to question nursery as to why they are serving jam sandwiches to babies?

[choceyes]

My DD is 14 months old and goes to nursery 3 days a week.

I won't know whether I am being precious or not, but it annoys me that occassionally she gets given jam sandwiches and also tinned spaghetti hoops on toast for her afternoon snack. I would never give these things to her at home. She always has healthy stuff, no treats at all, cos she is not a big eater, so I don't want to fill her up with junk.

My DS, 3yrs, is also at the same nursery, but there's nothing much I can do to stop him eating jam sarnies, as he would want to eat what his friends eat. and as he eats fairly well most of the time he can afford to have the occassional junk.

The nursery lunches are fine, and they also do fruit, chesse, crackers, tuna sandwiches for afternoon snack , so this probably happens about once a week I guess (i mean she gets either jam sarnies or hoops on toast maybe once a week, the rest of the meals are fine).

I dunno really. I was talking to a friend about it at the weekend and she was appalled at the jam sarnies, so got me thinking maybe I should say something to the manager.

I'm not in anyway a health freak, and against giving kids sugar, but not at 14 months, it's too young for me. And the nursery serves them to kids above 12 months I think.

It's just there is NO nutritional value in jam sarnies. I@d rather they gave her a flapjack or something (and they sometimes for the older ones dessert), which although has sugar, has got good things in it too.

My DS's idea of a treat when he was little was a plates de mare from tesco!
However he was also quite happy eating jam sandwiches and the occasional spagetti on toast. Everything in moderation.

Has nobody mentioned huomous yet

I look at threads like this and honestly sometimes think is someone having a laugh??.

Appalled at a jam sandwich? Really? At 14mths.

I eat jam sandwiches(well jam on toast) sometimes, so why wouldn't I give it to my children. Op are you going to police your dc so strictly all of their childhood, to the extent that you are going to mither of over a layer of jam on bread once a wk?

How totally boring if the whole of a persons diet is just based on nutrition and not some yummy treats as well! And i wouldn't even class jam as a treat!

I have always fed my children healthy food but a variety of food. The same variety as i eat. So if my dc's want a bit of chocolate, crisps or biscuits as 99% of the time they eat Decent food. My children are healthy, normal weight and eat a huge variety of food. Nothing is off limits. Nothing.

I cannot believe that anyone could get so het up over a jam sarnie or even think its an issue

God, I can't even remember what ds used to eat - I was just thrilled if he sat still long enough to get anything down his neck

and I think you being frankly ridiculous whatmeworry

What - for disagreeing with you and daring to suggest that a jam sarnie a week won't terminally damage your DD and is not a thing to sweat?

If that's being ridiculous, well yes I guess I am. Guilty as charged.....everything in moderation, say !!

And those who have children that love carrot sticks, hummus etc only love it because they are never offered anything else! These are the kids who will go nuts when they discover chocolate or sweets.

My dc's actually do love hummus and fresh fruit and veg and they will actaully choose it mostly, over less healthy options. They have been given a choice though, because they have been brought up on a variety of foods, not all healthy. So when they choose grapes over a biscuit its because they actually like it it not because they have no other option

It always makes me laugh that the mothers who only insist on organic or only give their children snacks that they have prepared themselves are the ones who secretly stuff chocolate cake in their gobs behind their dc's back .

Btw i do buy organic and cook from scratch virtually every day. I also allow treats after dinner and have some weekends where we all have a bit of a pig out.
People always comment on how well my children eat when we go out. They are not picky or fussy.

Hey OP, YANBU to be concerned about what your child eats; as you say, she is still very young. I don't think one jam sandwich a week will do her any harm, but as previous posters have said, maybe send your own choice in with her on jam sandwich day or ask the staff if they could give her something else.

I'm sorry some people have been so rude to you on this thread; unfortunately there are some that equate AIBU with Be As Rude As Possible.

YANBU and if it bothers you I would talk to the nursery and maybe bread and butter would be better? Nurseries are usually open to suggestion eg I told them I did not want my dd to have squash because the added sweeteners make her hyperactive.
Having said that, I was when dd1 started nursery at 11 months and in the first week they told me she had refused her tea: curry supernoodles!!!! Too right she refused having been given mostly home cooked healthy food up until then... I think nurseries try to get way with cutting corner and serving rubbish if they can.

Lordy lordy what a thread!!

DD is 3 (just) and DP and I give her a wide range of foods, including treats/sweets on an irregular basis, plus all the usual healthy stuff and things a bit unusual too (she likes sushi for example - yes we are lucky she will eat most things). Birthday parties/weekends/occasions etc she gets a bit of junk/sweet things like most kids. I was quite anal when she was a baby and still buy yoghurts without added refined sugar (not necessary when there are penty of brands who use natural fruit sugars), or just buy plain yoghurt which DD loves with blueberries.

But (and IMO this is the issue here), I would not expect a nursery that I paid money to send her to, to give her 'easy', high refined sugar foods. No, she won't be harmed by a jam butty but if I'm paying money, then please give her good foods that meet her nutrition requirements (including full fat milk, fats etc for calories).

Nursery offer milk or water, give a mix of wholemeal and white breads (and yes, we and they are aware that wholemeal bread is not ideal for babies - they bake their own bread so adjust accordingly for age group. Onion bread is particularly loved by all the kids, as is their home made veg soup) and have removed the pre-bought items they used to offer like crumpets (a gram of salt per crumpet). I have more of a problem with salt than sugar tbh, but I still think the OP is fair to talk to the nursery as I don't think jam butties are appropriate for a setting where a parent has paid for care.

If the OP was talking about AIBU to choose to give my child a jam butty once a week in my own home, then that's a totally different thread.

To put things in perspective, when DD1 joined P1, she was asked whether she wanted plain, strawberry or chocolate milk at breaktime. She chose strawberry and was then committed to that for the rest of the year Parents did^ complain and two years later theyjust get plain milk.

We occasionally receive healthy eating leaflets fro
Glasgow City Council ^in the children's schoolbags. This is the same council which allows it's private catering firm to flog double choc muffins to kids at break times.

There are bigger fish to fry...

Sorry my phone seems to punctuate at random

I think any parent who wanted a once weekly foodstuff removed from the nursery menu would be labelled as precious.

These are the same parents who don't allow their children party food at parties. I actually had a (ex) friend like this. She was a prat and took the child's 'usual' snack food and drink to parties so as her dc didn't have to eat the goodies.

OP do you eat jam sarnies? oR jam on anything? Or even eat tinned spaghetti on toast? If you eat anything other than the foods that you give to ur dc then you will give out very mixed messages.

Blimey NormanTebbit, that is daft.

Everything in moderation does not apply to frankenfood like spaghetti hoops in a tin. It applies to real food (whether homemade fishfingers, cheese or chocolate cake). Of course trying it very occasionally won't hurt anybody, but I would not want it as a regular meal in nursery. If have low expectations over what your children will eat, or over what the nursery will provide, chances are those low expectations are going to be realised.

And If you believe that only sugared stuff or highly processed food can be a "yummy treat", then this is what your children will learn too. A slice of smoked salmon with lemon jiuce, or some really fresh zingy goats cheese salad, or a well made veg risotto can be treats too.

And squeaky, I think I have to disagree again: humans have adopted food not only as fuel but also as a celebration since the dawn of time. It's important to teach children that it's fine to enjoy food as a celebration "around the table" with family and friends, and then to have an healthy diet most of the time. I do not think that is a message only for teenagers (they will not care by then!) or adults.

Totally agree with Minerva!

I don't think liking "healthy" foods like carrot sticks and humous means they've never had anything else.

My toddlers favourite foods are a mix of healthy and unhealthy, she gets just as excited by a banana, strawberries or peanut butter/cheese on toast as she does at a bit of cake or chocolate.

I am an everything in moderation person, and so far I like to think it has worked and she has a healthy attitude to food.

I think the OP started this thread to stir up a bit of shit.

I've just read her comments on kids eating in pushchairs. Now i very rarely let my dc's eat in the pushchair because it makes the pushchair dirty and it looks trampy . I do let them sometimes have a snack while we are out and about, usually a banana or grapes. Occasionally, they may have a packet of crisps or small cake. I would be furious if I was judged for being a bad parent. A passerby would not know that my child had already eaten healthy cereal, eggs fruit, yogurt for breakfast before eating said junk food.

Just because someone is seen to be giving their child an unhealthy snack, it doesn't mean that is the only food they have.

YANBU - send nursery this report from the Caroline Walker Trust.

"para 38:Children need nutritious snacks between meals. The best snacks are those which are low in added sugar. A variety of snacks should be offered including fruit, vegetables, milk, yoghurt, any type of bread, and sandwiches with savoury fillings."

Unfortunately there are no adopted standards for foods in childcare settings. The linked to report suggests some guidelines.

When my DD started at a play group I asked for her not to be given artificial orange squash, and sent apple juice instead. I overheard staff talking about my oddity, saying DD was 'oh, the poor little thing.'

Laweasel, I agree. My dc's get very excited by mango, for instance even though they have it a lot. My eldest dc's idea of a treat is a cheeseboard or feta and olives.

I do think that most of the posters who say their dc's love healthy food only give them healthy, which is it not a good attitude to food at all.

I would really like to know what these posters eat themselves and what they enjoy as a 'treat'.

Wow - a thread about jam sandwiches at over 300 posts so far.

Mrsarchchancellor
"But (and IMO this is the issue here), I would not expect a nursery that I paid money to send her to, to give her 'easy', high refined sugar foods. No, she won't be harmed by a jam butty but if I'm paying money, then please give her good foods that meet her nutrition requirements (including full fat milk, fats etc for calories)."

Yes - it's the issue but not the way you see it. You pay money for something, you usually agree up front what you get for that money. If you don't and subsequently decide you don't like what that money gets you can try and renegotiate or stop paying it and go elsewhere.

I would be very surprised if said nursery promised to only ever feed organic perfectly rounded nutritional food to its clients.

The OP could always offer to pay more, I guess.

I am totally ignorant about this, as peanut butter is not a food that we usually eat here (Italy) but how is peanut butter considered healthier than chocolate? Am I missing something? Not sure that dark chocolate (in small amounts) is that unhealthy btw.

I am astounded that curry flavour instant noodles were served to under-1s. That is really out of order.

peanut butter is well loved in this house as it is high in protein + calories from fat, as well as certain vits and minerals which are good for a balanced diet. (and particularly for the nutritional needs of my particular household)

Chocolate is pretty cheap and nasty in the UK right now, full of oil and sugar and not that much else.