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.

Toddlers definitely have a need for more fatty and high-calorie foods in their diets than adults but there are ways and means of achieving that. 100% fruit spread on wholemead bread? Ok. Jam on white bread = lazy.

I made the mistake of taking my Italian ex-fiance's parents to Pizza Hut once. They were like 'what is this?' I dread to think what they would make of spahetti hoops!

Is it naice jam?...

Are those people who are saying chill out and that I am being precious the same ones that I see giving their babies/toddler packets of crips/wotsits and chocolate bars on the way to nursery? Because if that's what is normal and OK, then please consider me to be neurotic and precious about my DDs health.

Myself I see lots of overweight toddlers. I see lots of toddlers sitting in their buggys eating Greggs sausage rolls and crisps and chocolate, in a typical wander into town at lunchtime.

I'm just trying to do the best for my children as I fee fit, so no need to swear and tell me to chill out.

You're extrapolating. What makes you suggest that the other parents are that ignorant or less concerned with their childrens' welfare than the OP?

Possibly the obesity statistics for children, including toddlers. Some parents are ignorant and some, shock-horror at my judgyness, are lazy and will feed their children junk because they can't be bothered to do anything else. 'Tis a fact y'know.

A 14mo has no idea about healthy eating and will make no distinction between the merits of a piece of fruit and jam on water bread.

Some parents are ignorant and some, shock-horror at my judgyness, are lazy and will feed their children junk because they can't be bothered to do anything else. 'Tis a fact y'know.
AGREE

but thats got fuck all to do with a Nursery once in a while gving a jam sarnie to the kids.
I think this attiutde that all sugar/fat/carbs is bad for kids is just, silly

Whoever said one day DD will know their her friends are eating what she is not and she will want to eat it too, well that's fine. At the moment she has no clue. I'd rather start on the junk later rather than sooner, if it's all the same to DD.

When I used to work in a nursery the children post 12 months had jam sandwiches for a snack every day with some apple or banana.

I seriously didn't realise people considered that an unhealthy snack. It's jam. On bread. Hardly going to cause obesity. I can't see the problem with a jam butty once a week, and I'd happily give them to my children.

yes croissant and honey would not be offered to her either. so it's not food snobbery. I'd give her some plain croissant though.

"Are those people who are saying chill out and that I am being precious the same ones that I see giving their babies/toddler packets of crips/wotsits and chocolate bars on the way to nursery?"

no. like i already said, i make sure my dcs have a balanced diet at home and i know what the menu is at nursery (it is great) so a thin layer of jam once a week is not an issue.

just because we are not anal about food doesn't mean we dont give a shit. there is a big wide space inbetween the two you know.

Again - I would pick the battle over the processed hoops only.

The menu of my DD's kindergarten is definitely designed by a professional dietician (it's a requirement here) and prepared on site. There is a small set of parents who drop by into the canteen every once in a while to sample the food directly, particularly for the 2-5 year olds who cannot "complain" about the standards.

Although there are plenty of treats (choc cake, pizza, chips once a month, even jam sandwiches, I am sure), there is no processed food. The idea is that all children, at least when they are at school, will have a balanced meal including things like salad, grilled veg, fresh fish, risottos, fishcakes as well as omelettes, lasagne, cheeseboard, fruit, and the occasional sweet thing for snack. As there is no choice (bar allergies etc), you will find 2-10 year olds happily tucking into salads and fish cakes on day, and chicken and chips the other.

I see your point OP. Jam sandwiches aren't really a suitable snack for a 14 month old. It wouldn't take much effort for them to substitute something a bit healthier.

I would definitely bring it up. Maybe make a few suggestions as to what you would prefer? I wouldn't suggest you offer to take stuff in just yet. You are paying them good money and providing healthy food is part and parcel of that.

OP: there's a long way between feeding your child a diet entirely composed of wotsits, dairy milk and Greggs sausage rolls and thinking that the occassional jam sandwich isn't the end of the world. Good to see you have a sense of proportion.

I don't think anyone, even me, is saying that a jam sandwich is going to harm the OP's DD, just that its nutritional value is very close to zero and that there are much better snacks available that the nursery could and should be giving. The 14mo won't care if she gets jam sandwiches or not so why give her junk when it's easily avoidable?

coffeone - I'm not worried about obesity at all. Both my DCs are small, so gaining any weight will only be a good thing!

You could suggest that they substitute beans for hoops though if you're that worried about it.

Readysteady..... Yes she did,her 14.35 post says exactly that. I will choose to post what I like if that's all the same with you thanks!

....seriously? How sad. There is nothing wrong with a 14 month old eating jam sandwiches, it's not like they're stuffing a donor kebab down her throat every day. Get over it. Also, really?, your friend was appalled at the jam sandwiches??

Why will gaining weight be a good thing? Are they underweight then?

DamselinDisarray - I am talking about my 14 month old DD here. To her a jam sandwich would be a significant part of her daily intake, just like those kids I see with junk food in their buggies.
LIke I saids I have no problem with my DS having the occassional junk, as in proportion it will only be a small amount.

Most child obesity stems from lack of exercise rather than the odd unhealthy or sweet food I reckon.

I think back to when I was little and we often ate far worse than now, yet people weremn't obese in that way. Mainly because we were all playing out a whole lot more, riding our bikes up and down the streets, playing football in the middle of the road, etc. Rather than being ferried to and fro out of catchment schools, being taken to organised clubs after school, etc.

But also tbh - I don't see all these very overweight or obese children. I work in an infant school and almost all children are slim and healthy. You get maybe one per class at the very very most, in some classes none - so less than 0.5%. Similar, if not even lower, in DD's primary school.

The odd jam sandwich isn't going to cause a child with a generally well balanced diet any issues whatsoever.

"just because we are not anal about food doesn't mean we dont give a shit. there is a big wide space inbetween the two you know."

Good post booy.

"

The OP's post at 15.08 ... as I said, food snobbery.

I think the OP should do what my yoga teacher suggests: picture two boxes one for 'shit that doesn't matter' and another for 'shit that does' (may be slightly paraphrasing here). Jam sandwiches can go in the first box.

There was a similar thread a few weeks ago from a mother who was horrified about her child's morning snack at nursery which virtually everyone else thought sounded healthy. There was a general feeling that, by being so obsessional and controlling about her child's diet, she was potentially setting her up to have issues with food in later life. It's about moderation ffs, not becoming fixated about every morsel that enters your child's mouth and calculating how much fat and sugar it has. When i was a child in the 70s, we ate loads of stodgy puddings and sweets and were regularly served pink custard at school but were all skinny because we ran around and played outside all the time. An awful lot of the obesity problem is related to lack of exercise and certainly won't be solved by not allowing children one jam sandwich a week.
I really worry for OPs when they post these type of things because, if you're getting so het up about something so trivial, you're going to find parenting very hard going.