To have thought my dcs diet was ok until I joined mumsnet?

[Meandmygirls2009]

I have always thought my dc ate ok, but since joining mumsnet and reading lots of posts I am worried that I do not feed my dc a healthy diet! Typical day consists of:
Breakfast: bagel and orange juice
Snack: grapes
Lunch: cheese sandwich, mini cheddars, raisons
Snack: 2 chocolate digestives
Dinner: home made spag Bol, strawberries

Does this sound ok? I am worried the daily mini cheddars and digestives are too much after reading what other children eat :(

Someone on here once claimed to do a 50 mile round trip every week so that her family could have fresh fish instead of "frozen rubbish" that's the sort of food nuttiness you get on here.

"I am wary of eating disorders, Anorexia is the single biggest psychiatric killer."

Good point. Anorexia is far more common then people realise and is a truly awful, pernicious disease.

I often think MN is a secret haven of encouraging all sorts of food disorders and wonder how many people tooting the "this food is poison" horn, are actually suffering from an eating disorder.

All this anti wheat stuff really pisses me off. Wheat is only dangerous if you're coeliac, like my son is. For the rest of us it's perfectly fine.

Don't you wonder, Wordsmith, if the huge dietary intake of wheat doesn't trigger coeliac disease in some people? I have one friend who is sure that's why she developed it.

Anyway, I think some wheat is fine, too. Just not large portions 3x a day which is how some people eat it.

I'd starve on the buckwheat etc diet. I'd eat the carrots and celery and after a few days of that probably start picking at the rest enough for basic survival until I'd gone through as much lean muscle as possible and was actually suffering starvation. Rank food combo.
How do you live up to these perfect nutrition ideals if you actually live a healthy active lifestyle and require significant carb intake and a decent load of fat? Oh yeah, you don't, it's not compatible with ideal levels of exercise and a healthy metabolism. Or indeed functioning taste buds.

camelhump nori is sea weed.

I also believe the op meant avocado and olives as she also spelt it tonatoes.

Sounds like she is mostly raw vegan as well.

Don't you wonder, Wordsmith, if the huge dietary intake of wheat doesn't trigger coeliac disease in some people? I have one friend who is sure that's why she developed it.

No. That's not how it works. It's genetic, something you are born with. you can't trigger coeliac disease by eating wheat.

MNers are far too evangelical about what they say they eat. There's always too much of this and not enough that whenever anyone has a diet thread. If I followed MN rules about what I was allowed to eat Id never enjoy a meal again. They are also the same when exercise is mentioned.

Your symptoms will vary along a spectrum from v mild to v bad, but if you have actual coeliac disease it is genetic, you are born with it, and you will have some kind of symptoms. It varies in rate by ethnic group and by country.
Coeliac disease is not a wheat allergy, or an intolerance. It is not triggered, its an autoimmune disorder which is there or not there.

My DS until the age of 18 months was a wonderful eater - all homemade food with fruit, vegetables, meat and dairy. At 2 he was diagnosed with autism. A normal day consists of:

Nutella on toast
Three peppa pig ice lollies
Half a French stick
Oven chips
Cheese and onion French fries
Dairy milk
Dry spaghetti

There's no way we would get fruit or vegetables in him as he would rather starve than eat them and his behaviour and anxiety becomes unmanageable when hungry. He's slim, healthy and is on the move constantly. We're greatful he eats anything at all. The biggest issue is he has a younger sister who is 2 and can't understand why she can't eat the same and so it is a careful balancing act.

NHS says that getting coeliac is probably a combination of genes & environmental triggers.

I think that means nobody really knows. I bet that there are different causes; some entirely genetic & others genes+triggers.

For decades the Government has been pushing a low fat agenda. Turns out low fat makes people fat. So now they're looking at sugar. (And paying no notice to the risks of artificial sweeteners in the process.)

The recommendation for 5 a day has no scientific basis - it should really be 7 but they didn't think people would manage it so dropped it to 5. Most people don't know what counts or what constitutes a portion.

Wholewheat is big news now. There's nothing to say it's good or even safe to eat in huge quantities as we (generally) do.

So I'd take what the government advises about food with a very large pinch of (low-sodium- salt.

For goodness sakes this is very clearly a control issue/disordered eating issue for some and I would suggest those affected seek help before it ruins your and more importantly your children's lives.

It is an undisputed fact we are living longer than ever before and actually that this is a very real problem for modern society.

It is also an undisputed fact that there is a 100% chance of you dying, please accept the fact that one day you WILL die and your children will one day die despite what you may or may not eat and is likely to be nothing to do with your wheat consumption or lack of it.

I really do urge some of the obsessives on here to get help for their anxiety/disordered eating and control issues, it is likely to manifest itself in other areas of your life also and you really are setting your children up for significant mental health issues in the future.

Where did you get the information that it should be 7 but they just dropped two to make it easier to achieve?

From what I know, there's relatively little information generally about how much fruit and veg we 'should' eat and different countries pick different numbers. I'm not sure that there is a definitive 'it should be 7'

Of course, it also depends on portion size and what you allow to count - e.g. fruit juice, dried fruit, etc.

Diabetes may be linked to poor diet, but dementia and cancer risk increase with age. The increased rates are simply because people are more likely to survive into old age.

Small children are supposed to have carbs at every meal.

The single largest risk factor for cancer is age. So, never mind the kale, better get the rifle out once you hit 60-odd.

Personally I like my rice cakes wrapped round cookie dough icecream and deep fried. London hipster cafe start up idea. Your child's diet sounds fine.