Mumsnet Talk

DS wants white bread

I've managed to get him to the grand age of four happily eating wholemeal/granary bread.

Now, he tells me, he made a cheese sandwich at school as it's been "Healthy Eating Week" (not entirely sure how healthy a cheese sarnie is anyway ) and he used "white bread!"
Now, I don't ban it at all. He's allowed it but we just don't buy it.
I'm just really cross that the school gave them white bread to use! Now he thinks it's the best thing since, well, since sliced bread

meant to say: really cross the school gave them white bread to use as part of "Healthy Eating" as I don't agree that it is healthy.

was it that stuff that lookslike white bread but isn't? best of both or something i think?

Even if it was, I still don't think a bread that looks white (whether best of both or not) isn't setting a very good example to the children.

Ahh but this is the way schools seem to work - preach healthy eating to you and criticise you when you send full fat yoghurt to school in a lunchbox but play by their own rules when it comes to food on the premises - ie shitty school dinners, puddings every day, white bread.

You are right but I am not in the least bit shocked.

yes, quite

buy a top quality white loaf sometimes. Or even a not-so-top quality one occasionally.

He was going to find out about white bread and eat it one day, wasn't he. Kids like things that are a little bit differnet.

I have no problem with him eating white bread. I just don't think it's appropriate for a "Healthy Eating" exercise.
I said "white bread's not very healthy is it"
He said "yes it is"

Were they given a choice of brown or white?

I don't think white is unhealthy.

I agree. White bread cheese sarnie should not be pushed as 'healthy eating'. Are you going to take it up with the school?

Nearly all british long-life sliced wrapped bread is pretty crappy, isn't it. Due to all teh extra additiives rather than white/brown.

I think, that when the choice is white or brown, brown is clearly the healthy choice and should be promoted as such.

I've no idea if they were given the choice.....will find out. DS has just gone to bed so can't ask him.

I'd imagine the children were given a few fillings to choose from. DS is just a fussy mare
He said you could put whatever you wanted in. He chose just cheese. Maybe there was a choice of bread too then.
I don't think there should have been a choice though

Might have been that 'best of both' stuff to avoid any complete refusers.

The OP is not trying to deter her child from white bread for life. But surely with all the faff schools make about healthy eating (see the cheese and crackers thread from the other day) they shouldn't be offering white bread as they should be setting an example.

Packaged white supermarket bread is not healthy. Of course, most of us eat it a lot, or sometimes, or occasionally, but that doesn't mean the school should offer it.

All schools a re different. Maybe this one would never make a fuss about crackers. I really wouldn't care at all about a cheese sandwich.

the whole healthy eating in schools thing is such a ludicrous waste of time - the other day I was in our local small supermarket when the kids were heading off to the partially academically selective, highly sought-after school - I could not believe the crap these kids were eating for breakfast to set themselves up for a long day's learning and these are in the main highly intelligent kids, all of whom have had healthy eating rammed down their throats for years - it's completely pointless ....

Of course one white cheese sandwich is not the work of the devil, but used as an example of healthy eating it is sloppy and ultimately undermines efforts to promote better eating habits. Schools really ought to get things right, imo

School are so hypocritical when it comes to food - they give the kids junk in school especially when it benefits the school bank balance and preach to parents about healthy eating and then when you get annoyed at the junk, they then start preaching to you about balance. It's all on their terms.

I think government guidelines - and the UK in general - is fairly confused about healthy eating. They're trying but often get it wrong, I agree.

Mimsum - I agree entirely. The 'healthy eating' continues term in term out up to GCSE years. The same 'messages' and the same tools (draw a poster) is a turn off. Meanwhile schools serve food to children on ill-washed plastic prison trays and when what should be an enjoyable meal time into a series of dos and do nots.

Educate the children in biology and english and aspiration; provide sport for the schools - and tackle obeisity issues from the supply-side - tax fat in foods, single labelling system

White bread is better for young children than brown bread. Brown bread contains too much fibre that 'bulks' them out and stops them absorbing other nutrients. Whitebread also contains higher levels of calcium than brown bread.
Weetabix, bran flakes etc are all similar. Besides, whitebread as part of a healthy balanced diet is fine.
Why wouldn't a cheese sandwich be fine as part of a healthy balanced diet?

Re plastic prison trays. Only in the UK. Awful.

Schools do a lot - and are also told to do a lot - to address crappy food and in teh provess they get quiter a few things wrong.

I agree that the govt should target other areas. Fatty sugary meal deals at greggs are often the best pupils buy when out in the town for lunch. Often it's irn bru and a tub of candy floss.

I still don't see anything unhealthy about a white bread cheese sandwich.

Oh for goodness sakes. White bread is not the food of the devil. And as littlebrownmouse says, children aren't supposed to have loads of high fibre food anyway. I deliberately give dd white bread as she has Weetabix or my bran flakes for breakfast and that's enough.

I agree with you, op. Crappy white bread should be off the menu. So should nutrasweet and fried food. Oily fish should be once a week, not once every three weeks.

The government's idea of nutrition and mine are often different.

And I don't really subscribe to this claim about white bread being better for children. It reminds me of the HV who recommended I feed my baby fromage frais because it was a good calcium (I think she meant sugar) source.