Aibu to not track how much fruit/veg etc my children eat a day?

[Pearl2015]

I've read up a lot on healthy eating and it seems a mine field. What I understand from government guidelines is that we should eat 5 portions of fruit and veg a day, 2 portions of protein, 3 of dairy, about 8 of carbohydrate or my memory could be wrong on that one, fish at least twice a week with one portion being oily, red meat no more than once a week and limit processed meat like ham, bacon, sausages etc. this sound so stupid but it has started to stress me out making sure my dc eat right. Oldest dc (6) hates milk yogurt and cheese and fish and I worry she is not getting the right nutrients. I cook from scratch most things but I find myself thinking at breakfast the dcs should really be eating porridge with fruit but they ask for Nutella on toast everyday. This weekend I decided not to think about what they ate at all and it was so less stressful and they ate more as I let them have what they wanted. Although I feel bad as I now realise not one piece of fruit was consumed over the weekend! Would I be unreasonable not to care what they eat anymore??

[WorraLiberty]

I don't track it either.

They eat well and mostly quite sensibly, so that's good enough for me.

None of them are particularly big on veg and nor was I as a child. We all love fruit though, so I do encourage lots of that but I don't count to see if they've all had their five a day.

[Idontseeanydragons]

I don't either. I also have no idea what they weigh or what centile they might be on.
They eat pretty healthily, most food at home is cooked from scratch, fruit and veg is always available and I can track their school lunches online if we want to so we know they have something decent in school.

[NinkyNonkers]

I don't track anything. I try to make balanced pack lunches, but at home they have free access to fruit and healthy snacks.

[Pearl2015]

My dc hate fruit but will eat veg. Snacks tend to be veg crudités and hummus or biscuits or crackers. They did eat an awful lot of crackers this weekend as I did not restrict them. I just feel bad they would rather it 8 crackers rather than a piece of fruit!

[cleanmyhouse]

I think the healthy eating pressure these days is daft. In a ideal world, yes. But we don't live in an ideal world.

[Nofunkingworriesmate]

If they eat school dinners then someone else has worked it all out for you (thank you Jamie Oliver!)
5/7 sorted
Have a couple of smoothies at the weekend and alls good x

[dietcokeandwine]

No I don't track anything.

I would say mine eat reasonably healthily and that's good enough for me.

[arethereanyleftatall]

Just buy good stuff when you do your weekly shop, then you don't need to track anytging.

[SeenSheen]

I think this counting business is aimed at the cretins who feed their kids junk at every meal and in-between as well.
Most normal people wouldn't be counting as they have a good idea of what is right for their kids and in what quantities..
Anyway all this government advice has a habit of changing frequently.

[MrsNextDoor]

I don't track. We have it available...bowl of fruit or they can ask for raw carrot/cucumber/tomatoes etc any time.

My friend actually cried because her DH hadn't made sure her son had eaten any fruit for two days when she was away.

[NoSquirrels]

Hmm. I don't "track" as such, but I have a mental tally e.g. breakfast = no fruit & veg, so offer fruit/veg as a snack mid-morning, lunch = one portion at least, dinner = one portion at least etc. Snacks are always fruit first, something else with it, iyswim. I wouldn't allow "just" crackers.

But I feel pretty confident that the balance is OK generally - it doesn't stress me out. Some days are less ideal than others. And I guess my kids know the "rules" - they're unlikely to mither for a biscuit if I've offered the fruit bowl, because they know the answer. So when I do dispense biscuits, they're suitably grateful!

[Mermaidhair]

I keep a rough tally in my head. I'm more careful as mine are Vegetarians. Some days we are over, others well under.

[MrsTerryPratchett]

I just make sure there is fruit or veg or both at every meal and pretty much every snack.

DD would ask for Nutella on toast for every meal breakfast. She just doesn't get it.

[Shockers]

"If they eat school dinners then someone else has worked it all out for you (thank you Jamie Oliver!)
5/7 sorted
Have a couple of smoothies at the weekend and alls good x"

I work in school. There is a salad bar (which largely gets ignored) and a spoonful of mixed veg on most meals... most of which ends up in the bin.

JO tried, and the food is definitely fresher than it used to be, but it has a long way to go before it's 5/7.