Where do you stand on treats for babies/toddlers?

Question

(a) "crisps and treats are as much a part of my child's diet as anything else"

(b) "h**l will freeze over before I allow a chocolate or sweet to pass my child's lips"

(c) "a couple of cheese puffs every fews days is not exactly going to do any harm"

Which of these best describes your stance/approach? If none of the above, what are your feelings?

Answer 1

C. Both of the others, in my opinion, would be more likely to form bad attitudes to "treat" food in the future.

Yes, my 17 month old has the odd McDonalds too, when he goes out with Godparents etc. He's not overweight or lazy, you just need a healthy balance.

Answer 2

None of them.

A good healthy diet. plenty of activity, the odd treat won't hurt.

Ice cream, sweets never taste so good as when you were a child.

I wouldn't use fast foods and ready meals on a regular basis though, nor an unlimited supply of sweets, cakes etc.

Answer 3

probably my attitude is nearer to (c) because i never buy any sweets for my 2 year old unless you count a chocolate mousse as dessert once in a while as sweets, but i don't have a problem with anyone else in the family giving him a sweet, his grandmother likes to feed him chocolate cake and suchlike which is fine by me and i see it as doing no harm.  

Answer 4

i havent got any children yet (due 5th January) but i have thought a lot about  sweets/treats and wondered how to go about giving my children these without them constantly crying for sweets, which my baby sisters do EVERYDAY!!

In my experience i have been brought up that sweets and treats are earned (we didnt have much money growing up) and if we did our chores (wash up dishes after dinner, keep our rooms clean) then we got our pocket money each week to spend on what we liked. i think i will have this same approach, as it also teaches children the value of money and that you have to work for money.

As for children under 5 i think every week (during the weekly shop) i will let them have a small pick n mix if they have been good.if they are naughty they will not get their weekly treat as i would not reward bad behaviour. as for crisps i would allow a bag a day with lunch but all other snacks would be fruit/yogurt etc. i would make a healthy dinner everyday as i do now.

This is in an ideal world but as i said i havent got children yet so my plans could go down the pan lol.

Answer 5

i wouldnt give my daughter treats til she was 2 and was still funny about giving her them  

Answer 6

Really none of the above. I buy healthier versions whenever possible...Whole Grain Gold Fish, Carmel Rice Cakes, 100% juice fruit snacks, whole grain teddy grahams, gerber "crunchies", gerber "puffies", multigrain cherrios or yogurt. But they do eat probably 1-4 servings of these snack items a day. Sometimes it's a cookie or brownie, but usually only on special days or for a special reason.

My daughter's are 15 months and 35 months (nearly 3)!  Both perfectly healthy!

Answer 7

I guess you cant deny them some of these things, but everything in moderation, i would certainly start to make them aware of what is bad for you, and teach them healthy eating etc assoon as they were able to take it on board

Answer 8

if i had a toddler, i would pick (C)

if i had a baby i would pick (B)

Answer 9

well i try to limit the junk food, but i'm not about to freak out if him daddy or Mema give him a cookie... he's 12 months

Answer 10

I dont have a baby yet but like to think that when I do I will try and keep the diet as healthy as possible but won't freak at the idea of a treat now and again. So I'm probably (c).

My brother in laws baby on the other hand seems to have crisps and thing daily as a meal and I think that's just wrong.

Answer 11

Probably C would be the closest, but none really hit it.  My daughter is 16 months.  For the first twelve months, she had virtually NO sugar or junk food (fruits, veggies, homemade baby food, no salt or sugar added to anything, no butter, etc. - Yes, I am anal about her nutrition!).  We are still careful, but offer her the occasional treat (she eats arrowroot cookies sometimes, and cake or other stuff extremely occasionally).  In all honesty, we eat healthy and she eats what we eat.  I am a chocolate fanatic, but I don't eat it in front of her.  She had chocolate cake for her first birthday, she liked it but she certainly didn't devour it or anything.  Now, if I give her a chocoalate cookie she will take a bit or two and hand it back to me!  She prefers watermelon or blueberries, which is fine by me.

Answer 12

None of those choices reall apply to me...I do let my child have treats but I avoid things like cheese puffs and really bright couloured sweets because of the additives...I let her have chocolate and crisps that are baked...of course I cant say no if the bright yellow cheesy puffs are served at a party..but I wont buy them.

Answer 13

Hi as I dont have any children yet I am 37 weeks, I already know what my views on this are and what we are going to do with out son, its not any one of the above but a bit more of the top one and a bit of the bottom one as well.

There is no way I am not going to give my babie or toddlers treats, and I will probably start trying my baby on chocolate etc as soon as he can lol, thats as well as everything else, I aint going to be one of these mums that worry every second what goes into a babies mouth thats sweet, we all had it when we were babies and no harm ever come to us.

I find that if you dont allow your child any treats wait till they are older and can eat what they like when they like, if they have never had the opporotunty for treats and sweets they will only be worse and probably pig out on it because they have never had it at all.

Were not going to be like some parents where they just give the child sweets to shut them up, out child will be given them after meals and they will have healthy snacks as well as the good ones, no child should be banned from treats and sweets just because the health people say its bad for them. Its not in moderation

Answer 14

I didn't even used to let my son have juice never mind sweets but now he's 4 he loves them and i kind of wish i'd have stuck with it and not given them to him i ws never allowed sweets and i still don't desire them and i know adults that binge on the stuff

Answer 15

c. But the earlier you can get them eating healthily the better, it will stay with them. So occassional treats fine, as long as fruit and veggies are often.

Answer 16

My daughter has a small packet of crisps as part of her lunchtime meal, and sometimes a chocolate bar or a piece of cake, but she eats fruit/veg as part of the same meal and usually has wholemeal bread for her sandwich.

To be honest, I had a packet of crisps every day as a child and a chocolate bar or some biscuits and i'm not overweight so I will do the same for my daughter. She eats healthy, well balanced meals - for as long as it works that's what I'll continue to do.

Answer 17

My grandson is 21 months and his parents have finally realized that chocolate, ice cream, cookies, cakes, chips - in moderation - aren't going to hurt him.  He knows where his Goldfish crackers and his Teddy Grahams are kept, and he knows he's allowed to have those in the afternoon after his nap.  If they have other treats in the house, they don't get them out of the cupboard or refrigerator until it's time to eat that particular item.  That way he eats a regular meal and is satisfied with a small amount of the treat.