Is this a healthy packed lunch for DS9?

[mincepietwentytwo]

DS9 just switched from school dinners to packed lunch but I get stuck for ideas.

Won't eat:
Cucumber
Peppers
Tomatoes
Fruit (apart from raisins)
Tuna
Chicken (won't eat sliced chicken in the sandwich)
Marmite
Hummus
Nothing with a skin/pips

Will eat:
Ham sandwiches (50/50 bread or a bagel)
Crackers/rice cakes
Frube
Smoothie
Fridge Raiders
Crisps (only give every now and then)
Cheese cubes (won't eat the cheese in the sandwich)

He eats cooked vegetables at dinner and has a smoothie after school so not doing too bad?

Not what I’m replying to there is it.
also plenty of people are taking the piss out of your “locally sourced honey” and yet you keep snapping at my heels like a Jack Russell. Again bore off.

@pepperminticecream You do realise that all fruits contain naturally occurring sugar which is just as harmful as added sugar, right? No, I'm not saying don't eat fruit but to pontificate about how you make your own jam and how it's not full of sugar is wildly incorrect. If it's jam, then it's full of sugar.

@Leavealightonforme Honey is almost entirely filled with sugar, it's just naturally occurring sugar. Why do you think they found honey in an Egyptian tomb that was still edible? Because it contains so much sugar. How can you call that pretty nutritious!?

I don't think I did. The whole package is nutritious. A small amount of honey to add a bit of sweetness to make it more palatable is fine.

Absolutely and I am in complete agreement that loading guilt onto parents who are struggling is not the answer here.

But we also need to acknowledge the reason why many children do not like the real food options is because the big food companies and society have conditioned them into desiring more and more food which is ultra-processed, packed with fillers, binders and artificial flavourings. I don't believe it is bad parenting at all - it is the food culture in this country. The school curriculum does not teach food - how to create a balanced diet, how to cook from fresh ingredients, which foods are cheap(er) and filling and should form the basis of a meal. So these skills aren't there in adults to pass down to their children.

My parents are immigrants and come from a developing county where food in a packet was not an option growing up. They had to learn to cook from scratch and my Mum would make food for the extended family after school when in primary school. When when they fell on hard times, they picked up other skills such as maximising heat through pot in pot cooking, filling the oven when turning it on etc. These skills have been passed down - without a doubt, it is a privilege to have grown up this way.

We should be angry at the government for not intervening and prioritising nutrition in this country. Misinformation is rife and the big companies get away with marketing all sorts of crap to our children.

Ridiculous to blame the government. Parents have control of the food they buy -if they did not buy frubes’ (never heard of them till
now and they sound grim) kids wouldn’t know they existed, We never had biscuits/crisps in the house do they weren’t an option. Parents who are lazy prefer to blame the government rather than make an effort to give their children nutritious food from weaning onwards.

You can't liken Frubes to a packet of crisps or biscuits. It is common knowledge the latter are not the healthiest of food choices. Frubes are yoghurt - when introduced, they were Petit Filous in a tube so children did not need a spoon. Yoghurt is generally considered to be healthy and they are marketed to fit in with this stereotype. The box will be emblazoned with some health claims, likely to do with calcium and vitamin D so parents believe they are making good choices.

Both my children are under 10 and I can say from personal experience, I have had all manner of free samples of 'healthy' foods pushed on me through freebies (and associated vouchers) at baby groups, soft play centres, nursery etc. Various forms of organic veg pouches (all watered down and sweetened with the likes of apple/grape), organic lentil crisps (advertising some form of vegetable exposure, good for motor skills etc), 'healthy' biscuits or bars without sugar (but unbelievably sweet using dried fruit for a baby's palette). If you are not confident in your own knowledge of food, it is so so easy to believe these things are good for your child.

I would be willing to bet money that the majority of parents who are on here and offended are not lazy but simply did not know any different and are now caught up in a viscous cycle. I feel I am constantly fighting against the tide and in the minority when I don't give my children a sandwich, packet of crisps with a bar of chocolate for packed lunches. If I feel that way when I am confident of my education and choices, just imagine how those who have not had that privilege feel?

I'm very aware of wider issues and honestly I think diet is symptomatic of wider issues with lifestyle and it will have repercussions on health.

Yep, symptomatic of people just not having enough money, of needing both parents to work to make ends meet, of the reduction in sensible cookery lessons in school. Symptomatic of media glorification of junk food and milkshakes posturing as coffee, and the pester power attached to the latest fad food or drink. My kids still hold a grudge about me not letting them even try Prime, much less buy it regularly.

Society lends itself to quick, often processed food - from work habits to finances to time pressures to ability to put together a quick meal that everyone will eat enough of.

100% agree with this.

Apologies if you’ve already said and I’ve missed it, but could you please just tell us what you do put in your kids’ lunchboxes if not sandwich and crisps etc?

Naturally occurring sugar is not the same as added sugar, you do realise that an apple is healthier when compared to refined sugar right? When you consume fruit you are also consuming fiber (something most people are under consuming), minerals and vitamins.

I also do not eat jam with added sugar, I have compared the amount of naturally occurring sugar in the jam that I use vs. ones that have added and the ones with added sugar can be double the amount. Not all jam is the same.

The fact that this has to be debated is why so much of the country is unhealthy. Eating fruit is good for you, as long as you aren't going over recommended amounts. Eating added sugar is not good for you. Pay attention to labels, compare what you are buying to other foods.

It was publicised a few years ago through the World Health Organisation.
news.cancerresearchuk.org/2024/08/01/bacon-ham-hot-dogs-salami-how-does-processed-meat-cause-cancer-and-how-much-matters/

Honey has a lower GI value (doesn't impact blood sugar in the same way refined sugar does) and it contains vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Honey has some medicinal benefits as well, studies point to its usefulness in soothing coughs, it has antibacterial properties and lowers inflammation.

Personally, I find that a little honey goes a long way in terms of sweetness and so I end up consuming less sugar when I use honey.

Of course, honey should be used in moderation but the nutritional value makes it a better choice over sugar.

When it comes to sugar, one shouldn't be over consuming just because it is naturally derived, but to say it is the same as refined sugar is false.

I’m not for a second claiming to be perfect in the food my children eat. They are fussy at times and eat the same as their friends when out and about and at parties.

Their lunchboxes tend to be leftovers in a thermos, especially in winter. We are South Asian so have a lot of daals/lentil soups with different grains - rice/bulgur/cous cous/quinoa. Wholeweat pasta in various sauces with cheese. I make a lot of flatbreads in advance and freeze, usually have spices/herbs etc added. Alongside it I give raw veg, fruit, sometimes humous. Plain yoghurt with chocolate chips/honey for them to add. I make cakes /biscuits in advance and freeze. If nothing in freezer, will make a quick mug cake in the morning and send

There are days they eat it all, others they have a few bites and leave the rest. I can’t control this and have learnt to let go - all I can do is offer them food that I know they usually eat then it is upto them whether they eat it.

On the whole yoghurt thing, I do buy the best quality yoghurts I can afford sometimes (for the kids) but once every other week or so make my own with a yoghurt maker. It is actually dead easy, you just need some long life milk and a small amount of natural yoghurt and you end up with nine lovely glass pots of yoghurt (depending on which yoghurt maker you use, mine is from Lakeland). When they go on the fridge I stew up a bag of frozen fruit and once cool put that in the fridge in a tub. When the kids want a pudding they have the yoghurt with the fruit and honey.

I have been wanting to try to make my own yoghurt, this does sound easier than how I was imagining it to be.

@pepperminticecream honestly it’s so easy! I think if you use fresh milk you have to heat it to a certain temp etc but with long life it’s fine you don’t need to. 1.5 litres mixed with the small amount of fresh yog and then into the jars which stay on a low heat for 8-10hrs, I leave it on overnight. When you mix with say stewed blackberries and honey it’s delicious!

Frubes are "good" on the Yuka app.

Just saying....

@Crunchymum i really don’t rate the Yuka app I think they use the NHS approach to food which is prettty poor. They say cheese is bad but processed soup with rapeseed oil is good because it’s low fat versus high fat and low versus high sodium ignoring any other factors which influence how nutritional food is. I wanted to love it but I’ve found it really disappointing

OpenFoodFacts is better IMO and includes the Nova food classification level.