---
title: "Food Fight | Dr. Harley Rotbart Blog"
description: "When the No Regrets Parenting book comes out later this month, you’ll see me pull no punches in recommending occasional sweet treats for kids to celebrate special events or to help create family traditions. Ice cream sundaes on hot…"
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# Food Fight

February 1, 2012 1 min read 

When the No Regrets Parenting book comes out later this month, you’ll see me pull no punches in recommending occasional sweet treats for kids to celebrate special events or to help create family traditions. Ice cream sundaes on hot Sundays, or warm cocoa with marshmallows for family movie nights in the dead of winter. Popcorn balls for the big game. I know there’s an obesity crisis in this country and we shouldn’t be teaching our kids to find comfort in food. I am a doctor, a pediatrician, no less. I should know better. But kids need to be kids, and sometimes grown-ups need to be kids, too. That’s when they should take a trip, together, to the local Dairy Queen. Not every day, of course. But on special days.

In that context, today’s Motherlode post in the New York Times (http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/01/should-we-regulate-sugar/#more-31423) struck a chord. An unpleasant chord, for me. Motherlode reports that some experts are advocating government classification, and eventually regulation, of sugar in the same way the gov’t now does for alcohol and tobacco.

Time to draw the line, don’t you think? What do you think? Do I need to rewrite the Food section in No Regrets Parenting? Add your thoughts to the comments box below. If it’s not there, click on the title of this post and it will magically appear.

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### Dr. Harley Rotbart, M.D.

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