Do you let your kids snack on fruit between meals?

[ShabbyAbby]

I don't let my kids snack freely on fruit. They like fruit and could eat mountains of it, but I'm happier when they have something with protein and/or healthy fats.

Do you have a blanket rule like "you can only have fruit between meals" or are snacks a mix of the food groups?

Tia x

Fuck me if ds would eat a piece of fruit at all I'd party like it's 1999.

Mine were always allowed free reign of the fruits and vegetables between meals, never caused an issue.
They are grown now, both as skinny as rakes, both love fruit and vegetables still

Fruit only at meal times because of the sugar.as.advised by the dentist. They can have bread and butter cheese and sliced chicken. If youngest two have had an early breakfast and are hungry then ill do them an egg on toast.

My "fruit bowl" is actually an apple bowl - have as many apples as you like, I buy 2 or 3 kg of apples once or twice per week.

I buy bananas and grapes about once a week and they get eaten very quickly, I don't replace them in a big hurry, just next time I happen to go shopping. I do have a no more than 2 bananas per person per day rule due to constipation risk though I don't police it. Grapes especially are usually eaten within 30 minutes of unpacking, it's ok - they're more of a "treat" than biscuits, I don't think that's intrinsically bad... Only 2/3 of my children like grapes though.

Pears and oranges are sometimes left til they go bad, so I don't buy them much. Other soft fruit I only buy in season when it's cheap.

Apples though - always have a mountain and they get eaten, all the kids have a couple per day. There's nothing wrong with unlimited apples IMO, they're not especially sweet.

We do have a no food whatsoever upstairs rule though.

@BertrandRussell - I have visions of children sitting together on a sofa dividing out a packet of birds eye like smarties

ShabbyAbby unlimited grapes is totally different to unlimited apples though - some fruit is as sweet and delicious as chocolate - grapes, ripe strawberries in season etc. - and of course children will gorge, but ordinary apples? It's in the nature of apples that they're more self limiting, and once the novelty of free access wears off few children will eat more than 3 or so per day aside from exceptional hungry days or growth spurts. What harm do you think 3 apples do? That's about 75p a day if you buy big standard ones from Tesco...

I'd say no limits on any snacks within reason. So I would stop them eating a whole punnet of grapes at once.

hazyjane Fuck me if ds would eat a piece of fruit at all I'd party like it's 1999" ha ha

Mine snacks on what he wants really, he's not really one for big meals, he's very slender and enjoys a snack in his room.
He likes fruit, he likes biscuits, and he loves a bowl of dry cereal. It's not a big deal for me as I imagine he'll be very slim like his dad was and will only start bulking up in his 30s.
So long as he eats meat, cheese, milk, pasta, fruit and some veg I'm happy with it. If he ate big meals I'd be stricter but he just doesn't.
All day at school he only has his fruit and 3 biscuits. I just don't understand his lack of hunger sometimes.

I honestly don't see the fuss about eating fruit all the time. As an alternative to chocolate biscuits maybe but cheese /veg sticks / crackers and pb make a better snack.

Just realised my DC are very very spoilt despite the fruit bowl rationing. They mostly manage to persuade me to decore the apples and cut them up into quarters - 2 of them are teenagers

My DH used to only eat fruit in a prepared fruit salad so we are a step in the right direction. (I blame MiL but she only did it to ration things fairly as she has 5 DC)

(I used to be really good at peeling apples in one go but I keep that as a hidden talent or it would be even worse).

My children don't like food very much at all so they have freedom of the fruit bowl in between meals. It doesn't make much difference but on the odd occasion when they decide they are hungry there's something I don't object to for them to eat.

I however have a massive problem with the fruit bowl and have to ration myself to no more than one portion of fruit between each set of meals otherwise the whole thing would disappear in one sitting!

hard boiled egg, a piece of cheese, a yoghurt or some peanut butter Well if fruit isn't going to fill them up then those arnt either o_0 since when has a yogurt filled a kid up, maybe if they were to have a boiled egg with a slice of toast and peanut butter then maybe but also wouldnt let my child snack on cheese because its not good for you, neither is yogurt really especially as i definitely doubt its of the natural low fat kind.

Cheese is good for you and so is yoghurt, as long as you're not eating loads of the really sugary kind.

They're both excellent sources of protein and essential nutrients like B12 and calcium.

Low fat dairy isn't recommended for children and there's much scientific debate concerning its usefulness for adults.

I'm going to show this to my daughter so you realises how good she's got it :D

Yes,they can help themselves to fruit,veg(we buy the baby peppers and baby cuecumbers and they love those)cheese and yogurts.

We have 5DC and none of them have ever gone silly when it comes to helping themselves.

We have 3 fruit bowls in the kitchen and we usually have to re fill them twice a week but as long as you can afford it and they don't waste it I don't see the problem.

Yes, my teenagers do snack on fruit between meals, but they always eat their main meal so it's not an issue for us.

They can fill their boots as far as I am concerned! I giggled when DS14 appeared with four satsumas in one go the other day, but bit my tongue as frankly, he can have as many as he likes - he's growing like a weed!

Being as the guidelines now say you should eat 10 portions of fruit and veg these days as opposed to the 5 it used to be, plenty of fruit in my fruit bowl, yes, snack as often as they want on it. I have to admit to keeping apples in the fridge for me, because I cant bare them anything other than really cold.

The 10 pieces should really be veg not fruit. Fruit is not really that good for you, it's just not as bad as other sweet tasting stuff.

Where are all the children who gorge on fruit? I used to cater for cub camps & would allow a couple of pieces of fruit per child per day (ie; one apple & one banana). I used to bring most of it home, unless we baked the bananas with chocolate over the camp fire.

Fruit is included in your 5 (or 10)fruit and veg a day. Fruit is good for children, cheese is good for children, yogurt is good for children. It should for part of a balanced diet. I don't get the angst about letting dc have fruit, unless that's literally all they're eating.

Mine can have anything they want, whenever they want it. Only DS at home now. Not a big eater, doesn’t eat biscuits has an occasional pack of smarties.

its not 10 pieces of fruit its 10 portions, and a portion is 80g, how many children could or ould eat 800g of veg a day

how many children could or ould eat 800g of veg a day

If only they'd include potatoes.

We have a set snack time for a "proper" snack like toast, or yoghurt and granola, or something like that, and then fruit or veg (cucumber, carrot sticks, brocollini) are allowed at any other time unless too close to a meal time

They can fill their boots as far as I am concerned! I giggled when DS14 appeared with four satsumas in one go the other day, but bit my tongue as frankly, he can have as many as he likes - he's growing like a weed!

I could eat a whole fruit bowl full of satsumas in one go when I was a teenager!