To find the obsession with snacks weird

[yipyipyop]

I've noticed in recent years lots parents seem to think their children can't survive a few minutes without a snack. We live a 5 min walk from school so I don't but parents with a similar commute seem to have a bag full of snacks they're handing out. It just seems over the top

I totally agree but got my arse handed to me a while back for saying similar

Yes. The same people then announce they’re doing their food shop for £60 a week for a family of 4. Not a chance. Snacks are EXPENSIVE

This and the constant access to water! I'm sure as a child we managed just fine throughout the day without having to eat or drink every half hour.
Although I admit as an adult my water consumption is awful, it just doesn't cross my mind to drink.

I blame nursery for this to be honest and it’s just gone from there; mine seemed to be programmed to have a snack every 2 hours and I’ve accidentally fallen into it with them

Same, we are not snackers including my 12 year old so I dont get it. When he was in primary at school pick up parents who lived within a 15 minute walk would arrive with snacks for the walk home to keep them going 😂

Although recently our 1 hour gymnastics class asked parents not to send snacks and my mind was boggled at why parents thought that was necessary for a 1 hour lesson…..

Snacks after school, essential in our family. All fit and healthy, so what's the problem

Snacking never used to be a thing - and probably doesn't need to be now.
I'm sure most of us would cope fine with 3 decent, healthy, nutritious meals a day and zero snacks. I imagine it's down to habits, peer pressure and aggressive marketing.

I think you are quite right, it is odd. They are hungry after school but they can wait until they get home surely.

If they have a long journey to get home they might require a little something but most primary aged children live quite their school.

I would assume they would be fueling up for an after school activity.

I notice the same thing in toddler music/gym/football classes lasting 45 mins - parents taking their children to one side and sitting them down for a snack midway through the class. I get that some children need to snack more than others but I'm sure they can last 45 mins - feed them before or after the class!

Ds has something to eat when he gets home from school after a 40 minute walk and usually a game of football on the way home , he’s usually eaten lunch at 1 so has something around 4:30 because we don’t eat dinner until about 8 during the week. I think op is more talking about a snack for a 5 minute walk home after school, or in the middle of a short class rather than an after school snack though.

I agree that in general everyone is eating too many snack foods.

having said that, my dd used to have something to eat as soon as she came out of school because she ate very little at school and was absolutely starving.

In a generation possibly 2 as my parents were much older when they had me the attitude to snacking has changed completely. It was three meals a day and that was it, maybe a biscuit with tea at 4pm after school sometimes and that meant 2 just small regular size biscuits.

Now adult's are going on about fasting. I mean if you eat dinner at 6pm and then have breakfast at 8am, that’s just what we did as kids.

Yep. It always surprises me. We only have three meals a day. That's the way we were raised and it works for us. The other day, DC was at a playdate and was given a snack at 11.30. Of course she wasn't hungry for lunch.

To be fair, I have lunch at work at 1. I'll then often snack on a piece of fruit around 3:45-4 ish if I'm slightly peckish.

I carry snacks but my kids type one diabetic, so if I don't have snacks it can be life threatening.
Obviously this isn't the case with everyone.

Yep I do actually slightly judge other mums who keep supplying their baby/accompanying preschooler with snacks during buggyfit/mum and baby pilates or whatever. It's an hour. Do it before or after. And tbh I couldn't be doing with prepping them or carrying around the little lunch bag either.

I can be remember being ferociously, miserably thirsty as a kid, especially at school and in very warm weather. It's proven that access to clean drinking water on demand improves both behaviour and educational outcomes. Not all progress is something to be sneered at for the sake of it 🙄

I'm underweight and get hungry between meals so I definitely have a couple of snacks everyday! We all have different appetites. My toddler also needs a snack between lunch and dinner.

Agree, I live 5 min from school , some parents lived even nearer, but always had a snack to give kids on coming out of school. The school had a strict no nuts policy but one mum (who also lived 5 min away - the catchment area was tiny so no one lived more than about half a mile away ) used to bring Nutella snacks to give her DC the moment they got out of the classroom.

Although I'm somewhere in between. There are lots on MN who proclaim to do a 6 hour car journey with young kids, and no one needs any snacks, drinks or wees!

Snacks have always been a thing. I'm a 70s baby and we always had:

Breakfast
Playtime - milk and snack
Lunch
After school snack
Dinner
Supper

And it's usually expensive packaged food rather than a cheap banana or apple.

I think some parents give snacks to occupy the kids as well.

Although adults are as bad, carrying takeaway coffees with them everywhere. This never used to be a thing either.

Many children may not have eaten much at lunch/ all day at school. When I pick up my reception aged DC, she is barely holding it together and basically goes into a hangry meltdown. I give her an oatcake in the car which is a 5 minute drive. She would be beyond reason by the time we got home if I didn’t. She’s only 4 so it’s not unreasonable in my opinion.