How can I stop my (just) 13 year old DS eating shit/drinking fizzy drinks so often?

80 replies

zeroherozero · 30/12/2023 16:02

So, I admit that I am a big fan of homemade food and eating nutritionally. I'm also a great cook. So DC get great meals. But DS absolutely loves shite too. And as he becomes more and more independent, he wants to drink fizzy drinks or those bags of shitty sweets - a lot.

We talk to him a lot about it - making him understand that it's important what he puts into his body - and he says ok, but then goes ahead and buys this stuff.

In context, it's been particularly bad in the holidays - he doesn't tend to do anything as much in term time during the week. But it's hard to see him drink coke, want coke etc every day. He's really small for his age (constitutional, we think) and I worry about this being affected even more by diet (which I also explain to him) and also of course, teeth, general well being etc.

But it's really hard to control. He's more and more independent. He has a card with money on. We could take it away and he'd use his Xmas money. Or his friends pay.

Am I being overly neurotic?

OP posts:

Stellium · 30/12/2023 18:36

prime

If it's the Prime Hydration drink rather than the Energy variant, I wouldn't see the issue tbh

SecondUsername4me · 30/12/2023 18:36

There are a whole bunch of healthy adults who make it there despite a diet of chips, ketchup, fish fingers and fruit shoots. And they hold down good jobs and fit into normal sized clothes.

You are providing good nutritious foods, and he is then having some unhealthy snacks too. Its fine.

Friends of mine were neurotic about only letting their dc eat fruit as a snack and pressed fruit as drinks - guess whose kids got a bollocking off the dentist?

Reugny · 30/12/2023 18:45

Balloonhearts · 30/12/2023 17:20

Let him. Buy it in and offer it for every drink. I give him a fortnight before he's sick to death of it and craving water.

😂

A version of the cigarette trick - this is where the kid is caught smoking one cigarette and is made to smoke a full pack in one go.

PurpleBugz · 30/12/2023 21:44

You need to strike a balance. My mother was incredibly strict on this stuff and when I left home I ate nothing but shit. I still have a sugar addiction although I eat healthy now.

For my own kids I let them have some less healthy stuff and talk around healthy eating in a context that allows the unhealthy stuff. They are too young to know if my strategy is working but I hope it does

Coyoacan · 30/12/2023 23:13

SecondUsername4me · 30/12/2023 18:36

There are a whole bunch of healthy adults who make it there despite a diet of chips, ketchup, fish fingers and fruit shoots. And they hold down good jobs and fit into normal sized clothes.

You are providing good nutritious foods, and he is then having some unhealthy snacks too. Its fine.

Friends of mine were neurotic about only letting their dc eat fruit as a snack and pressed fruit as drinks - guess whose kids got a bollocking off the dentist?

I live in Mexico, which is one of the top countries for two things: Coca Cola consumption and diabetes.

Coca Cola is also addictive to make things worse and, of course, we had a high number of fatalities during the pandemic because of the high levels of diabetes and obesity.

I'm very far from a purist, but good, healthy food tastes good too.

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