Processed meat or no meat at all?

[Velvetvilla]

So my DC hardly eat any “real” meat. They are generally picky about food. I am NOT looking for advice on this, as we have tried it all! Including “like it or go hungry” (spoiler: they go hungry).

so my dilemma is……

There has been a lot in the news recently about how bad processed meat is for our health. Wondering if it is better to give the DC a small amount of processed meat (such as good quality sausages) or better for the DC to have no meat at all? WWYD? It’s not like they would be eating a variety of other protein sources that vegetarians normally do, like beans and pulses, instead, because there is no way that they would eat these! At least, not at the moment.

There's nothing wrong with a good sausage, I only buy tesco finest

Sounds like they are largely good on protein.

You sound so lovely and kind that my heart goes out to you that you are so worried. They have a great mum. That is better than any organic, sustainable, wild caught, was birthed-naturally-in-the-sunshine,lived happily meat out there. They will be fine!

I used to make my own chicken nuggets and fish goujons (called then fingers). It really isn't too much of a faff and if they will eat them, it becomes easier to leave off the breadcrumbs and just cook bitesize pieces. Eventually I managed to get steak into them by introducing fajitas - cook steak as usual and then cut into slices. Serve with grated cheese, tortillas and ketchup pluse any salad bits you know that they will eat. Let them put the fajitas together themselves.

Will they eat mince? That’s a lot healthier than processed meats, and can make homemade burgers, we’ve made homemade kebab meat as well, tacos, bolognese, meatballs. My totally lentil averse kids often eat mince with a handful or two of secret lentils! They are none the wiser! We do also do sausages in my house, because whatever the current scaremongering I don’t see any issue with them. Either they have them with mash, veg and gravy or in buns hot dog style (since the weather has been nicer). My kids were absolutely stuck in a chicken nugget rut a little while ago, but we’ve worked our way up to quite a few other options now. There’s been a lot of rejected food and waste which is disheartening, but I’m so proud of them for adding so many new things now. It’s staying calm and consistent and not offering too many other options. I’m not a “eat your dinner or starve” kind of parent, but the alternatives are usually pretty basic like scrambled eggs or peanut butter toast if the main meal gets rejected.

I think mine are the only children in the world not to like spag bol, ha! Or fish fingers.

Most of their protein needs are met with dairy or processed meat, which I know is definitely not the best option.

Thanks for the idea - will give this a go! Yes, I had been using whole chunks of chicken, so it still had that stringy texture.

That sounds so frustrating for you! It's amazing what they can survive on though, isn't it?!

I have an easy (ish) solution for you. Get some bone broth and use it to cook rice in. Or use it in soup. They will get all the meat benefits without actually needing to eat meat.

Better yet, make your own and you can add a bunch of different veggies in there too.

My freezer has loads of small pots of bone broth in it and we have one on the go in the fridge at all times, which gets added into whatever meals I’m making.

Annie Bell recommends this leek & lentil dhal as being popular with children - & red lentils are much smoother when cooked than brown/green. I can confirm that adults like this too ...!! It's a very comforting & easy favourite.

www.independent.co.uk/life-style/take-root-1236635.html

Try making your own? Together? If a child learns to make and cook they are often more invested to try.
Buy mince and make burgers, etc but otherwise nothing wrong with lightly processed meats. It's not going to kill them. Food is good for you.

Good quality sausages are not highly processed. The biggest issue with processed meats seems to be ready sliced preserved and cooked meats. Eg bacon is usually preserved with nitrates. You can buy nitrate free bacon if it worries you.

PS dried fruit is often treated with sulphites. Do you plan to remove those from their diets too?

How old are they?
my boys were similar when younger, had to blend bolognese sauce etc, but sausages were always a hit!
meat was too chewy for them & becomes a big lump that’s hard to swallow if over chewed!

they now both love steak though so it can get better!

slow cooked meat eg shoulder of lamb or chicken thighs become incredibly soft & melt in mouth, so that might be a good start!

good luck, will get better over time, try not to get to hung up on it X

Thanks. Yes, for me, the trying not to get hung up on it is the difficult part, haha!

They don't eat much dried fruit. I don't buy it, so they only eat it if out somewhere. It's supposed to be as bad as lollies for your teeth, and one of my DC has had a cavity already.

Ahh yes, it must just be that you are a wonderful chef. Pat on the head for you!

I have a textural issue with most lentils and pulses. Also with mushrooms. I guarantee I couldn’t force down your amazing rage without gagging or choking.

You could also try tenderising the meat, giving it good whack with a rolling pin or mallet. Chicken mince might work too.

But, mostly in your situation I’d say fed is best. Ignore the whole UPF hype. It completely disregards the fact that for some people it is impossible to avoid it. If you need to supplement with a vitamin, just do that.

Processed meat is a level 1 carcinogen according to the WHO. I don’t feed it to my children at all.

There’s a brand called Naked which produces bacon (and sausages, I think) without the use of nitrates or nitrites, which are the elements of processing that cause most concern. Bit pricier than standard fayre but maybe once or twice each week would be a good compromise?

There’s an app Tgats tells you the best upf option so if you type in meatballs it will tell you the best one. It’s hard to get a decent level of protien without meat so I would give processed meat a couple times a week.

I did not ask her to force mushrooms or lentils on her kids. I asked her to clarify why they didn't eat legumes (in essence, whether cultural or sensory) and gave her an option I know worked in a situation where it was more cultural or because its kids being kids. She understood me and replied nicely. I certainly have benefitted from other mums telling me what they tried. Sometimes its worked, other times it hasnt. Am just grateful for their suggestions

They don't need to eat meat but they do need protein as others have said.
If its the texture of a solid piece of meat, what about more homemade food using quality mince - bolognese, lasagna, meat loaf. What about homemade fishcakes rather than a piece of fish. Or recipes based on lentils or cheese.

Mother of two autistic children here with the scars and medals to prove it.

One was referred to a dietician and discharged a year later on the basis that their diet was a lot better than many on the books - that was a wake up call as in our eyes it was appalling, but the dietician said she had one child who lived on ketchup. Not that we want our kids to struggle that much but ultimately, as someone above has said, fed is best and it sounds like your kids are getting some decent protein and nutrients at least.

One of my kids currently eats virtually nothing but pasta, plain bolognese sauce and some chicken. So a decent amount of protein of course but no fibre at all. My other is the traditionally pickier and is living off ready-made cheeseburgers (supermarket burgers with a slice of plastic cheese in the middle), tomato soup and bread, and prawns (random - high protein at least). Both will cheerily eat all manner of sugary things too but for actual main meals we're on this. We've had long periods where the only thing one would eat were various processed meat products night after night. It's a luxury in a way for their eating to be so poor that I've stopped worrying day to day. I have another child who eats basically what we eat so I do know it's out of my control to an extent. We just try to apply zero pressure to avoid things becoming a battle ground and take every opportunity we can to offer new things in a good way. Occasionally it works.

Gosh, that does sound so hard!! Thanks for your perspective.

The solidarity on this thread has been comforting to know that I am not alone, but equally I am sorry that so many of us are having to deal with this. It may not be the biggest issue in the world right now, but having to deal with it multiple times a day can really grind you down.

Totally. The solidarity is real. And people who think that you are a poor parent who hasn't tried when this happens are not worth listening too.

My eldest was baby led weaned and I was the smuggest of the smug when she chowed down on sauerkraut at one, and I lightly said 'it's all about giving them a range of food and putting them in charge' to anyone pretending to be interested at the time. Hahaha. How I laugh now.