To think it’s a bit unreasonable that children have to have fruit for school snack.

Fruit is a rubbish snack. It's just sugar plus a bit of fibre and will spike their blood sugar leaving them more hungry after. A protein snack would be much better.
What does she have for breakfast? I would try to incorporate more protein into that in the hope it sustained her for longer.

People talk about feeling hunger being healthy but I recall walking home for lunch and feeling so weak with hunger that I could have cried.

DS' school insists on fruit and provides it i think it's great. Could she have something different for breakfast if she's getting hungry so quickly? DS had a big bowl of porridge this morning with some almond butter stirred in, dollop of greek yoghurt on top with slices of peach. He eats a bigger breakfast than I do.

As an aside until this term DS' school didn't allow packed lunches for infants, the school dinners are free and good, always a meat/fish and a veggie choice plus something simple like pasta with tomato based sauce or jacket with cheese and beans as well as sandwich and wrap options plus a salad bar.

So many parents complained they've now allowed packed lunches and we're already getting letters reminding parents that a mars bar isn't a healthy snack (and similar)
This is a state school with just under 40% pupil premium students it has a very mixed demographic due to a large catchment area, so you'd think it would be good for some of the families to have a free healthy lunch option. What I find interesting is it's largely the families from the more expensive part of town still using the free lunches.

Yep.

My son is under a dietician due to his limited diet and snacks are essential for him.

Say you have three kids. An apple a day for each of them would be £4.50 per week. Or you could buy 2 packs of biscuits for less than £1 and share them out over the week.

It’s the fibre in whole fruit that slows down absorption of sugar. Obviously it varies so a firm banana is starchy and fibrous will release sugar slower ghan a really ripe one.

Our school says the same thing but then they provide toast, crumpets or ice lollies in hot weather for a small fee at breaktime. So clearly they aren't that bothered about it being fruit!

This thread is depressing and I can see why we are the way we are. If we can't start the good habits at this young age, then we don't stand a chance.

We only ever had a carton of room temp milk in primary, tuck shop full of shite at middle and secondary!

Op, what is your DD having for breakfast? She really shouldn't be feeling ravenous before lunch.

Fruit sugars are fine for kids inside whole fruit for some reason

I was going to say the same thing. Im not a fruit person, never had been. But I was the child that got excited when I saw we had sprouts. I love veg.

We seem to have half the adults in country having to take injections to put limits on themselves. I blame the UPF manufacturers for this. Having a few healthy limits as a kid doesn’t seem like such a bad thing. I’m sure they would count things like carrots sticks and red peppers if you wanted to stick a few of them in too?

Trust me, the militant snacks are not the reason I am trying to remove them!

Give her a bigger breakfast or snack on way. Makes sense to keep it to fruit.

Malt loaf is basically cake though - if you look at Soreen the second ingredient is sugar. Why would you give cake everyday as a snack?

Our school let you give fruit, veg, or crackers. I quite often give the DC a packet of mini breadsticks. They usually have breakfast around 6.30 at home, then go to breakfast club but don't always eat again.

I'd pack her a really big banana I your shoes.

Fruit is mainly sugar and so is malt loaf so would suggest finding an alternative

This. Breakfast at 7. The stodgy snack in the car just before going into school. Banana for breaktime.

That should be plenty for any person, child or adult until 12.30ish.

Our primary has had a 10am fruit snack for years though this year they have implemented a quarter of a bagel for kids that can't bring in fruit. It's never been an issue for us but I can see why it would be for some.

people don’t need to eat every 2hrs - it may be different with someone who has an eating disorder in which case you can talk to the school

sugars will surge and drop rapidly with poor diet however so be a little careful with breakfast

Give her a bigger breakfast. Include some protein such as an egg. Give her a protein flapjack bar to eat on way to school. Large banana for school snack at break time.

A banana is a filling and healthy snack

we never had snacks at school until 6th form when a tuck shop was installled

malt loaf is high in salt and sugar and seems to be a UPF so not healthy

if you cut the UPF from her diet she may find she gets less starving

although I was always hungry I somehow survived and thrived

The eating disorder service is part of East Kent hospitals. The staff are fully qualified

I agree. When I was a child we never had snacks at all.
When my kids were little (and they’re only 18 & 19 now) also didn’t have snacks at school. It was breakfast, lunch (depending on the year group was as early as 11.30am) and then wait until 4.30pm for evening meal. They’d be really hungry then. They would sometimes save something from their packed lunch for afternoon break but that was their decision.

Because they're only allowed fruit as a snack? That is mental.

Absolutely. It’s the primary school. Since they won the eco award they have implemented an “easy to follow regime that allows us to have the best impact on our environment and our bodies” according to the leaflet we got.
Basically because banana skins rot away, along with apple cores, there’s no plastic so the waste can be put into the schools compost heap. The berries and grapes are harder, but we have been asked to put them in recyclable cardboard containers and same for cucumbers….its mental. The wrappers of the granola bars are cardboard type ones too, so it’s all recyclable and part of the schools eco ethos…