This isn't particularly healthy, is it? Or am I BU?

[themummyonthebus]

DC1 has just started school. To "get the children to expand their palate" the class teacher wants 2 litres of juice to be brought in every day (there's a rota for the parents). There's enough juice for about 80ml each. They have this for a morning snack with a biscuit.

The after school club has just informed us of the menus they'll be offering:
juice + cake, bananas + biscuits, milk (with nesquik for those that want, so basically everyone with peer pressure) + fruit, cake + chocolate, bread + cheese. These "menus" rotate through the days. On the days without juice or milk there'll be water to drink.

DC1 has school dinners which seem to be well balanced with plenty of choice.

Ok, this is pfb I'm talking about but this seems like a lot of juice (we've been asked to bring 100% fruit juice and the after school club is offering 100% juice too) and the afternoon snacks seem very sugary. They've apparently been put together by a nutritionist. Tell me I'm BU!

Fair point Thumb, if the nutrition's contribution really had been only the words 'dairy, fruit, grain' (although as the OP has since clarified they were more involved). But if that had been the case it wouldn't really have been worth paying for. And even then I'd maintain that 'fruit' should be 'fruit or vegetable - more often the latter'.

The 'but they won't drink just plain milk' excuse was the one used by the US school boards for offering chocolate or pink milk in that Jamie Oliver/US school meals things a year or two ago. I seem to recall he found that when chocolate or strawberry was on offer pretty much none of them touched the plain milk, when he made it plain milk only virtually all of them drank it.

The only problem of have with that is the juice tbh.

I'd

I agree with crowler

Bizarre idea that any parent should have to supply the whole class, and the snacks sound a bit sugary.

DS is in Reception. His school asks each child to bring a piece of fruit. These are then cut up and shared out-the kids get variety, the sharing disguises any children not bringing fruit in for whatever reason. Why not suggest something like that?

Yes Punk, I see the latest from the OP saying that the nutritionist is employed by the Council and had more input than previously suggested - in which case I revert to my original thoughts about her!!

And I agree with the rest of your points.

I also had not heard about this thing re. whole grains and under 5s - if they're eating a proper wholefood diet and has no bowel issues this should not be a problem (unless someone has taken "wholegrain" entirely too literally, of course!)

Eldritch that's a great idea, I'll suggest that for the class juice/snack.

Thumb

Handing out ears of wheat to munch on would at least be original.

Doesn't sound ideal to me. Fruit juice is, as others have pointed out, very high in sugar (contains more sugar than regular Coca Cola, for instance) and is also very acidic, so can harm tooth enamel.

Someone mentioned that it would be ok providing the children could clean their teeth afterwards. Actually, that's not a good idea. The acid softens tooth enamel and brushing straight away would exacerbate any damage.

It's the acid in juice which is the problem more than sugar iirc.

valium

Yes, that's what my mum (ex-dental nurse) says. It's the combination of the two. You are actually not meant to brush your teeth straight after drinking juice because the enamel's very weak then

Oops

Did not read 80s mum's post!

As you were

I used to work for a dentist, juice was a big no no. Cake/puddings etc, ok at meal times.