KEEPING KIDS OFF SWEETS? FAT CHANCE

16-05-2008

As the father of a two pre-school girls – writes Stirrer editor Adrian Goldberg – I’ve already lost the Battle of the Sweetie Jar. My four-year old daughter loves crisps and chocolates and the one-year old shows signs of going the same way. So am I a bad dad?

I like to think not, but when you get reports today suggesting that British youngsters are more obese than ever, you have to wonder.

Figures published today show that our girls and boys are among the porkiest in Europe (http://tinyurl.com/58ndbc).

The director of a leading children’s hospital is now warning that children are starting to experience the diseases of middle age including Type 2 diabetes and sleep apnoea (http://tinyurl.com/6c2bpg).

Gulp! Will my youngsters contribute to these grim statistics? I hope not, but who can be certain?

My two girls are given fruit and veg at every opportunity and home-cooked meals are the norm.

Yet that doesn’t stop the older one, in particular, craving stuff which we know isn’t good for her.

Raised on tap water and organic juice, she craves the sugar filled joys of a Fruit Shoot; encouraged to snack on rice cakes, she gobbles Bourbons and Digestives at every opportunity.

We don’t ban any foodstuff, suspecting this will only make it more attractive, but she has an unerring eye for additive filled, e-numbered junk.

Don’t blame it on the telly; we only watch ad free Cbeebies.

It’s impossible to avoid shops and supermarkets though, and it’s amazing how many colourful display racks at knee high to an adult – ie eye level for kids.

Cue a battle of wills as rubbish of one sort or another is piled into the basket, then taken out again, then pit back in again and so on.

Of course the real problem is that the bad stuff is the good stuff.

It just tastes nicer than ‘real’ food, and - like heroin or nicotine - it’s scarily addictive.

We can do our best to show the little ones the range of tasty natural food that are out there – but stop them enjoying their sweet treats? Fat chance.

What’s the best way to encourage healthy eating for kids? Leave a comment on The Stirrer Forum