Is your diet different than how you grew up?

[disykat]

Not really. The only thing different I can think of right away is the absence of jello. We probably had jello at least once a week growing up. Now it's about once a year. We also have a better availability of some of the more "exotic" fresh fruits and vegetables year round. It took me quite a while to realize I actually like fresh brussels sprouts after having so many frozen ones as a child.

I think my family growing up ate a little more healthy than a lot of families in the 70s. My parents tried to do high fiber low fat.

 

[Klayfish]

Oh goodness yes...both very different from how I grew up and very different from most others. I grew up with a "normal" diet as a kid...cereal for breakfast, sandwich for lunch, mom would cook chicken or something for dinner with a side of mashed potatoes and veggies (or something like that).

Now, DW and I are very into bodybuilding and nutrition. A typical day for me looks like:

4:20am Scoop of protein pre-workout, with small carb serving (a few crackers)
6:00am 3 scoop protein shake post workout
8:30am Non-fat plain greek yogurt w/one scoop of protein powder mixed in
noon - 4 or 5oz of deli meat (turkey usually) in a high fiber, high protein, low carb wrap, and one piece of fruit
2:45 - 4-6 oz of boneless, skinless chicken breast
6:00 - 8-9 oz of boneless, skinless chicken breast (or lean pork or lean ground beef), along with 2-3 servings of veggies
8:00 - a piece of fruit

DW nutrition is sort of similar in concept, but even more measured and weighed.

I do allow myself a cheat meal once per week...Friday night dinner. Anything I can shove in my mouth is fair game. Sounds bad, but in reality it's not all that bad...my stomach can only hold so much anyway.

When I go on vacation, I'll still eat a clean base (which is why we stay off property and pack all of our own food), but will add in some chips, cake or whatever...because we're on vacation and I want some....mmmmmmm......

 

[Jdbsfw]

Yep, as a kid all I ate was sugar and grains and now I avoid that garbage....I do protein, good fats, and sweet potatoes also spinach and occasionally hummus, cauliflower, broccoli....I drink unsweet iced tea and water

 

[RedAngie]

No, I'm still eating from the stash of 10,000 cases of Spam and pork & beans my parents hoarded for Y2K.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I grew up on country cooking, with a slight German twist (Mom did a lot of pickling). She was a stay at home Mom that cooked everything from scratch (breakfast, lunch & dinner). As is common in country cooking, she fried most everything. I don't actually like fried food now. I saute some things, but it's not swimming in grease like her food cooked in fatback & lard. I also don't cook more than a couple times a week. Honestly, Mom was a much better cook that I, but I try to feed my family healthier foods, much to DH's dismay. My sisters still cook more like Mom. When we visit them, DH is in heaven. DS & I try to force the food down without complaining. We're just not used to heavy foods with so much grease. Sadly, even though I don't do a lot of country cooking now, mine is still much better than what you get at most restaurants masquerading as country cooking eateries. LTT, 50's & Trail's End are perfect examples of that.

 

[AquamarineSteph]

Yes, on both counts.

I'm trying to think how to describe the differences without writing an entire essay.

But definitely yes.

 

[adisneyaunt]

No, I'm still eating from the stash of 10,000 cases of Spam and pork & beans my parents hoarded for Y2K.

So funny! Brings back a memory. My sis had her first sleepover at a friends and begged my mom to pls get that food she was served for dinner... but she didn't know the name of it...
It wasn't until we were food shopping ( yup, the girls all had to go) and it turns out it was Spam!
My mom was shocked .. but my sis got her can of it. I've never touched that stuff
I eat differently than when I grew up...
Real butter ( not margarine) , no Milk ( thank you lord), butchered meat, fresh veggies versus frozen, fried foods rarely now, whole grains and choosing better brands/organic as warranted.
...healthier now, Tho I do miss those Friday night chinese or pizza dinners lol

 

[wenrob]

Yes and no. It's complicated.

My paternal grandmother, her parents and all of her siblings had gardens when I was growing up. They were a little over two hours away and so when they'd come up for a visit we'd be gifted with tons of fresh veggies, fruits, nuts etc. plus all the canning they did and brought up. I am to this day an apricot jam snob. Nothing commercial even comes close to my great grandma's jam.

My dad was a chef for over 30 years but my stepmother had been a single mom who didn't have much money so she made a lot of things with "cream of whatever" soup, goulash, things cooked to death in a crockpot, canned veggies, Chef Boyardee type of things. They also both worked swing and graveyard so there was a lot of convenance food like Pop Tarts, TV dinners etc. But man, when Dad had days off we ate like royalty. Steak, fresh steamed veggies, lasagna, chicken franchese, the best homemade soup you've ever had in your life. Every meal just amazing.

Then you had my mom and her mother who make The Worse Cooks in America look like world class chefs. They wouldn't know a fresh vegetable (or any vegetable really) if it smacked them upside the head. Their "cooking" was...horrific. This is not me being a snob, it was that bad. The only thing to drink at Mom's house was Kool Aid. To this day I will not allow Kool Aid in my house. My kids have never had it. Mom also thinks of McDonalds as a food group and would think nothing of eating it twice a day, five days a week. I would come home from weekend visits sick and starving.

So, the yes and no part. I'm a fairly decent cook and we have a nice, homemade meal on the table at least five days a week but I'm not above throwing some boxed mac & cheese or spaghetti with jarred sauce on the table occasionally either. I keep the house stocked with things like cereal, yogurt, cheese sticks, fruit etc. but also have frozen pancakes, waffles, chicken fries, pot stickers etc. The kids mostly fend for themselves for breakfast and lunch but I've instilled in them that it's important to have some balance. They make themselves a well rounded meal most of the time. We have fast food maybe every two weeks or so and dinner out as a family every couple of months.

 

[Alpineslide]

I'm into the fitness / bodybuilding thing so I eat way different than most.

A typical day for me looks like this :

7:00 am 8 ounces liquid egg whites, one scoop whey protein, topped off with almond milk

10:00 am chicken breast / veggies

1:00 am ground turkey meatballs / veggies

4:00 ....pre workout 50 grams of protein, 50 grams of carbs..usually in the form of a smoothie

7:00 ...ground bison / veggies

10:00 cottage cheese

At least once a night I wake up hungry and drink a glass of Muscle Egg... flavored egg whites.
I know what most of you are thinking, " He drinks egg whites....gross". Muscle Egg is great...tastes like liquid pudding.

 

[Twilight Sparkle]

Very different. The adults in my house didn't cook much when I was growing up. We had Little Debby snacks for breakfast and fast food, tv dinners, or hamburger helper for dinner most of the time. Lunches were at school, and because of our lack of food variety at home, I was pretty picky and rarely ate anything from the lunches at school. I did like the rolls at lunch in high school, so there was that. The few times I found grapes in the fridge at home, I thought I was the luckiest kid in the world. I never had salad until I was in college. Soft drinks were an every meal thing. I don't know how I wasn't perpetually sick. When I moved out, I made better choices. And as the years have passed, even those choices have gotten better. We now eat mostly fresh or frozen, whole, non-processed foods. We buy organic whenever possible. If we do buy something in a box or bag, I scrutinize the ingredients list to make sure I'm okay with what we'll be ingesting. I make almost everything from scratch, and we have tons of fruits and veggies in the house. Our eggs come from our own chickens. We grow some of our own produce and herbs. I'm a pescetarian and DD is a vegetarian, so our meals are produce heavy - not meat centered. Instead of typical boxed or bagged snack items, we buy seeds or nuts in the bulk food section or I make popcorn on the stove. We drink tons of water. Sometimes I make sun tea, which we drink unsweetened. In the summer, I also make lemonade from scratch for a treat. In the morning, we have hot tea. DH and I gave up soft drinks years ago, and our daughter never liked them. The way I eat and drink now is about as far away as possible from what I knew as a kid.

ETA: For breakfast, I mostly eat a piece of toast and a hard boiled egg. Lately, my daughter and I have enjoyed eating avocado toast for a change. Fruit and yogurt is another option, or homemade bread (left soft, not toasted) with sliced cheese. I will sometimes buy cereal for our daughter who has had trouble getting enough iron lately, but I don't eat it myself.

Edited again to say: Quick service at WDW is our only fast food experience now. We avoid fast food at home. Also, we eat from a variety of cuisines and have always found something we enjoy within each type of cuisine. In short, I am an adventurous eater these days and love trying new recipes and foods. Kid me would not recognize adult me.

 

[luvavacation]

I eat very differently now.

I grew up eating Eastern European food. Pastries made with whatever fruit was ripe that week. Smoked meats (salami, sausage, pork), bacon wrapped in paprika, head cheese, sour cream on everything, home made lard, rendered from pig fat, etc. Onions and garlic spread on fried dough with lard and Trappist cheese. Meals eaten with potatos of some sort, flour dumplings, cabbage, or good dark homemade bread. Dessert was always something with either cream, whipped cream, good dark chocolate, or some other decadent thing that is wrong to eat. We always had fruit and were required to eat at least an apple or an orange every day, because "the poor gypsy kids don't get to have this". Coffee was espresso with whip cream, stronger the better. Salads were for rabbits. We were all solid and strong.

I married an American that does not care for much of what I grew up eating, so I had to learn how to cook "American". I started going to the doctor and having my cholesterol checked. Perhaps not surprisingly, it was sky high. I changed my whole diet when I became pregnant because I believed I needed to eat healthier for my baby. I have been fat ever since.

Part of me wonders if our bodies are accustomed to what we grew up with, and changing that confuses how our body reacts to food. I don't know, just a theory. I do know when I go back "home" to Europe, and I eat the food I grew up with, I lose weight and I feel fantastic, but then my doctor berates me because my cholesterol goes sky-high and I go back to the approved diet. I know the diet I have now is better for my heart, but oh what I wouldn't give to go back to my youth and eat a slice of dark bread with duck fat, onions and salami and not worry about that darn cholesterol or jiggly fat anymore!

 

[wenrob]

I eat very differently now.

I grew up eating Eastern European food. Pastries made with whatever fruit was ripe that week. Smoked meats (salami, sausage, pork), bacon wrapped in paprika, head cheese, sour cream on everything, home made lard, rendered from pig fat, etc. Onions and garlic spread on fried dough with lard and Trappist cheese. Meals eaten with potatos of some sort, flour dumplings, cabbage, or good dark homemade bread. Dessert was always something with either cream, whipped cream, good dark chocolate, or some other decadent thing that is wrong to eat. We always had fruit and were required to eat at least an apple or an orange every day, because "the poor gypsy kids don't get to have this". Coffee was espresso with whip cream, stronger the better. Salads were for rabbits. We were all solid and strong.

I married an American that does not care for much of what I grew up eating, so I had to learn how to cook "American". I started going to the doctor and having my cholesterol checked. Perhaps not surprisingly, it was sky high. I changed my whole diet when I became pregnant because I believed I needed to eat healthier for my baby. I have been fat ever since.

Part of me wonders if our bodies are accustomed to what we grew up with, and changing that confuses how our body reacts to food. I don't know, just a theory. I do know when I go back "home" to Europe, and I eat the food I grew up with, I lose weight and I feel fantastic, but then my doctor berates me because my cholesterol goes sky-high and I go back to the approved diet. I know the diet I have now is better for my heart, but oh what I wouldn't give to go back to my youth and eat a slice of dark bread with duck fat, onions and salami and not worry about that darn cholesterol or jiggly fat anymore!

I have to admit the first part of your post made my mouth water and my tummy growl. I wonder if the richness of the food when you go back home has the natural effect of eating less of it. You feel satiated sooner so perhaps don't eat as much.

I forgot to say in my previous post that while I make a lot of the same dishes Dad did I have "trimmed" them up. Where he will use a half pound of butter making Chicken Franchese, I use less than a stick and replace part of the sauce with chicken broth. Egg whites for breading things vs whole eggs. Whole milk mixed with a fraction of the heavy cream he uses for Alfredo etc.

 

[disneychrista]

Now that I think about it there are things I eat differently.

The thing that comes to mind most is I used to drown my veggies in butter ( or I guess it was margarine). Now I never / rarely put butter on veggies and when I do it is real butter.

Most of the baking is made vegan ( no dairy, eggs, honey, etc) since my youngest is Vegan.

 

[design_mom]

Eh, I'm not sure. I think I cook healthier in some ways, but probably less healthy in others.

My mom is a good cook, but my dad prefers meat-and-potatoes types of meals so that's what we usually had -- beef (occasionally chicken or pork chops), potato (baked, mashed, scalloped, fried, you name it.) and a veggie (usually tossed salad, canned green beans or peas -- ick). And we had dessert every night. We very rarely ate out.

I try to make lighter meals and make things healthier than when I grew up. More grilled than fried, more chicken than beef, etc. (My mom put salt on melons -- watermelon, cantaloupe, cucumber. I serve them plain. They don't "need" salt. I still like them with salt, but when my kids tried salted, they thought it was gross.) But, on the flip side, we eat out more often than I did as a kid, and I use more convenience foods (bottled salad dressings, jarred pasta sauce, etc.) so it probably evens out somehow.

ETA: My mother also loves a "big breakfast." I am not a fan of most breakfast food. My go-to breakfast is a mini bagel with a little bit of cream cheese, sliced tomatoes and onions, and sliced deli ham.

 

[Lilacs4Me]

Different in some ways, same in some ways.

Growing up, our main diet went like this:

Cold cereal (rice krispies, corn flakes) and 2% milk for breakfast, with a weekend morning of either bacon and eggs or pancakes on Sat or Sunday many weeks.

Lunch brought to school: peanut butter and jelly on white, a McIntosh apple, and 2 sandwich creme cookies.

Dinner: main rotation with little variation of chicken, pork chops, meat loaf, italian sausage, spaghetti, pot roast, pizza on a weekend night, and a lot of cold mayonnaise based salads in the summer (tuna, chicken, etc, with pasta). Never seafood because my mother hated fish. Side dishes were a potato or rice of some sort and frozen or canned veggies. Probably pretty typical of lower middle class families in the 70s and 80s. Both parents eat better now.

For me now, I don't eat cereal, don't eat bacon, don't et pbj sandwiches, apples or store bought cookies. I do make many dishes that I grew up with, but I also make a LOT of pastas and seafood dishes because everyone in my family loves fish and shrimp. Rarely make meat loaf, but do sometimes because one my kids adores it and will ask for it every once in a while. We have more veggies on our plate than anything else.

We used to make a big breakfast on the weekend and then not eat again until dinner. My mom never made lunch in the summer or on weekends. I do the same. My kids don't eat right away in the mornings so by the time they eat breakfast, it's almost luuch time anyway and nobody's hungry until like 3, and then I just tell them to wait for dinner.

My kids hate mayonnaise based anything, so they would have never survived summer pot lucks if they were born 30 years sooner! Sadly, my kids eat way more junk and fast food than I did. I had a stay at home mom and a family who didn't have a lot money. We ate at home and everyone ate together every night. There was no snacking between meals or dessert in my house.

I work 50-60 hours a week and my kids have a million activities going on all week. We do our share of take out, grocery store convienence, and chicken strips. They are home alone after school, pack their own lunches, and stay up way later than I do. This all lends to them eating whatever they want from the fridge and cupboards. I just make sure there are always fruits and veggies and healthy (ier) snacks available to choose from. DH treats them to junk food every once in a while.

Probably the biggest thing, for me, is soda. I drink between 40-80 oz of water a day, depending, but I will drink about one can of Coke Zero every day or two now. I wasn't allowed to drink anything growing up except water, milk (for breakfast ONLY), and homemade kool aide. Yuck!!

 

[powellrj]

I don't think my mom really liked to cook. We had healthy casseroles if you can imagine what those were. I had never had things like real butter, mayo, cheeses, cream, fried foods, fresh fish. We had chopped iceberg lettuce with thousand island dressing, a canned vegetable, a canned fruit and some kind of "healthy" main dish. That was healthy eating in the 60's in her eyes.

I really cook more like my grandparents. Lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, always use real butter and love to fix some kind of roasted meat or fish. I like to use different types of salad greens and always use fresh fruits and vegetables.

 

[wilkeliza]

Sadly yeah but I'm trying to get back to how my mom had us eat as kids. We still drank soda and sweet tea but aost always home cooked and fresh ingredients. Not always the healthiest foods but always portioned pretty well. Everyone in my family was small expect my middle brother but he often went back for 2nd or 3rds. Now I eat a crap ton of processed delivery food. I can cook and so can fiance but we just got spoiled with delivery. I really want to kick the habbit before we have kids. We both are so much healthier when we consistently cook.

 

[Kitty 34]

Yes my diet is very different. My mom liked to "experiment" with many recipes all the time; me, I just cook good old meat and potato dishes and casseroles.

 

[Skippy918]

I grew up on Italian- American food. My mom always cooked and we hardly went out to eat except for pizza and maybe Chinese takeout once in awhile.
With work and picky eaters in my family, it makes meal planning very challenging and yes, we do have shortcuts like hamburger helper and frozen entrees from time to time and we also eat out frequently. I make sure to have vegetables and fruit on hand since at least me and the kids like those things.

 

[tvguy]

Most everything I eat at home is made from scratch. My wife is a great cook, and even working full time manages to whip up quick meals from scratch.
As a kid, especially from just before age 10 when my dad passed away, mom mom relied on TV dinners and Hamburger helper, and some fast food and dinner at Sambos. Working full time, being a single parent, and having a son who was active in Little League didn't leave a lot of time for food preparation.
I eat much healthier now.