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Original poster

Wotsits/Quavers at nursery for under ones?

158 replies

JeniN · 21/06/2004 21:15

Dd's new nursery have crisps on the menu for one of their snacks once a week, I think the older kids usually get tortilla chips, and they give the babies wotsits or quavers.

OK, once a week isn't a very big deal, but I really can't see the logic in giving babies (she's 9 months) a high salt snack when general advice is to aim for a low salt diet. Is this a normal thing at nurseries? Should it be so?

BTW we've chosen to take alternative snacks in for her on that day - she hasn't had crisps yet and I don't see why she needs to start just yet. Genuinely interested in other people's views, whatever they are, on this.

OP posts:
muddaofsuburbia · 22/06/2004 13:17

Absolutely right Toothache re the Salt and shake. I think the point is that crisps are not the devil's work per se, but Wotsits and Quavers in particular are crap.

Most ordinary crisps (like salt n shake) are just made with potatoes, vegetable oil and salt.

Wotsits however are made with:

Maize, vegetable oil, cheese flavour [cheese powder (7%),flavour enhancers (monosodium glutamate), colour (paprika extract), flavouring], salt.

Yuk.

Quavers:

Potato starch, vegetable oil, cheese flavour [cheese powder made with animal rennet 0.1%), flavour enhancers (monosodium glutamate, disodium 5'-ribonucleotide), flavouring, colour (paprika extract)], rice flour, soya flour, salt, yeast, onion powder, pepper, wheat flour, colour (annatto).

Enough said?

dinosaur · 22/06/2004 13:17

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at the poster's request.

codswallop · 22/06/2004 13:18

aah the miracles of google images

CountessDracula · 22/06/2004 13:19

And I'm sure I will in front of dd at some point dino!

I am not puritanical, I just genuinely don't see the point of McDs. You can get such fab food now, why eat something that tastes of cardboard and dog food? If someone else wanted to take her there I wouldn't stop them but that is not the same as mass promotion by nurseries. Tantatmount to drug dealers at the school gates, get them while they're young etc

(ok maybe not quite as bad as drug dealers but obesity and eating crap are linked)

CountessDracula · 22/06/2004 13:20

fab picture cod!

And FWIW I love wotsits

WideWebWitch · 22/06/2004 13:22

Agree CountessD. Muddaofsuburbia, you didn't [gasp] actually have a packet in front of you to post those ingredients did you? (I'm joking, I agree with you too)

StickyNote · 22/06/2004 13:22

Very interesting - has anyone read "Fast Food Nation"? McDonalds don't come out of it very well... The best approach surely is "everything in moderation" as my Mum used to say? Although definitely agree that nurseries shouldn't be serving up Wotsits to babies.

muddaofsuburbia · 22/06/2004 13:22

Was just looking at the Walkers site. They are just about to introduce "Weenie Wotsits" for "smaller mouths" so younger children can enjoy them too?!?

Weenie Wotsits

Toothache · 22/06/2004 13:23

WWW - ??? I wasn't suggesting anyone was 'telling' me otherwise. Just curious as to why giving certain foods to toddlers is paramount to child abuse in the eyes of some people.

Am I being ultra-sensitive or was that comment supposed to be cutting and sarcastic?

CountessDracula · 22/06/2004 13:23

Everything in moderation including moderation?

dinosaur · 22/06/2004 13:23

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at the poster's request.

Toothache · 22/06/2004 13:24

CD - I don't think Nurseries actively promote McD's do they?? DO they have posters up and Ronald MacDonald there handing out leaflets to all the parents?

CountessDracula · 22/06/2004 13:29

May I just point out that almost everything McDs do is full of partially hydrogenated oils.

"these fats are poisons, just like arsenic or cyanide. They interfere with the metabolic processes of life by taking the place of a natural substance that performs a critical function. And that is the definition of a poison. Your body has no defense against them, because they never even existed in our two billion years of evolution -- so we've never had the need or the opportunity to evolve a defense against them"

"Partially Hydrogenated Oils Make You Fat!
Partially hydrogenated oils will not only kill you in the long term by producing diseases like multiple sclerosis and allergies that lead to arthritis, but in the meantime they will make you fat!

It's not like you have any choice in the matter. Remember that the essential fatty acids are vital to every metabolic function in your body. You will get the quantity of essential fatty acids that you need to sustain life, no matter what. You will not stop being hungry until you do."

website is here if anyone wants to read more

Now look here for a list of McDs ingredients

Need I say more?

Bagpuss30 · 22/06/2004 13:30

CD LOL!

WideWebWitch · 22/06/2004 13:30

Toothache, no it wasn't meant to be cutting, sorry if it sounded like it. I meant no-one's telling you you can't take your child/ren to McDs, you can do it if you want to, of course you can, we all can if we want to! But Blu said that 'McDonalds OFFER free trips to nurseries and reception classes as a way of establishing custom. That's why they go on thses trips.' so I suppose some nurseries do go as a result of this and therefore are actively promoting Mcds. In fact, I think if a nursery takes 30 kids to a Mcd, that's pretty much active promotion!

Bagpuss30 · 22/06/2004 13:31

CD that was at your earlier comment, not the 1.29 one, sorry, posts crossed!

WideWebWitch · 22/06/2004 13:33

Whoever asked, yes I have read Fast Food Nation. There's more info here if anyone's interested.

CountessDracula · 22/06/2004 13:34

Me too. It was an eye opener. The thing that really stuck in my mind was (haven't got book here so from memory) that the average american eats junk food 4 or 5 times a week (can anyone find the actual figure?)

CountessDracula · 22/06/2004 13:35

So who is going to keep going to McDs after reading the hydrogenated fats site?

WideWebWitch · 22/06/2004 13:36

And OK, this can't be said to be an unbiased source but there's some info on McDonalds and nutrition here, at McSpotlight

WideWebWitch · 22/06/2004 13:40

three times a week in 2001 according to this but probably more now.

dinosaur · 22/06/2004 13:44

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Fio2 · 22/06/2004 13:44

my son knows mcdonalds sell chips with buzzlighyear or whoever because of the damn adverts. He is 2. We only go occasionally () But wotsits and Quavers are our speciality especially when they are in the pushchair with no socks and shoes on with dirty faces. I am sure they had them before one, they had everything else

curlysue · 22/06/2004 13:46

I'm sure as lots of you are saying the way ahead has to be moderation?! I wasn't brought up with fast food because there wasn't any around then (I'm old!!)! But I do love Big Macs every now and again! I also love wotsits but don't tell anyone!

Both my parents smoked when I was young. I have dabbled on and off (definitely off now) but my brother has never touched a cigarette so these things don't follow necessarily.

I'm not saying feed them processed food all the time but the odd crisp or MacDonalds won't kill them surely?! Let's not go over the top here!

muddaofsuburbia · 22/06/2004 13:48

No - crisps won't kill them, but this was in the news a while ago.