Nursery giving one year olds ice cream

[pidge]

My dd (13 months) goes to nursery 3 days a week, where I provide her with her own food, as I wasn't that thrilled with the nursery offerings. I want her to have healthy nutritious food so she develops good tastes for later in life.

Yesterday the nursery gave out ice creams to the kiddies (age 6 months to 2 years) and didn't give my dd one as we had said no food except what we send in. Of course dd got terribly upset, and we felt so guilty when we heard about it.

Now we have said they should try giving her a healthy alternative if the other kids are getting sweet stuff, or if she is not consoled by that it's ok for her to have things like ice cream provided it's occasionally. I don't want her to feel she's missing out.

But really I can't believe that kids of this age need to be given things like ice-cream. My dp gave her a stick of cucumber when they got home and she was super happy chewing on that for 20 minutes!!

I don't want to be mean, and we do give her treats - but her idea of heaven is some melon or avocado. Does anyone have similar experiences of nurseries giving out non-healthy food, and how did you tackle it?

My SIL and MIL like to give DD chocolates and sugary cereal. I can't stand it! I'm constantly giving DD cucumbers, melons, and carrots. But when she doesn't eat that, I give her some yogurt and yes, ice cream. To me, the dairy products don't seem as bad as the candy and sweets, but maybe I'm completely off on that. I figure that in any case your child will be exposed to foods that you don't think are nutritious. It's just a matter of sooner or later.

I hate it pidge. My dd1 is 3.7 and I still hate it when I pick her up and she is full of crisps and chocolate - they do this whenever it is someones birthday. I can't bear to make a stand on it as dd1 would be devastated and I'd look like the picky mother from hell.

If it was dd2 (10 months) I would be cross and ask what their policy is and how often it happens. If it was a once in a blue moon occurrence then maybe ok...but I agree, there is no need to give babies of this age ice cream. Trouble is, there are probably lots of mums who think its fine for their babies to have ice cream and you will come across as a big fat spoilsport. To be honest, when dd1 has an ice cream at home I give dd2 an empty cone - she loves it!

Pidge, I sort of had this at a nursery my ds attended briefly when he was about 1.5 - for high tea the children were given white bread jam sandwiches and I wasn't happy with this at all. I spoke to the owner, explained my position and my ds was offered a healthier tea thereafter (peanut butter but still white bread IIRC). Anyway, he didn't stay much longer so the issue went away. The owner admitted though that her own children didn't ever have junk food (or white bread) and didn't even realise that some people had sugar on their cereal until they were 5 or something. So goodness knows why the smaller ones in her care were fed such crap - I can only think that it was cheap food and not many people complained.

Anyway, in your position I think I'd ask them to offer a healthy alternative (or provide your own, but I agree, you shouldn't have to) if and when the others are given things like this if you don't approve. For example, home made ice cream with yoghurt/fromage frais and fresh fruit is refreshing and nutritious, as are ice lollies made of apple juice etc (sorry to sound like Annabel Karmel for a minute there).

Having said that, I really don't think the odd ice cream is harmful or the devils work so I don't think this would bother me that much and I'd let my ds have one. If unhealthy food was all that was ever provided, then yes, it would make me cross and I'd complain, but I don't see the problem with the odd ice cream, not at all. It's also not actually that bad for you!

Yes, I don't want to appear to be a dragon! And personally I have a passion for ice-cream and chocolate! But generally at home we do eat pretty healthily, and I don't want all our good work undone. I'm also not against the occasional treat, but the nursery menu seems to include ice-cream, instant whip and jelly several times a week for pudding. So I'm not keen on that.

Will start sending in extra fruit or other healthy snacks and ask them to try giving dd that first. If we're out and about having cakes (necessary extra calories when breastfeeding ) my dd is normally totally content to be given a rice cake or piece of apple instead. I know it won't last, but I'd like to keep her ignorant of crisps and chocolate for as long as possible!

WWW - is the Annabel Karmel book good? I was just thinking about getting it. If it's not, is there another good recipe book you can recommend? Sorry to be OT. Pidge, I do know what you mean. Oh I forgot to mention that DH occasionally gives DD a sip of his Coke!!!! This drives me absolutely insane.

Pidge, IKWYM, completely! I remember telling my Dad to please not bring chocolate for ds when he was about 2yo, so I was the same when he was small. I think I've just got more relaxed as he's got older, although I completely agree with you about a generally healthy diet - we don't have junk in the house at all so he doesn't ask for it (he's nearly 6yo now) but I will buy the odd thing when I'm out on the basis that I wasn't allowed junk as a child and subsequently ate nothing but crap for 10 years once I left home, just because I could! I agree, the puddings at nursery sound terrible and I wouldn't be happy with this either. You're paying, ask them to provide fruit instead. Do they have a healthy eating/food policy you could refer to? Is it mentioned in the prospectus? Because I wouldn't be happy with that at all either. Jelly is sugar, water, e numbers and gelatine (yuk) and most whip things are full of undesirables too. Let us know how you get on. And I agree, while you're completely in control of what they get to eat, especially at this age, teach them to like healthy things. My ds loves chocolate and ice cream but you'll be pleased to hear that he also salivates at the thought of melon, mango, apple and mango juice, strawberries and other healthy stuff

Tinyfeet, I haven't got any Annabel Karmel actually, so not sure! There is a thread here, Annabel Karmel, helpful hints or one big guilt trip? which might be useful though. I really like Carol Timperley's Baby and child vegetarian cookbook (my son is veggie and has been from birth), and I posted details of it here but if your child/ren eats meat you might prefer Suzanne Oliver. She is a bit preachy, as someone said, and I have to say, I didn't make any of the recipes but I found some of the factual nutritional advice useful when ds was a baby/toddler and I still refer to it sometimes so it was worth buying. A search on Amazon should bring up either book. You could always use the Carol Timperley and add meat to the recipes if you wanted to I suppose. HTH!

WWW, couldn't read the whole thread, but all in all, looks pretty negative on Annabelle Karmel. DD definitely eats meet. We give her portions of chicken almost every day. I fed DD bottled foods for a very long time though, and with this new baby coming, I would really like to make and freeze foods, if I can muster up the time and energy. I'll take a look at Amazon and the books you've mentioned. Thanks.

Annabel Karmel is a loon - she gives her husband a menu of 5 dishes to chose for dinner each night - just thought I would let you know what sort of woman you are giving money to!!!

(Sorry am not being serious but she does this really!!)

No! Are you sure? She truly is loopy then.

She was in an article in the Mail - it was all about women who devote themselves to making their partner's lives easier - they do things like lay their clothes out and cut their toenails - yucky!!

Think how muich food you would need in the fridge to give him 5 choices - due to SW DP has two choices tonight - Jacket Potato or Jacket Potato.

I speak to dieticians a lot and they all say the same thing, there's no such thing as an unhealthy food, only an unhealthy diet. I know that's a generalisation, but it's pretty much true IMO. I think you are right that the nursery diet does seem inadequate. Cheap rubbish that I wouldn't give ds (I didn't even know they still made Instant Whip!) But don't think of it as all your hard work undone, a person can love ice cream AND melon, you know, my ds does. And both his nany and I buy him mini-milks when we go to the park. Obviously this would be in the context of his getting a generally healthy diet. Agree with everyone though that ice cream is not such unhealthy food.

Pidge
Can understand that you want your dd to eat healthy food and she is certainly going to develop her eating habits from the majority of meals which you give to her and the good food she gets to try and sees you and your dp eat. Since she goes to nursery 3 days a week, unless you are so unhappy with the nursery that you want to move her, it might be kinder to your dd to let her have an ice cream when the others do (or other treats.) Assuming, that is that the nursery won't change their policy for you and other parents. Ice cream is such a lovely childhood treat, especially on a hot day, and I can't imagine that it will destroy all your good work. And in the long run, having "forbidden" food, or for that matter, making your dd feel like the teacher has favourites who get "nice" things and that she doesn't get it would do more damage. It could even create and impression that fruit isn't as good as ice cream which is exactly what you are trying to avoid. I know how you feel, at your dd's age they are such precious, unspoilt innocents. But in only a short few years, she will be having these things from time to time anyway.

Aloha, I can see you are very well informed on the subject but personally I don't care what dieticians think. My older daughter also loves ice cream/sweets and also loves fruit and most vegetables. She is still as happy to have a big chunk of cucumber as a sweet. I put this down to the fact that I stuck my neck out and kept sweet things to an absolute minimum when she was small. I will try to do the same with my youngest daughter and would personally be cross if a nursery fed her sweet things.

Agree that there should be a balance but I would be careful about totally restricting sweet foods as the DD of a friend of mine was not really given any sweets, ice cream etc when a toddler and as soon as she was old enough to get old of it herself she gorged herself on it! I'm in no way advocating giving children loads of sweets but it can become like forbidden nectar IFYKWIM

Funnily enough Enid, I think the first real food my ds ever had was a blueberry muffin! Dh and I were out one day in the park cafe and he looked so longingly we gave him some of ours and he just loved it. Right now he's in the kitchen with my dh following a marmite sandwich with some watermelon! So it can work out just fine however you do it. I find it hard to believe that you can 'give' a child a sweet tooth when they've spent the first few months of their lives existing solely on a product which is fundamentally composed of sugar and fat. I agree with you in that I believe in healthy eating for children. I was only saying that the odd sweet treat won't 'undo good work'. I was trying to be reassuring!

Actually I am a total hypocrite - your post reminded me that dd2's first 'food' was a spoonful of chocolate apple crumble and custard

Please ignore everything I say in future

Uh oh - bad mathor alert! DS's nursery have been giving the children icecream (or more accurately fruit juice lollies) during the recent hot spell and I didn't even bat an eyelid at it. If it helps to keep them cool, and increases their fluid intake in this hot weather than as far as I'm concerned that's a benefit, not something to get uptight about. Gives a whole new meaning to "comfort eating"

mmmm....chocolate apple crumble....mmmmm

GillW ... Mmmm - fruit juice ice lolly is just what I could do with, my office is roasting (plus they sound rather healthy to me)!

I'm all in favour of treats - made some rather fine chocolate puddings for a dinner party last night (thanks Nigella!). Still think that on a day to day basis I don't want dd getting puddings other than lovely fruit or plain natural yogurt both of which she adores.

Since dp does both the drop-off and pick-up at nursery he's had a tactful word with them, and said we would like dd to get a healthy pudding option like fruit, but that of course it's ok if she gets an ice-cream as a treat provided it's only occasionally. Apparently one of the other parents asked for this too. I'm sure many of the others would agree, but probably couldn't be bothered to make a fuss.

Thanks for the postings

IMO Annabelle Karmel books are great!!. I have a couple and they are in weekly use.
I am, though, a great advocator of home cooked food as opposed to supermarket bought food and i try to keep additives down to a minimum for the whole family.
Both my DD's have never had commercially prepared baby food. I work in the food industry and in my honest opinion I categorise tinned and jars of baby food as nutritionally poor.
My children do have treats and I think the the psycological damage of not being the same as everyone else is greater than the occasional treat at nursery.

Good result Pidge! Could not believe they served Instant Whip.

It´s good to hear other people being careful about healthy eating, I often feel like a freak when I am at baby groups etc. When all the other kids are allowed the biscuits from the tin at the playgroup, DD has one of her own sugar free biscuits and is ususally quite ok about it.

I just think you can shove them full of sugar without even trying, for instance if you give them normal cornflakes in the morning, biscuits to snack on, something with normal baked beans at lunch, something with a normal yoghurt at teatime and that´s sugar four times without even going for "treats". I am a sugar addict myself and am trying to keep dd mostly free from it for her first years.

I think I'm on the fence on this one. Dd didn't have ice cream until she was 3 but ds had it from about 8 months, I'll just add that I'd made the ice cream and it didn't realy cross my mind at the time that he shouldn't have it.

Some ice cream does contain eggs though and as dd is very allergic to eggs I don't know that I'd be happy about it being served in a nursery. After all a new make could be bought in and the staff may not be aware that the new stuff contains eggs or even peanut trace.

Oh well I guess you have to trust the nursery to check labels as thoroughly as you the parent would. It's that or take your own food in.

i would say that you need to take a chill pill! i was like this with ds1 but sucessive kids do make you more mellow...