It's Sugar Awareness Week 8th-14th November.

Hi everyone,

Lots of people want to cut down on sugar and feed their families healthy foods and snacks, so its come as a shock that some baby snacks have too much added sugar the worst offender had 59g of sugar per 100g apparently it was to make it smoother so the baby wouldn't choke or maybe they need to change the recipe!

Here's a link about it:

bbc.co.uk/news/health-59218313

The theme is sugar in snacks so here's a link to a really good article by Which on sugar salt and fat in snacks:

which.co.uk/news/2021/10/th...

There's 330ml can of Coke has 35g of sugar around 9 tea spoons full which is not seen by the consumer so you can see how easily our sugar intake can increase.

We know the answer is too eat well with plenty of exercise so this is to raise awareness of what we are really eating and drinking.

[Snowdrops_17]

I made my own food and pureed the food we ate or food my babies could digest from 6 or 8 months on Jerry! But I bought Milupa baby porridge just to top an evening meal up after breastfeeding! I breastfed all of my 4 children in 1980 - 1987 😁🤱 no sterilizing bottles etc, milk was warm and ready any time! But in this day and age, Mums have to go back to work, some quicker then others! And bottle feeding and ready baby food is convenient! Depending on my situation and job I would try to have at least 6 months with my baby and then look for food which is sugar and salt free! Not sure what's on the market now! I do have a sweet tooth but I try to avoid sugar and salt and use herbs and corse pepper instead to season my food! Cinnamon and honey is also great to sweeten up food but in proportion!Check the ingredients and how much sugar and salt content food has! If you eat a balanced diet with less sugar and salt intake, I think that's a win win! Avoid takeaways, especially Chinese, or shop's ready meals....cook your own! You know what's in, no hidden ingredients.... 👍👍👍🏡🤗

I don't drink Coca Cola or any other fizzy drinks either 👍

[Hidden in reply to Snowdrops_17]

Hi Snowdrops_17 it sounds like you did rally well so good for you and your children and there's some great advice here and I'll keep to a mug of tea when I want a drink. 😊

[Activity2004 Administrator]

This is very interesting and surprising to see what is going on with children’s/babies food and/or snacks. Some companies can be sneaky with their ingredients included in their baby food.

Great posting, Hidden !😀👍

[Hidden in reply to Activity2004]

Thanks Leah and sneaky is the word. 😊

[Hidden]

I saw this Jerry and I think it’s about more than just the sugar levels in prepared baby foods. My ‘babies’ are in their 50s now but even when they were newly born the trend was toward selling all sorts of products with too much sugar in. As toddlers we kept them well away from sweetened things and actual sweets. Our one sweet treat of the week was Sunday afternoon tea as a family which always included a home made cake.But boy oh boy, when they got off to school and tasted those untried ‘goodies’, the cat was well and truly out of the bag and they were soon trading in illicit treats and became as quickly addicted to the sweet stuff as all their friends.

There’s far too much sugar out there everywhere! How many of us bake our own sweet treats because anything commercially made is so over-sweetened it makes our teeth curl! How did we get into this mess and why are so many young people unable or unwilling to cook wholesome meals from scratch. We hear all sorts of excuses including low pay for this situation, but what could be more economic than a potful of a root vegetable soup or, say, some red beans and rice? Excuses, excuses!

So I agree that we can make a really good start by weaning our babies onto home cooked, sugarless foods, but I think we need a whole new educational approach to re-teach old basics. Perish the thought for all millennials but do we need to reintroduce ‘domestic science’ to the school curriculum?

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

You’re very right here Sue as they’ve added too much salt to some foods for ages to make people thirsty! Sadly it was “convenient” to buy ready made foods and it hasn’t turned out to be the case.

You’re also very right as cooking skills were passed down from generation to generation, now it’s drive by breakfasts…

We’ve also had clever adverts extolling more leisure time hence lots of people have lost touch with what they are really eating.

So the next question is how do we get out of this mess by bringing back domestic science?

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Indeed Jerry, because you can lead a horse to water....... However, I think we need to do a reset with the young as we did with regard to smoking, so that maybe the littler people help to teach the parents rather than vice versa!

[Fran182716 Prediabetic in reply to Hidden]

I remember being stunned when my eldest son (now 31) came home from school with his first “food technology” list of ingredients to take into class - a box of cake mix and a couple of eggs!

[Fran182716 Prediabetic in reply to Fran182716]

Having said that though - we were taught proper “cookery” at school in the 1970s making basic meals from scratch, but only the girls, boys did woodwork so there’s one sort of progress!

[Hidden in reply to Fran182716]

That's so true Fran182716 and thank goodness we've moved on from that at least!

[Snowdrops_17 in reply to Hidden]

Totally agree with you! My daughter teaches and her 5 year old, well nearly 6 now, prefers sweet treats! He is a really fussy eater! It's terrible! He even went hungry when starting school refusing school dinners! He's very active, can't sit still for long, but sits still when playing games on PlayStation or on her phone! My children played out most of the times! Then excuse me, eating rubbish, because, he won't finish any meal, makes me sad! She's tries cooking some meals from scratch but it's difficult at times for a working Mother! Looks like food industry needs an overhaul to me, to offer more wholesome food and less sugar and salt! I am sed to love cheese cake and doughnuts, apple pies and double cream on eat! Big NO NO now! The cheese cake 🍰 oh my goodness, full of sugar, yuk! Rather make my own with much less if I really fancied one!

The solution is "Change your thinking and attitude to food" then you half way there!"

[Cooper27 Administrator]

I heard previously that babies are starting to grow an addiction to sugar in the womb, as if the mum eats it, it will sweeten the placenta. The baby food issue, is really just growing on that.

It did surprise me how many baby foods have sugar added to be fair. We sometimes mix rabbit medicine through baby food, to make it more palatable, and it was only the higher end stuff that was suitable. It's a shame it has to be a choice.

[Hidden in reply to Cooper27]

Hey you spoil your rabbits Cooper they’re obviously well loved baby food with meds. 🐰

And you are so right there’s no need for added sugar to quality baby food.

[Snowdrops_17]

Well I know someone who had an amputation because of Diabetes 1 ! I rather eat less sugar as I am borderline diabetic! I admit I still have to make some changes! I do like a treat now and then! But I would not like to lose an arm or leg because I am stupid if I were on Insulin! It's mind over matter👌