To think toddlers don’t need snacks?

[Cuppasoupmonster]

I was just pondering this when washing up. I’ve never really given DD snacks, she has her 3 meals a day and that’s usually it, maybe once or twice a week she will have a digestive biscuit or yoghurt if dinner is going to be later than usual. However it seems like when we go on days out with other mums and toddlers, they come laden with snacks that are whipped out every hour or two. AIBU to think toddlers don’t really need to snack and this might be contributing to the obesity crisis?

My daughter has never got on with the whole '3 meals' thing and still doesn't now at 7. So most days she has several small meals/large snacks and sometimes has small snacks too and it's been that way since she stopped milk. She's a tall, healthy, active, thriving girl so we go with it. I'd rather she eats in a way she's comfortable with rather than having 3 meals pushed on her that she can't finish, which only leads to later hunger.

It's almost like, I don't know, everyone is different.

The article you posted literally concludes, "there is no solid evidence to suggest that one eating style is superior to the other."

It also doesn't mention toddlers.

One of mine never snacked or shall i say rarely!
Youngest only snacks. Never eats breakfast or lunch but does dinner. And yes we've tried no snacks and he'd sooner go hungry! Its always offered.
Hes a proper grazer and hes actually underweight for his age and height.
Dietician is fine with it and due to his weight being low they're all for little and often as long as he eats.
As if not he'd go from 5pm dinner to 5pm dinner

🙄🙄🙄surely the answer to this is “stop being so ridiculously judgemental, you’re not better than anyone else and you’re wrong to boot”. Eating three meals per day isn’t even better for you from a biological perspective so, no, they aren’t contributing to obesity. If you really want to be pedantic, it’s more likely that you are. Oh, and you’re a bad “friend” too.

Oh, and you’re a bad “friend” too.

It only took 8 pages 😉

Maybe your DD is uncommonly lazy, OP.

I’m sure I read this exact thread on here a couple of weeks ago….

Not everyone is the same , I'm a size 8 and probably eat 6-8 times a day. Small portions though. I get hypoglycemia if I don't.

I had a relative come over from Spain and she said she found it strange how we (the Uk) have to snack between meals and why three meals isn't enough 🤣

I've always allowed a snack if they've asked for one but my children have always been really active so I just assume they need the extra energy. I don't usually snack between meals unless I've been to the gym that day

Three well-balanced nutritional meals a day equals, healthy children. Snacks are habits taught by the sugar commerce. There never used to be a ‘treat’ cupboard nor was there the money to buy all these sugared extras. Obesity really became a problem in the 70s, when food became cheaper and advertisers became cleverer in pushing their rubbish in vivid colours on tv.

😴

There are plenty of healthy snacks. Some involve sugar (eg fruit) and some don't.

Miaow! 😆

I’ll stop giving my toddler snacks when I stop wanting snacks between meals, which is likely to be never. Christ

There’s a lot of evidence to dispute the ‘little and often’ thing:

As the link you’ve listed says, there is no right or wrong answer.

Some people gain weight eating more and less often and some gain weight by eating less and more often.

Everyone is different and your lifestyles play a big role too.

Most professionals agree that 3 healthy meals a day and 2 healthy snacks seem to be the best for weight management.

Three well-balanced nutritional meals a day equals, healthy children. Snacks are habits taught by the sugar commerce. There never used to be a ‘treat’ cupboard nor was there the money to buy all these sugared extras.

My grandparents would eat breakfast, a snack like cake or biscuits with a cup of tea mid morning, lunch, tea and then supper and were healthy as can be.

My uncle grew up on one meal a day and no snacks and the entire family is overweight.
Which may or may not be correlated.

Spain...the home of Tapas....a LITERAL SNACK.

Toddler's dont need snacks?! Guess my two didnt get that memo. They dont stop eating from the minute they get up until they go to bed. Three healthy meals a day and five million snacks. It's costing me a fortune.

I've not RTFT but well done OP - you're the winner. Best parent award arrives in the new year. Your idle pondering has paid off and it turns out you feed your child best. Ergo you must love them the most. 👏

Oh fuck off!!! Parenting a child with anorexia is the crap pest thing I’ve ever had to do! Let kids eat, without guilt, without judgement and without smugness!
your attitude of not snacking for active toddlers, growing, learning and needing calories is totally nuts!

Kids were given milk in schools for around 60 years until 1968... That's a snack.

We've had elevens and afternoon tea, a snack meal for centuries....

Snacking is not a new phenomenon.

The abundance of hyper processed, salt, fat and sugar laden food is new though and is the cause of most cases of obesity.

I agree OP, there’s just no need for it, it’s just greed. Then the parents seem baffled when the kids won’t eat their meals. Or they allow the kids to leave the main meal as they claim to be full, yet they always manage to shovel cake into their faces despite this.

When my children were toddlers a typical day would include a morning at either a parent and tots group with me or a morning at pre school depending on the day.

A typical day would be breakfast,then break time at the tot group or pre school where the children would be offered a drink eg sugar free squash/water/milk and fruit,the fruit would usually be sliced so they'd have a couple of slices of something.

I use to do a hot meal at lunchtime with a desert eg yogurt/fruit salad/jelly or sometimes something like one of those mini cake bars.

Tea would be early about 4:30 and would be a toasted sandwich/soup and some fruit/cheese etc

A drink of warm milk would be given at bedtime.

If they were ever hungry between lunch/dinner/after dinner I would give a snack.I always carried cereal bars/fruit bars/mini cheddars in the kid bag I'd have with me.

My toddler is very petite and has snacks. But she doesn't get digestive biscuits. A snack is cream cheese on a cracker, or a babybel, or some cucumber and tomato, or some watermelon fingers (I try and go lower sugar fruit if it's a snack). She only drinks water and she gets natural yoghurt nothing with sugar added like the standard petit filous or munch bunch.

It's dietary choices that lead to fat children, not healthy snacks. I don't eat a lot in one go so it's not surprise my DD doesn't either. I don't like to eat until lunchtime usually.

As a 'cure all to obesity' (direct quote from that link), yes. But I don't think many of us are feeding toddlers little and often because they are morbidly obese.

Of course they don’t “need” them.
We eat far too much.