How much chocolate / sweets should a kid be eating in a week?

my three dont eat it very often, though a couple of biscuits after dinner as "something nice" doesnt hurt. They dont have crisps overly much either and no fizzy/sugary drinks at all. As a treat it doesnt hurt every now and then but no way would it become a regular thing.

And why is this in atheism and agnoticism forum?

Ask your dentist. Had a chat with mine about children's teeth and got stern warnings about juices, dried fruit and treats. I'm holding off on chocolate, sweets and crisps as long as possible with mine. A great treat here would be a yoghurt or homemade crumble.

I don't have a scientific answer for you but I don't like Little Kiwi having much sweets/crisps/processed foods. I try to stick to natural foods and ingredients as much as possible, although I am in no way a food nazi. As far as sweets go, I particularly dislike things like jellies and lollipops. If he is going to have a treat I prefer decent quality chocolate. I like baking, so a daily treat for Little Kiwi would be a bun/brownie/biscuit/dessert that is home made. He would get something like a kinder suprise or ice cream once or twice a week. I really hate when we go to friends/family and they bring out ridiculous amounts of bars, jellies, crisps etc. I don't mind if it's a birthday party but not just an ordinary day. He is allowed fizzy drinks only if we are out for a meal with him. Milk or water as drinks and orange/apple juice as a treat every now and then. I don't think children should eat crap, but I also think 'food experts' who tell you to cut out everything that tastes nice are ridiculous.

Tim Robbins wrote: »

Just wondering are there any clinical trials or studies which provides guidelines on how much sweets / chocolate a child should be eating in a week?

There isn't any amount that they should be eating. Zero is fine, nutritionally.

How much is too much? Depends on the age and weight of the child, but also depends on what else the child is eating. If they are eating so much confectionery as to depress their appetite for more nutritious foods, that's a huge problem. If they are eating to make up deficiencies in the diet, that's a huge problem.

Beyond that, this is not so much about immediate damage to health as about inculcating (indoctrinating!) good eating habits. You want your kids to eat (and enjoy) fruit, fresh vegetables, etc. Ideally their need for sugar would be primarily met by fruit, and their need for fat by dairy produce and vegetable oils. If they're getting signficant amounts of sugar and fat from, e.g., chocolate, then either (a) they're getting too much sugar and fat overall, or (b) they're getting a reasonable amount, but not eating nearly enough fresh fruit, dairy produce, etc, which will establish habits that will cause them problems later in life.

The notion of using chocolate as a reward is good in the sense that it establishes chocolate as something occasional, exceptional, requiring justification. But it could have the danger that it "moralises" food - i.e. we develop the habit of eating foods to express moral judgments about ourselves ("I've been virtuous so I deserve chocolate"), and this lays the ground for destructive eating habits, and indeed eating disorders, later in life (because we subconsciously associate responsible eating habits with low self-esteem). So a ritual that, e.g, we only have chocolate on Sundays and bank holidays, we only have cake when visitors come, or whatever, might be better.

Dades wrote: »

And a bath once a month if they need or not! :pac:

Fat kids are a pet hate of my wife and I, with the ire firmly directed at the parents who allow it to happen. That said, I have no problem with giving my kids treats as long as they eat proper food at proper food times and continue to play/exercise like duracell bunnies all day long.

If I thought for a microsecond my kids were getting chunky/slovenly the regime would change overnight. But right now I don't see the need to withhold treats because other people's kids are fat.

Fat kids don't annoy me. It's the parents of fat kids blocking the entrance to my estate every morning dropping their potentially-less-fat-and-would-definitely-be-healthier-if-they-walked-to-school fat kids to school. It really is a 'blame the parents' phenomenon.

These are the same parents who drive half a mile to the chipper. Supporting nurture over nature on this one. Nature doesn't generally produce jellybellys in humans. Nurture does. Although the use of 'nurture' in this context does stretch the definition.

I have learned something from this thread...

...that cheap easter eggs can be obtained from charity shops!

It is funny (well, sad really) that everywhere that has a 'kids menu' it's chips with everything, but usually those vile chicken nuggets. Our kids would rather eat what we're having. McDonalds is once or twice a year and they rarely finish what they get. They love fruit and veg and their favourite vegetable is brussels sprouts They do get treats but they are treats not part of their everyday diet. I think sugary drinks are the worst thing of all, empty calories that don't satisfy the appetite and very bad for the teeth too.

Peregrinus wrote: »

I'm sorry to have to be the one to tell you this, but your children are weird. ;-)

i dunno, my three love cabbage and the eldest likes brocolli as well

recedite wrote: »

I agree. Also, two more tips;

2. If eating out, never buy kids food from the kids menu; ask for a half portion of human food instead.

this
My 4 year old's favourite food is Salmon, he always orders it whenever we're out