DH thinks rice crispies are a suitable breakfast

[thisismyheart]

That's it really, DH would happily send children (3&6) off to school/childminder on one bowl of rice crispies and a bit of fruit in the morning. I feel very strongly about filling kids tummies properly before school, and while i have no problem with a bowl of rice crispies now and then, that they are ultimately just puffs of air, and the children need something more nutritionally dense.

We argued about it properly this morning, and now he's in a huff about me undermining him. I just want to guage what others think - is a bowl of rice crispies and a bit of fruit enough to keep a child's energy levels up all morning?

I agree, the lack of nutritional knowledge is appalling. What we eat and what we feed our children matters.

I should clarify that when I say it is a dessert, I mean that it isn't nutritional and should not be eaten as a meal. We don't keep it in the house and I wouldn't waste my money buying it.

Most cereal is empty rubbish, but it doesn't surprise me that some people think otherwise, because many of us were raised to think it's ok.

YABU. It's totally fine.

I'd come down later in the morning, and the children were asking for more breakfast and he was insisting they were fine.

So you need to come down earlier in the morning then, and get the children’s healthy and substantial breakfasts sorted, Op 😂

I think this is about dads generally not being as diligent as moms (sometimes the other way round) when it comes to child rearing. I totally can relate to you on that, Op.

Id be worried about the amount of sugar in rice crispies

probably millions of children around the world have probably managed on rice crispies, or indeed the superior stable-mate, coco-pops.

I wouldn't worry about it.

I could use some guidance on healthy meals as I have a box of cocoa rice crispies in the cabinet right now. What does your usual day of family meals look like, @rosewater20? I am not being sarcastic at all. I’m trying to eat better and make healthier meals for my family. It’s hard to get away from the sugar.

I really disagree. My husband feeds our children every morning and he isn't lazy about it. He makes eggs with vegetables; steal cut oats with nut butter and fruit; avocado toast, etc. Women shouldn't have to do it all just because their husbands have decided to be lazy. Demand and expect better, for yourself and your children.

Of course- it's cereal!

Hard agree

I can’t believe that on Mn of all places, home of nutrition nit-picking, that anyone thinks sugary, salty, fibreless crap for breakfast is ok. I’m way more relaxed about children’s diets in general than many people on here, and I’m not above having a bowl of cereal for a solo dinner if I’m tired, but it’s not something I’d give DS for breakfast. All it’s going to do is give you a sugary quick-carb spike.

What if the OP takes the same approach?

Just feed them rice crispies for every single meal. Don't bother cooking or preparing anything more nutritious, just open the box and pour.

And don't let anyone criticise you OP. Because you're a parent too. You get to decide what to feed your child. Even if it's absolute rubbish.

Mine preferred coco pops at that age (Asda own brand ones though)

Its absolutely fine.

Wahey! You’re still here, you old tease.

Thank you for asking and not being sarcastic. I know food can be a touchy subject on here. I have spent the past 10 years or so really diving deep into learning about nutrition because I believe that food + sleep are the basis overall good health. As a general rule we don't keep packaged food, processed foods in our house. Our toddler doesn't really ask for these things but we tread carefully because I don't want them to have an unhealthy relationship with food. I don't limit/make a big deal about food when are are out or traveling and they can generally have what they want when we are eating out or traveling (like juice, ice cream, cakes, etc).

A typical day (and our toddler + baby eat the same way we do but baby will have theirs pureed/no salt).

Breakfast: scrambled egg with a green vegetable, mushrooms, avocado; or steal cut oats with a nut butter and fruit; or homemade bread with avocado.

Lunch: I have a big salad and try to eat as many vegetables as possible in this meal, probably around 12-15 + protein (chickpeas; salmon; chicken; etc). Children will have a variation of this but I tend to add some carbs like a grain or homemade bread. We also make soup once/twice per week and so we will have that with salad too.

Snacks: homemade hummus; cut up vegetables (our kids love peppers, lightly steamed asparagus); snap peas. We make a healthier version of muffins once per week that uses oats as the base (kids love them; I find them to be okay). Lots of fruit and kale smoothies. A plus to not having rubbish in the house is that I never have to say no to what our children ask for, they can eat when they are hungry and they make good choices (and I think that has to do with the fact that the other options just aren't in the house).

Dinner: protein + carb + vegetables. Last night was white fish with faro and homemade pesto and sautéed dandelion greens; the day before was roast chicken with roasted cauliflower, carrots; broccoli (with a generous amount of garlic and olive oil) and quinoa.

Dessert: a couple times per month we have ice cream in the house but its going to be one with very limited ingredients (cream, sugar, things we know and recognize).

We would never eat seed oils, fake sugar, anything that we don't recognize the name of on an ingredients list.

I think when people think of healthy foods they think of what I listed for dinner (protein + vegetables) and that sounds so boring and it can be if it isn't cooked well. We love cooking but we also have very young children and demanding lives and so we work to find meals that are healthy, easy to make and really good. I can share some recipes + other resources if you'd like?

You are right. Make overnight oats for him to top with yogurt and fruit?
I came here thinking there will be overwhelming support for you. This thread has surprised me!

Have to add a message mainly because I’m so anal about breakfast! Logically breakfast should be setting you up for the day! The fact that we have our main meal in the evening (most of us) is totally nuts. Equally Kellogg’s ridiculous campaign to sell us cereals, with zero scientific backup is driving me nuts. Kids need a protein rich start to the day. Eggs are wonderful as is an English breakfast NOT laden in fat. That said fat is important and shouldn’t be seen as an enemy to dieters, more a friend. But Rice Krispies along with milk (hopefully full fat?!) and possibly some sugar should represent a ‘starter’. It wont keep their bodies contented. It’s not about the calories, it’s about giving kids a meal then provides them with the long term (not short term i.e. sugar/carbs) energy to go to school and learn. Sorry for the rant. I have four kids and it’s literally taken me decades to understand this and yes I’ve made loads of mistakes.

They are small children heading to school/nursery and more than likely getting a mid morning snack.

They are hardly going out on SAS style military exercises 😂

The answers on here are wild. Of course rice crispies are not a nutritious, balance meal. No wonder half the nation are unhealthy and overweight. Try a bit harder people. It’s not hard or time consuming to toast some bread and scramble an egg. Oats in the microwave with some fruit and yogurt, takes 2 minutes to prepare. Cereal is one of the most processed food available on the planet. And honestly, just cause you had it as a kid and turned out fine… doesn't mean you should not evolve and try to do better for your kids.

'wild'

What's more important, your views on rice crispies or your marriage? I'd be pretty passed off if I did the shopping and got the kids fed in the morning and my DH nit picked at my cereal choice.

This thread is insane. It must be nice to live in a world where you can afford to eat scrambled eggs and avocado every day for breakfast though.

I wouldn’t have been happy with a bowl of Rice Krispies when I was a child. It was Coco Pops or Frosties only for me.