Easter’s coming up in a little more than a week, so I felt this was a seasonally appropriate way to put sugary sodas in their place…with a touch of humor.

You can see the cartoon in it’s original habitat here, if you wish.
Another great, visual way to get a handle on just how much sugar, along with salt and fat, is in common snack foods and fast foods, is with the Smash Your Food app. I’ve blogged about this app before, and had been eagerly waiting for its release for the iPad. It finally came out last week, and I promptly bought the full version, since it’s only $2.99. (There is a free version, but it only has a few foods, while the paid version has 40 foods!) I found this video review, which gives a nice little overview:

The video shows a the Level 1 foods. As you move up through the levels, the foods get more interesting, eventually working up to full fast food meals. Good times! Seriously…my sister and I had a great time playing it at the Cinerama downtown while we waited for The Hunger Games to start. We even made it to Level 2.

What I love about this game is while it is fun (the visuals and the sound effects are delightfully gross), it also shows you clearly and graphically what is in these common foods. I’m studying nutrition, and I don’t even guess correctly how much salt, sugar and fat is in each food. So, it’s fun, and very educational. Even better, it’s not judgmental. It doesn’t say “Don’t eat these foods.” It just shows kids in a memorable way what’s in these foods. It’s up to them if they decide, “I remember how much fat was in those corndogs. They’re gross!”

If you have an iPad, I highly recommend this app, especially if you’re a parent (but even if you’re not). No iPad? Check out the web version (still very cool).