to think that giving a 5.5 month old McDonalds is verging on abuse?

[Partyfops]

So a friend of mine has just posted on FB about their not yet 6 month old baby eating her first McDonalds!! FFS!!!!

This is utterly vile right???

A child was sucking and licking (because that's what a 6-month baby does, mostly) a chicken nugget.

No, it's not the end of the world. And it's not abuse.

There is less salt in McD’s chicken nuggets than in something from the children’s menu on one of Saint Jamie Oliver’s restaurants.

If you actually look at the nutritional content of McDonalds food, it is actually better than a lot of “higher end” restaurants.

Meh it's still crap whoever fed it.

Tbh I’d worry about the sodium

The fact that so many people are normalising this is terrifying shock

Terrifying? Really? I think the latest report on climate change is terrifying. People normalising a kid eating a Maccy D’s? Not so much.

Wow, rather dramatic to liken it to abuse!

You can feed your child what you want, just because you don't agree with what people let their children eat doesn't make it "abuse".

Our DD on occasion has had a few chips or chicken nugget from McD at 17 months. It's hardly crack cocaine. No way would a baby be eating an entire happy meal anyway, sucking on a chip or gumming a chicken nugget is hardly world ending.

No this isn't abuse or anything like it, I say this as an ex child protection social worker. If all the DC ate was this then it would be neglect but that isnt what is being said. DC should have low salt for the first six months of food I understand so this wouldn't be suitable regular food but as a one off it isn't going to do too much harm.
My very hippy parents were rather distressed that my first food was a stolen chip and that I stole it too early according to guidelines.

Caprisunorange - your point being what? That the NHS advice should be ignored? If a tiny amount of salt is in everything we eat and the kidneys of babies under a year old can't really cope with more than 1g of salt, then that makes it even more important to avoid foods with extra salt added before they are a year old, not less, surely? As the baby drinks less milk and eats more food, they will be getting more salt from the food and less from the milk, but at 5.5 months, the NHS thinks they should ideally only be drinking milk anyway, and as salt is already in all food, they don't need more salt added to their diets from processed food.

My point is just that they can’t be getting their maximum salt intake from breast milk, nothing more

Who gives a shit what the child was eating. Not your circus not your monkeys . If you don't like it then unfollow her posts. For the people who have been abused and have had it minimised by you I am sorry. Next time I hop into Macdonald's I'll think of eating a chicken nugget as 'abuse' FFS

GoatWithACoat To be honest I find this terrifying.

www.gov.uk/government/news/record-high-levels-of-severe-obesity-found-in-year-6-children

CountessVonBoobs - no, I didn't give my baby bread or weetabix when he was under 1 year old, because I was told not to by the HV.

It's shit parenting that's what it is.

Children don’t get obese from eating a McDonald’s though do they?

Don't worry, I'm ignoring the professionally offended!!

OMG! The irony of that statement from the OP!

Daily recommended doses of anything are usually vastly understated for the simple fact that most people exceed them, either intentionally or unintentionally. The maximum for one person will be different to the maximum of another person based on height/weight, kidney function, general overall health, level of hydration, etc etc etc. As it's not feasible to give everyone in the country an individualised list showing their own personal daily consumption limits of absolutely everything, they issue a generalised average as the official advice. Mildly exceeding it for one meal/day won't make the world end.

@roundaboutthetown

no, I didn't give my baby bread or weetabix when he was under 1 year old, because I was told not to by the HV.

My LO has a piece of toast every morning for breakfast, it wouldn't have even occured to me not to give her toast

Of course the world won't end if someone feeds their baby a Happy Meal. It's a bit of a waste of money, though, because a 5 month old baby won't eat much of it. Still, they probably enjoyed playing with it.

I hate seeing such young children in places like Mac Donald's.

I once saw a mum tip coke into her child bottle. The child was only about 6 months old.

“I hate seeing such young children in places like Mac Donald's.”

Eh? What if you’re taking your older children, should you arrange a babysitter for the baby? 😳

Happy meals are like £3 so I don’t think the waste of money point is anything to get worked up about.

A few people have said about seeing people feed coke in baby bottles. You must live in really rough areas!

Lazypuppy - you were lucky to have a different health visitor to mine, then! My children are teenagers, now, and clearly haven't been harmed by their lack of salt. I've no idea how much good it did them to follow the advice we were given, of course, I just did as I was told until they were 1, as there was a huge amount of publicity at the time about the dangers of a high salt diet!

"I hate seeing such young children in places like Mac Donald's. "

What sort of places are acceptable to you?

If anything, a chicken nugget is probably a little safer than an organic, grass fed, free range, whole meat, gently poached chicken breast because any connective tissue has been ground into a fine paste, reducing the risk of choking. There's way too much salt for it to be eaten regularly but I'd be very impressed by a 5.5 month old managing to eat their way through enough to be even potentially risky in a single sitting.

@roundaboutthetown

Lazypuppy- you were lucky to have a different health visitor to mine, then!

I have no idea how my HV feels about toast. I see my HV maybe once a month when i take LO to be weighed. I've never spoken to her about weaning, as we're not having any issues. I used Annabel Karmels weaning book, which recommends toasts as good finger food. LO eats whatever we are eating. I never add salt to anything i cook anyway, can't see why anyone does

From the NHS website on what to feed a baby from six months on. Toast is "allowed". WTF wouldn't it be!?