My mother says I used to sneak sticks of butter behind the sofa and chomp on ‘em like Snickers. I had a period when I ate mayonnaise straight out of the jar, during my teething phase I loved frozen peas, and since I can remember I enjoyed eating whole lemons. Before I was three, I liked spicy food (my dad is Indian), but once I was old enough to understand the responsibility of a half white kid, I sadly swore off all Indian to “fit in.”

My mother is amazing with food. When I was little, she made everything from scratch. I ate leftovers from her dinner and homemade baby food, both flattened with a fork, of course. When she was pregnant with me she tended a vegetable garden and fed herself only fresh, organic food. In my teens, my mother sought ventures outside of the kitchen. Our whole family went through a period of eating our fair share of fast food, Boston baked beans and hot dogs, mac ‘n cheese with peas, and T-bones. I spent a good deal of high school and college eating pizza, ramen, and heavy European food. I even went so far as to demand eating Western food while we were visiting my relatives in India. I have come to realize, like most other things when you’re a kid, my eating habits were really about rebellion. My mother had planted the seed of my interest as a baby.

In our current culture of synthetic flavors, minimal ingredients, and billions paid on advertising to kids, food journalists and activists alike are taking their case to the children. Our first impressions of food are what counts. Why else do companies spend their ad money early on, before kids even have their own pocket change?

It is true that babies, and humans in general, gravitate towards the sweeter foods. Historically sweet was safe while bitter foods were generally poisonous. Bitter taste buds are located at the back of our tongue and cause a gag reflex when sensed. In addition to the tip of their tongue, babies also have sweet taste buds in inside of their cheeks.

Sugary foods also supply the cheapest energy and are easy to produce. And what other supermarket foods are backed by cartoon characters, celebrities, and action heroes? But all this we did know already, right? The newest trend with sugary foods like cereal is to market them towards adults as good food for children. By injecting these foods with vitamins and minerals, companies can claim that while they’ve been unhealthy before, they’ve been reborn as health foods.

Recently I came across a few fascinating articles in The New York Times on dieting, children’s eating habits, and the role of parents.

The author of “6 Food Mistakes Parents Make” suggests a different approach to looking at the eating habits of babies and young children: they’re just like adults. They like their food to have flavor, are prone to binge on restricted items, are stubborn and cautious when trying new things, and tend to emulate the diets of others.

In “Momma, I’ll Have Some of Whatever You’re Having,” the author discovers babies already have sophisticated palates, after he runs his own dinner through a food mill and feeds it to his 7-month-old. Barring allergies and ingredients like salt, the whole family can enjoy the same foods.

The Times‘ “Instead of Eating to Diet, They’re Eating to Enjoy,” investigates the new diets of adults. Says the author, more of us are approaching our eating habits in a wholesome way. We are adding new, healthy foods into our meals, and moving away from old habits of only restricting things we crave and counting calories obsessively.

As a culture, we’re also moving back into the kitchen. The Times authors point out that for children and adults, cooking helps us to appreciate and understand food. Cooking breaks apart all the barriers and fear surrounding food, teaching both children and parents respect for the things we eat.

The careers of people like Alice Waters and Marion Nestle and the hundreds of outstanding food blogs demonstrate that we are developing better relationships with food. Our offspring are curious and highly impressionable. If we help to expose them, early on, to diversity and good food, they will automatically grow up with higher expectations.