How strict are you with toddler sweet treats, and how to cut back?

[Alibali22]

I think Mother’s Day has brought this to the forefront of my mind, thinking about what makes you a good mum etc.
I think I’ve kind of f up when it comes to my toddler and her diet.
I was pretty strict on sugar until she was 2 then a family holiday relaxed me and over a year later I’ve gone too much the other way and now I think they are actually addicted to sugar.
I’ve used sweet treats as a bride or a reward and that has definitely not helped either, now saying no causes an upset.
I actually wake up some days and think right today no sweets, ice lollies, cakes and then I just give in.
How strict are others with sweet treats? And any healthy alternatives? Or anyone been in the same situation and managed to change?
my reasons for changing are obviously health and her teeth.

Most people eat their weetabix with milk ?

so 4G protein from the weetabix and another 7g from the milk making 11g protein- seems a fair enough start for an adult or child and healthy fat in milk too. And fibre in the weetabix

I agree, children need sugar for their brains and lots of it. The main source should be complex carbohydrates like starch from rice, pasta, potatoes or similar that their bodies will break down during the day until their next meal and as much fruit as they want which will also give them fruit sugars.

OP it sounds like you want to go cold turkey. The reason I suggested going more slowly is they will be expecting sweets and sugar is genuinely addictive. I think it’s hard for an adult to choose for themselves to stop something like that cold turkey but even harder for a child if it’s done on their behalf.

If you go cold turkey on the cakes and sweets I suggest having lots of high sugar fruit in the house to replace it with like pineapple, mangos, grapes.

My children don’t have any cavities. They snack on fruit.

Mango is an exotic fruit but I thought this was a thread to help someone get their children off refined sugars, not an English lesson.

“Empty carbs” is not a phrase to be used in relation to young children’s eating habits.

”Empty” just means devoid of other nutrients.

She’s talking about a toddler, not an adult. They need huge amounts of carbohydrates for the development of their brains. They should not be getting their main energy from protein! This is not a good sign. Their main source of energy should be carbs.

My 2 year old gets offered a biscuit after nursery but otherwise he doesn't expect sweet things because they aren't normally around. I am mean and secretly eat pudding when the children are in bed, so they don't even know there is ice cream in the freezer - it's something they have as a treat when we're out sometimes. They also not only believe that we only buy nice biscuits when our friends are coming round, but it hasn't occurred to them to ask what happens to the rest of the packet. So I guess I am backing up the 'have less sweet stuff in the house' approach, but my other top tip is to only buy low-value, slightly crap biscuits, e.g. rich tea fingers. They are still pleased to be given one, but they're not that excited and might sometimes prefer an apple.

My favourite place for info and recipes at that age is Annabel Karmel, even the weaning stages would be helpful to retrain her palate. @Alibali22 Just keep it chunky.

https://www.annabelkarmel.com/