I despair - the healthy eating message in schools

[FurtherSupport]

I really have tried with my DC. I believe the best diets have everything in moderation, lots of fruit and veg, plenty of protein, fats so long as it's not so much it's you overweight, avoid processed food and artificial rubbish and include minimal sugar and refined carbs.

I'm in no way obsessive about it, but this is what we aim for.

The message from schools is all low fat and replace sugar with sweetners. At the school where I work they serve an ice lolly that is basically coloured flavoured water as dessert. It's low in fat, sugar and salt and therefore must be healthy.

DS1 is just back from cadet camp and thrilled to tell me how unhealthy the food has been because he's had a cooked breakfast every morning before going out on the moors for a long active day. OTOH, he thinks (despite me continually telling him otherwise) that the fruit cola they sell at school is healthy because it says on the bottle it contains one of your five a day

That look really interesting Giles. I'm going to print it off and take it with me when we go to the park later.

so does change for life(nhs) govern nutrition education? www.nhs.uk/change4life/Pages/schools-partners.aspx There is some reference to "new" guidelines about sugar.......

And School Food Standards (DfE) govern what kids in eat in some schools ? www.schoolfoodplan.com/standards/

So which guidance do other schools follow?

I think that's part of the issue NoRock, it's all a bit make it up as you go along using conflicting information/guidance.

www.gov.uk/school-meals-healthy-eating-standards

these are what I was talking about.

I've yet to hear of salmon fillets being served. more likely fish cakes.

no more than 2 breaded/ deep fried/battered meals a week. well.2 out if 5 meals put a deep fat free or of orange food is alot Imo.

no added sugar stuff so yes sweeteners ahoy.

and good quality meat? yeah right.

I agree with what further said upthread about it being more of a problem of nutritional education than with what they actually get fed in school. And don't even get me started on the "rewards" they get - giving out sweets for doing good work is just ...

DS2 eats a school dinner once a week and even he laughs about what he eats...

One of my jobs is as a dinner lady, although not in the kitchen. The food is dire, despite the kitchen staff's best efforts with what they have.

They serve meat I wouldn't give to a dog, so fatty and tough. Chips twice a week. The pasta is kept hot for ages and that makes it so slimy.

They do a decent quiche. There's always baked potatoes available but they go very quickly. There's a salad bar I wouldn't touch with a bargepole as the reception children get in there first and aren't good with spoons.

There is a lot of waste. Kids often hardly touch their food and just have the dessert.

What kind of meat is it you

reformed? or just very very poor quality cuts

I teach in a primary school and the meals are not good. We are a healthy school- fruit for snacks and water/ milk to drink at play time. this does not have any impact on the school dinners though. At lunch time the children are given bizarre combinations of food- White pasta with a slice of white bread on the side followed by cake and custard.

The sugar is replaced by sweeteners and I would bet my breeches that it is sweetness not sugar that cause behavioural issues. My kids with ADHD return from lunch sky high

When my DS starts full time in Septemeber he wil be having sandwiches.

Oh change for life.
Indeed it is the biggest load of bollocks going.

School I work in was going to go down the route. It's healthy and all that rubbish.

So we got sent out their healthy meal recipe things. I don't know if they still peddle this rubbish.

Ideas for breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert. A wholesome balanced meal. Plus coupons off for some of the ingredients.

What boiled my piss was these 'healthy' meals.. There was more than one that was chick some meat into an oven proof dish, add in herbs, onion and tin tomatoes (a few also mentioned particular brands of sauce).. Cook and all you need to serve with is garlic bread..

Ffs. No veg. We went through everything and took the c4l literally. Because this is what families
Would do. Serve with what it's said, becuase the cost only mentioned the listed ingredients (aside from store cupboard ones).

I think it's disgusting that Nutritionists advice on giving children artificial sweeteners, they should be struct off, if that's even possible.
Would be interesting to hear from any nutritionists reading actually, well, if they're brave enough to reply.
When I went to the Nurse for a health check recently, she asked me about my diet, and with me trying to cut out additives and the likes, I said I use butter instead of marg, she adviced to go lowfat, I thought, in one ear out of the other, unbelievable.
I looked into training as a Nutritionist once, and put it this way, it's a long and very thorough course, what the heck are they teaching this crap for! Oh, yes, silly me, the companies that profit from this shite can channel what ever suits through paid for, by them 'research' and into Government policy.

Its the same with ds. He's at a special school and is not the only child on all sorts of prescribed supplements to out weight on. The dieticians have even spoken to school but it doesnt seem to ake any difference. One of his subjects next year includes healthy eating and I have asked them to ease off. They have said they will but I somehow doubt it

Just to add, the Government's, 'Change4life' is sponsored in part by Pepsico, funny that! I looked into it, when through this scheme I received a few vouchers, one of which was money off Pepsi Max! Absolutely flabbergasted.

At my cousin's school on the menu it says "chipped potatoes" rather than "chips". As if that makes it any better. I can't believe the meals that are given out to those little children.

here children, have a joyless packed lunch

manufacturers have a vested interest in Change4Life, it's sponsored by all these companies

Wow, Further, that's pretty shocking. And you're so right: it shouldn't be allowed.

YANBU but what is "fruit cola"?

It's a fizzy drink with a long list of additives and sweeteners, similar to any other cola, but it also contains enough fruit juice to be able to say it's one of your five a day on the label and be allowed for sale in school

One of the things they did at my nephews school in reception was about healthy eating and "good and bad foods". I saw his end of reception report where they mark the child against the eyfs. He had been marked as below standard for whatever the bit about speaking and listening is because he had disagreed with the low fat yoghurt nonsense. It was actually there on the report that X hadn't demonstrated the EYFS requirement because he had failed to understand the topic about food education and that low fat is good food. There was more of this in one of the other topics but I forget the details.

X has a mother who knows a thing or two about nutrition (being a research scientist in the field) and had told dn accurate facts. Sadly his teacher hadn't been as well educated as evidenced by dn's work book (covered in green "corrections" of factual statements) and report

Yanbu, the whole thing is bollocks and unhelpful.

there's more sugar gram for gram in a packet of Bear Paws as being tested by MNetters than in Haribo Starmix!

However the Starmix is plastered with marketing to suggest it is one of your five a day and a "healthy snack"

Is not plastered.

Ffs.

My kids both attend a large town centre secondary school, hordes of kids descend on the local Tesco and takeaways because the school canteen food is tasteless and boring(their words). Schools should emphasis healthy eating but keep it in perspective, otherwise kids will go elsewhere if they get the chance and eat really unhealthy food.

But cola is like coke no? So fruit based fizzy drinks aren't cola. They're just fruit based fizzy drinks.

I agree totally. For me I was enraged by dc 7 and 5 coming home with the message about pizza being 'bad food'. Also low fat yoghurts containing sweetener as a pudding, also that they should be on semi skimmed milk?! Why? Surely if they are eating balanced diet and not overweight they shouldn't be on diet foods. If they are not having balanced diet sugar free jelly and yoghurts are hardly going to help.

They keep advertising the school dinners but we're sticking with PL

Both their teachers give them one of a pack of haribo/a lolly or a freddo chocolate at least once a week, also more on special occasions, end of term, Christmas, Easter, Valentine's day, etc

This really annoys me - not because of their teeth or diet - because they have told them the sweets are bad, they also tell them they are a reward and a treat. Weird messages.

Totally agree. School meals are carb based, with veg as an afterthought. And pudding to fill them up, creating expectations of sweet food after every meal. Makes me very cross . I support a MN campaign on this.

Facepalm indeed. Wasn't keen on school dinners at our schools, although they seemed a bit more wholesome than other menus I've seen on here. It made me sad that the schools didn't have enough space to cater on site so they had to buy in stuff to reheat.

Completely agree with 'EAT REAL FOOD' being the ideal message.