The mid to later 20th century saw a sizable amount of change in respect to childcare and child nutrition. The amount of families that had both children of the toddler age or lower and both parents in the laborer forces was increasing. As the amount of labor increased, the amount of extra time parents had begun to decrease. They had less time on their hands to cook and prepare meals for their children and thus a need for convenience was apparent. Canned baby food had been an available item in grocery stores since the late 20s, early 30s. But there was controversy and scepticism among mothers about the legitimacy of the product. This canned food was advertised as “safe, modern and better than you could prepare at home”. But there was a large concern that these corporations were printing false information on the labels of these canned foods and that they were not, in fact, healthy but it was actually damaging to the child’s health. It was thought that the intention of these food products was to increase corporate profit rather than deliver what they had advertised. However, these thoughts saw little action on their behalf. Nonetheless, there was a movement in the 1970s called the “health food” or “natural foods” movement that sought to save both Americans and American society by returning to the “natural” way of eating. This meant not buying canned baby food and allotting to make their own. This became a popular opinion among mothers and was illustrated within the first chapter of Feed Me! I’m Yours; where Lansky discusses the difference between store bought and homemade baby food.

The 1970s also saw a steady increase in income and wealthy inequality. More and more people are finding it difficult to choose between what is healthiest for their child and what they can comfortably afford. This concern is also addressed within Lansky’s cookbook in the section about making baby food. She discusses the issues of economics, the increased awareness of child nutrition and the concern about processed food. She then goes into the topic of time and price, stating that making baby food from scratch is a lot easier than one might think and could save you upwards of fifty percent of what you would spend on store bought canned food. As well, this food would be just as, “nutritious as the food you serve to the rest of you family”. However, the purpose of Lansky’s cookbook is not to just make food cheaper and healthier, but she also advocates for convenience. She believes that it is just as important to make things easier for a mother as it is to make things healthier. That being said, she does not shun those who buy canned food. She is understanding that everyone’s circumstances are different, and some people need things to be convenient more than they need them to be cheap. So, within the same section, she goes over a few options to make canned food a healthier option while maintaining its convenience. She advocates that reading the labels are the most important thing while shopping for canned food. Staying with the basic fruits, vegetables and strained meats while avoiding blends, added sugar, salt and modified starches is the easiest way to provide the necessary nutrition a child needs while retaining the same level of convenience as before.

The 1970s was a time of concern and shift in the world of children’s food and nutrition. This concern is prevalent throughout the entirety of Lansky’s cookbook as she strived to provide options for a wide variety of wants, needs and circumstances. A cookbook may just seem like a collection of outdated recipes, but they are also a looking glass into the minds of that era; what they are eating, what they think is healthy, their concerns regarding food. Feed Me! I’m Yours was a book written by mothers, for mother but is also a historical source that provides a personal account on the nutritional shift that too.