Peanuts

Tree nuts

Chocolate

Refined Sugar (white granulated, confectioners)

High Fructose Corn Syrup

Artificial Sweeteners (NutraSweet, Splenda)

Artificial Colors (chemical food dyes)

Plan ahead
Call the host and let them know about your child’s food restrictions. Offer to bring a safe food for your child and enough to share with others. One parent whose daughter was on a gluten and casein free diet asked to set up a separate small table so she could provide a gluten and casein free birthday cake and other treats similar to what was being served. This allowed her daughter to know where the safe food was and since there was plenty to share with friends, she did not feel quite so “different.”

For family reunions, remind relatives of your child’s dietary needs and be willing to bring the food you need. Help your child navigate the food table, and be aware of those well-meaning relatives who might slip an unwanted food onto the child’s plate. Enlist the help of other family members to help keep an eye on what your child is eating.

For your child’s classroom, put together a safe snack kit and keep it stocked throughout the year. Find out when and how classmates’ birthdays are celebrated so that you can send in a safe treat (enough to share with the class) as needed. Also, ask if there is freezer space for you to keep a small stash of emergency treats for those impromptu situations that arise.

Healthy Treats

Frozen fruit—get creative using bamboo skewers: cut bananas in half, freeze on skewers (delicious plain or can roll in chopped nuts, mini chocolate chips and/or coconut prior to freezing); cut sliced watermelon into fun shapes with cookie cutter and freeze on skewer; make a frozen fruit shish kabob with pineapple, grapes, melon, strawberries

Fresh fruit pizza: Using allergen free cookie dough, press onto pizza pan and bake. When cool, can spread with a light layer of vanilla icing then top with sliced fruits (strawberries, kiwi, blueberries, etc.) Note: some children are very sensitive to icing since it usually contains confectioner’s sugar which is highly refined. Can omit altogether or use allergen free whipped topping (i.e., Rice Whip)

homemade gluten free oatmeal cookies (can substitute quinoa flakes for some or all of the oatmeal)

cakes, cupcakes, or muffins packed with pureed vegetables

cut up raw vegetables/fruits

salsa

hummus

guacamole

bean dips

yogurt dips (i.e., plain coconut milk yogurt sweetened with raw honey)

crackers, tortillas (allergen free) for dipping

nut/seed butters

hard boiled eggs

toasted nuts/seeds

allergen- and MSG-free turkey or beef jerky

Talk about the food
Not being able to eat the same foods as classmates can be difficult for some children. Discuss your child’s feelings about his food allergies with him, and let him know it’s okay to “not like having an allergy.” Involve him in the planning and preparation of the treats you make and plan to send to events. Think of creative and eye-catching ways to embellish the treats. One child helped to make his safe birthday treats and carried them around on a plate offering his friends a chance to try his “magic cookies.” Of course, no one could resist!

Prepare for missteps
Whether it is an indulgent relative (“Oh just one cookie won’t hurt!”) or your child being unable to resist that colorful cupcake, accept ahead of time that there may be slip-ups. Know how your child will react if he happens to consume something he shouldn’t. Food sensitivity or intolerance reactions vary from child to child and range from mild to severe. Some reactions occur within hours, others are delayed for a day or two. Reactions can be physical (stomach upset, diarrhea/constipation, headache, red cheeks/ears, skin eruptions) and/or behavioral (irritability, hyperactivity, foggy thinking, sleeplessness, aggression). Be prepared with whatever is needed to mitigate your child’s reaction (Epipen, Epsom’s salts, digestive enzymes, probiotics, etc.) and be familiar with the administration and dosing of any medications. Don’t assume that nothing will happen and be caught unaware!

Note: Some children do not appear to have any reaction to these periodic infractions and some families decide to allow the occasional “cheat.” After a period of avoidance, certain restricted foods may eventually be tolerated on a rotational basis by some children.

With the explosion of allergen-free foods and ingredients that taste good along with the thousands of available online recipes, starting and maintaining a special diet is easier than ever. With some planning and creativity, parents of children with food sensitivities and allergies can ensure that their child has as much fun eating as everyone else does.

Parent Resources

Books

No cupcakes for Jason. Judith Crane and Stephanie Harlan. AuthorHouse; 2005.
Picky Eating Solutions: Bringing the Joy of Real Food back to the Table. Betsy Hicks. Elementals Living; 2010.
Vice Cream: Gourmet Vegan Desserts. Jeff Rogers. Celestial Arts; 2004.