to think DH is over-reacting to the kids' breakfast?

[EmGee]

Kids generally have homemade banana bread (I do add some dark choc pieces...), or other homemade cakey/bread/muffiny thing sweetened with fruit puree, a bit of brown sugar or some maple syrup. I add ground almonds and things like chia seeds or oat bran as much as possible, and try to use alternatives to white flour to vary things. Always cut down the amount of actual sugar that is given in the recipe to the absolute minimum.

I also make flapjacks and have successfully reduced the sugar content dramatically by using mashed banana for example. Kids are less keen on the banana version though.

My reasoning is that these things are homemade and I know exactly what has gone into them. The kids like them. It's quick and easy in the mornings. Is it so wrong?

They normally have water, milk or I make hot chocolate using unsweetened dark cacao powder and add a bit of brown sugar to sweeten.

He thinks weetabix is 'better' and it's ridiculous that they eat 'cake'.

AIBU or is he????

bollocks I haven't seen that programme, I will admit, but I remain highly cynical about food companies generally.

People say "ah all sweeteners are the same". I don't believe that. I don't believe all units of energy are equal. Almost all processed cheap snacks - and jam for that matter - contains glucose-fructose syrup. This was unheard of 10/20 years ago.

So if the option is a piece of home made cake, versus a processed snack, I will choose the home made every time.

The food companies are in the pockets of the government. It's up to us all to think independently.

I'd rather raise a child who eats cereal for breakfast than a diet bore banging on about the evils of sugar and carbs and existing on nuts, seeds and avocado smoothies

And you can maybe.

I would like to raise a child who has a healthy cynicism when told what to do and what to eat by organisations that might not have his or her interests at heart.

Did nobody else love weetabix with hot milk and a mini hill of sugar as a child?

Felicity yes me! Still do actually.

Rooner I assume you also apply that cynicism to the clean eating brigade?

Who exactly are the clean eating brigade? The ones who think that perhaps NHS eating advice isn't so great? That read labels?

You seem very sneering.

Have a look at the sponsorship and donation of funds to "health" organisations. That the "eat well" initiative of the NHS was originally sponsored by the likes of Kellogs says it all.

Kids are becoming sicker and fatter. That children are developing type 2 diabetes is a disgrace. We are letting these kids down.

Kids are not becoming sicker and fatter in the way you are insinuating. Young childhood obesity is stable and associated with obesity in the family and low socio-economic level. What is increasing is older childhood obesity - the one which is more difficult for parents to control.

To prevent the latter, instilling a balanced and healthy attitude towards food is crucial, and key to that is to not demonise food as good and bad, clean vs dirty, saintly vs slutty.

What she said ^^

Thing is, following the status quo in the UK results in children who are fatter & less fit than they should be. At a population level. Of course we all know of DC who eat crap and are thin as a whippet.

And although health advice can be hit and miss, faddy and sometimes fundamentally wrong, there are a few points that are beyond dispute.

Watch portion size
Eat more veg
Eat as little processed food as possible
Cut down on sugar

Fundamentally, I don't think the OP is going down a great route in normalising cake for breakfast. But the answer doesn't have to be manufactured cereal instead. Porridge oats, wholemeal toast, nut butters, eggs, savoury muffins - there are lots of options.

I don't think you can have a sensible discussion about childhood obesity without looking at other factors such as:-

• increased car ownership
• decreased numbers of children walking and/or cycling to school
• reduction in amount of PE on curriculum and sale of school playing fields
• poorer maintenance of parks and playgrounds
• decreased amount of unsupervised outdoor play by children

W

"I would be incredibly surprised if the children of the parents who are ok with Cheerios smoothies and what not did not grow up to have far better attitudes towards food and eating than the kids of the ones who go as far as typing their home recipes into an app to work out if it's ok to eat or not."

Possibly, but I was talking about the physiological issues of what we eat rather than the psychological. I'm not saying kids shouldn't eat cereal, just that cereal does not make an ideal breakfast. Let them have it for supper instead. And not every day. Also, if you make home cooked food and are interested in it's nutritional content (seeing as there's no label to check) then it's a very good way of finding out. Why poo-poo it? Knowledge is power after all.

I'm not sure what your point is monimatrix. But the young obese child will remain that way without intervention. The older obese child really, really does not need to be obese in the first place.

I know two very overweight kids. Their basic diet is actually ok but it is the constant snacking on shite that is the tipping point. They both do lots of sport. Their parents are lovely and bemused as to the cause of their child's weight issue. I bite my tongue - of course i do.

I'm not sure I agree with the not demonising food bit. Let's tell our kids that processed food isn't great on any level and I think they might actually get it.

The "ooooh everything in moderation" phrase as another pack of haribo is consumed makes me cross

Gagging at the idea of a cheerio smoothie

By "clean eating brigade", I mean people like the woman in the Elle article the other week.

"I remain highly cynical about food companies generally."
So do I. They don't have our best interests at heart. Their aim is to maximise profits, that's all.

"The food companies are in the pockets of the government. It's up to us all to think independently."
Absolutely. Which means we should be educating ourselves about what we eat and what effect it might be having on us.

"...That children are developing type 2 diabetes is a disgrace. We are letting these kids down."
Absolutely. And what is it with posters who say they'd rather feed their kids [insert shite food] than be evangelical about eating healthily. Do they not realise there's a sensible middle ground?! Do they not care that they are potentially storing up health issues for the future? I can understand them rebelling in this thread but if they really don't care that's fucking shocking. Type 2 diabetes is a serious condition. Most amputees in this country are not ex-service personnel, they are diabetics! People need to take what they eat and what they feed their kids seriously, especially as the NHS might not be around by the time these kids are (sick) adults!

And I don't agree with demonising food. I think that's probably got a lot to do with why so many people are overweight actually. "Banning" yourself from eating certain things IME only makes you want them more.

I cannot speak for everybody, but I manage to eat sugar, salt, carbs, saturated fat, take aways, pulses, fruit, vegetables, wholegrains and almost everything else under the sun and I am a healthy weight and consider myself to have a good relationship with food.

The "ooooh everything in moderation" phrase as another pack of haribo is consumed makes me cross

This. Totally agree.

I agree with your DH. YABU that sort of breakfast is fine for a treat but not for every day. There is far to much sugar and Hot Chocolate definitely does not need sugar added to it. You are just teaching them it's fine to have cake for breakfast.

But it's not necessarily about demonising foods. Rather training very young palates to see healthier options are desirable and delicious.

For all the talk on mumsnet, I know lots of people in RL (many of them not British) who grew up with great diets and very little junk - who turned into well rounded, disciplined, healthy eaters - enjoying their food while never getting a taste for the junk that's now freely available to them.

Maybe, just thinking about it, there may be something in the idea of turning a negative discourse into a positive one.

So instead of the 'you mustn't', 'denial' of pleasure that goes along with banning certain foods (which I agree is psychologically grim), it's becomes more along the lines of, try this (healthier) option, it's delicious too, expanding horizons, finding pleasure in unexpected places.

Probably most effective when begun very young.

Sugar is not all the same. Plain old white sugar is plain energy, anything resembling goodness has been stripped from it. Maple syrup, coconut sugar etc etc...even molasses still has goodness in it so if I was going to sweeten something I would choose the latter options. There is no point pretending that all food is equal, some is vastly superior. I can't see what is so sneer-worthy about people choosing to think outside the cereal box and make their own which can be tailored. We do it with granola...I can tailor the ingredients and not have it bulked out with crap.

We don't demonize food. Anything goes, but even at 3 and 5 they know that some food is 'empty' and some isn't.

Witsander, what 'goodness' is in maple syrup? Genuine question.

[Cheerios] aren't great for adults either...energy slump, hunger, grumpiness mid morning anyone

Really? I don’t know what figures you are looking at but from what I can see multigrain Cheerios are not especially high in sugar (just over a teaspoonful per bowl); they have plenty of non-sugar carbohydrates and a bit of protein and fibre; and they’re usually eaten with milk which has protein. OK I am picky and go for Rice Krispies which are lower sugar but how fussy would you have to be to think a bowl of Cheerios with milk isn’t a reasonable breakfast food? I also think the OP’s muffins and tea-breads sound like a nice nourishing breakfast, so long as she watches her kids’ sugar intake overall.

And I’m not convinced about adult mid-morning energy slumps and grumpiness. That’s real snack advertiser territory. Altogether now “you’re a proper diva when you’re hungry” – I hate those adverts because they are so clever at convincing us we can’t get through even a few hours without shoving more food in our faces. Unless we eat special high-protein breakfasts (yeah right).