To think that what I feed my child is my business..

[mummalish]

MIL has been preaching to me about child nutrition, this is the woman who's own children were obese from a young age.

I choose to be careful what I feed my ds, therefore I do not give him sugary cereal, sweets,crisps, or juice. He has freshly cooked food, and I enjoy cooking and preparing it.

So why should I defend myself? She claims that it is unrealistic for him to eat this way.

Yet, I do allow treats: pizza and chips yesterday on a day out, juice when we have it at home, biscuits (every day), home made cake when we have it.

I get compared to SIL all the time, she allows coco pops, fruit shoots etc. I don't, these things are fine, but not for us.

Just so tired of having to explain myself.

My home made pizza is delicious, contains loads of veg.

However, some supermarket pizza contains more than what meets the eye, look at the ingredients, you will find them interesting.

I have no problem with pizza, it's not the worst of the worst.

Everything in moderation is my motto.

My cousin when growing up was never exposed to any 'junk' food whatsoever and she was the most unhealthy child I knew. She also used to swap the wholemeal prawn sarnies in her school lunch for packets of crisps!

Have to admit I belong to the food police where my children are concerned and make everything from scratch the majority of the time. However, my dc are allowed sweets etc. as a treat when round gp's houses - I just don't give it to them at home.

Unfortunately, the way my ds's schools have approached healthy eating he is almost scared to eat anything that contains fat etc. Almost to the extent that I worry he may become anorexic in future.

MathsMummy - yes you are right. DS eats loads of cheese, meat, quiche, peanut butter, oily fish and has butter on his toast and in sandwiches.
When I talk about 'low fat' pizza toppings, the things I am avoiding are things like pepperoni and other really greasy meats that are not necessarily good quality protein. Having said that DS is quite fond of a slice of salami with his lunch sometimes which I guess amounts to the same thing!

treas - I used to do that, my parents were very strict with what we were allowed to eat but I think we ate too much of it. My Mum has always struggled with her weight and I first remember being aware that I was bigger than most of my peers at around 8/9. I used to trade my homemade flapjack for kitkats and packets of frazzles because we were never allowed such things, ever. I am determined to see my DC grow up with a more balanced approach.

I have to say...although of course I agree with the OP, some of the replies on here come across as a little...er..smug.

I fed my DS lots of fruit and veg from an early age, and he used to gobble up spinach, peas etc etc etc (and MIL would make surprised and slightly disapproving comments)....

BUT despite me having done this, about 6 months ago (he's now 2 and a quarter), he completely refused to eat ANY MORE VEGETABLES ever again. We have to hide them...mush them up, pretend they're pasta sauce, distract him with interesting conversation while we shovel peas into his mouth, etc etc. He still loves fruit, but despite my best middle class efforts, vegetables are a definite no.

My husband says it's apparently because children that age are kind of programmed not to eat vegetables as there are so many poisonous plants in the wild - so during the age when they're able to kind of forage for themselves but still aren't old enough to be trusted to eat the right berries, they go off it completely. Not sure about that

Anyway, just thought I'd mention it, as yes, I was horribly smug...

I'd heard that theory too starkadder! although I'm a bit too

I'm hoping of course that my DC won't go through fussy stages... but they may well do. it's quite normal. hopefully I'll be able to stay relaxed about it if so and it'll just be a passing phase. ()

i think the pizza debate underlines the OP's message - that homemade stuff is generally healthier. Supermarket pizza and Dominos are all hydrogenated fat and whatnot, unlike what you'd make yourself.

That happened to me, too, starkadder. One day my lovely eat-anything-except-salad DS pushed something away saying darkly "it's got vegetables in it..." and we had a year or so of (at least partial) vegetable refusal (my most shameful moment probably being when he found mushrooms in something and I told him it was "brown asparagus" because I knew he'd happily eat asparagus (one of the vegetables he never gave up on) but was very dubious about mushrooms ). Fortunately he still ate fruit happily, and gradually the vegetables crept back in one by one. Now he eats most vegetables with relish (sprouts are a particular favourite. And mushrooms, after all that).

starkadder - we've been through a phase of DS absolutely refusing all forms of protein except milk, it was a nightmare and fortunately we are out the other side now and he happily scoffs whatever is there. So there is no smuggery from me, I'm all too aware that it could all come crashing down at any point