BabyWhispererForums.com
EAT => Feeding Solid Food => Topic started by: becj86 on February 11, 2012, 09:05:20 am
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Just wondering if this is different around the world... Cheerios here are high in sugar (in my opinion) - 5.3g sugar in a 30g serve (18%). They're sticky with the stuff and that's straight out of the packet!
So, what's the sugar content in Cheerios around the world?
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Yeah- i thought they seemed pretty sugary...
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I think Cheerios in the US are a lot lower in sugar than the UK ones which is why they are used for early finger foods!
Laura
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Yes - there is vast difference. It is regularly discussed here.
The US version is made by Great Mills I think and only has about 1g of sugar /servivg of 30g
In the UK they are made by Nestle and have around 12.3 /30 servingg of sugar.
A
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Ahhh, that explains things. I'd always been baffled by why seemingly sensible people on here would recommend cheerios as a first finger food :P
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Ahhh, that explains things. I'd always been baffled by why seemingly sensible people on here would recommend cheerios as a first finger food
Me too!! I was thinking- isn't that the same as giving them fruit loops?!? I looked at them at the shop but couldn't understand!!
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I'm looking at a Canadian box right now and it's 1g sugar in a 1 cup (27g) serving :)
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I'm in the US and the yellow box of cheerios says its 1g of sugar for 1 cup so same as Canadian. There are a whole bunch of different kinds like honey nut, multi grain, apple, chocolate etc and they have a lot of sugar. My dh eats the multi grain and they have 6 grams of sugar per cup.
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I never even realised but just checked and ours are the multigrain ones (that's the standard ones here I have never seen other apart from the honey ones) and they have 6g sugar per 27g serving and are 21.3% sugar.
The honey ones are even worse and have 8g per 27g serving.
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I can't believe the difference! I never realised and my DD has them loads, she loves them. No wonder with all that sugar! :o
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Yeah, the figure I quoted was for stock standard basic cheerios in Aus... worse for the chocolate, honey, etc. flavours, I'm sure! I was wondering why people were giving them as a finger food and even recommending them as breakfast. Now I know. In the US, they're not actually packed with sugar.
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I had the pack n my hand the other day! It's so hard these days though as EVERY cereal seems to say 'with wholegrain'... etc- even something like coco pops- sugar AND chocolate flavour- but apparently a good choice according to the pack!!!
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There's almost nothing on the market in Aus with low enough salt and sugar content that I'd let it pass DS' lips :(
I have given him vita brits but they bung him up something chronic! I hate weetbix myself, so don't want to buy it for him if it doesn't work because its a waste of money throwing it out.
I just carry on with porridge or fruit and yoghurt for breakfast, but I'm really struggling to find carbs he'll eat outside of fruit & veg. He has them offered with every meal but he hardly touches them.
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In the US here but ds2 doesn't much care for cheerios for some reason. Lucky you that he doesn't want carbs! That's all mine wants! Will he eat a piece of toast for breakfast?
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I buy the 'kids weetbix' as it's lower in soduim.. and it's about the only processed thing he has... I HATE weetbix myself- but he LOVES it! Hamish also dislikes pasta..
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coco pops- sugar AND chocolate flavour- but apparently a good choice according to the pack!!!
According to the side of the nutella jar, an example of a balanced breakfast for a growing child is two slices of white bread slathered with nutella, and a glass of milk. Hmmm.
Felicity has porridge for breakfast almost everyday. Occasionally some oaty pancakes, or toast. And always fruit! Will your LO eat rice or pasta with other meals Bec? What if it's carb offered in a different form - rice cakes, or potato fritters? Pizza (home-made :))?
Tbh though, I wouldn't worry too much at this stage, so long as you're offering and he eats some carb some of the time. These LOs are pretty good at knowing what they need and when!
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Nope, he'll lick whatever I put on the toast off it and chew the toast, then spit it out (sometimes this happens two or three times to the same piece of toast but he rarely swallows!).
He eats the sauce off pasta (eats the pasta if he doesn't like the sauce and there's nothing else on offer).
He eats corn thins, but only on the odd occasion, mostly just licks toppings off and crumbles up the corn thin and makes a mess.
He's just not into carbs. Every 3-4 days, he'll eat the carb part of a meal along with the other bits...
He will however, eat protein like its the greatest thing... guess he's busy making muscles!
and if I let him, he'd live on banana, nectarines and scrambled eggs.
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Will he eat meatballs? Perhaps you can hide some carbs like oats or breadcrumbs in there.
Pancakes are a good one for adding pureed fruit or veg to to make healthier.
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I definitely agree on the meatballs front, here's a couple of good recipes:
http://mamacook.blogspot.com/2011/08/meatloaf-for-babies-and-toddlers.html
http://mamacook.blogspot.com/2011/10/mini-meatloaf-recipe-for-babies-and.html
And I add fruit to my pancakes too:
http://mamacook.blogspot.com/2011/03/pancakes-and-toys-returned-to-pram.html
For breakfasts if I'm not giving pancakes I tend to give ready break, weetabix, shreddies or rice krispies. The first two have no added sugar, the last two have a bit but not a lot. I was going to give cheerios when he was little but looked at the pack first and put them back down!
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How hilarious! I don't have to hide veges... I have to hide carbs! Didn't think of that though, Ali. Thanks :) I'll give them a go. He's not keen on pancakes but that could be because I'm impatient and I'm rubbish is making them. Maybe get DH onto that one...
Thanks, Lemonthyme. Love your recipes :)
Oh, and he ate some pasta tonight... maybe he does self-regulate well.
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I add oats to things a lot too - meatballs, fishcakes, vegie patties... :)
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I made some of creations' oat flapjack/cookie things and he hated them (I liked them)... I made them again with rice flakes and he loves them (I think they're revolting!).
Probably getting worried about nothing here, I realise as I think of the carbs I do hide/use in cooking.
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shreddies? are they OK? they mush up quite good with warmer milk.
how about raisin wheats, DS quite likes these too, I don't think they're too bad
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I don't know about shreddies. I think a good test is if you taste them0 if you think they taste ok they probably have too much salt and sugar for your LO ;D ... Honestly though- what would people suggest is a good amount of sugar, or something per 100g say that we can look out for? I never know...
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Sheddies I have are actually 15% sugar which I think is a lot. Kelloggs Raisin Wheats are 13% sugar which is better but still high. However I imagine the sugar in the raisin wheats is from the raisins which are very high in sugar but at least it's not added refined sugar.
I tended to stick to baby cereal like Plum multigrain porridge until DS1 was 18mo since that less than 3% sugar. Plus it tends to be fortified with lots of other vitamins like vit D that can be harder to get into a baby. You can always add some banana or other fruit to sweeten it up while avoiding refined sugar. Or cinnamon and nutmeg are nice too. Weetabix is only 4.5% sugar but relatively high in salt.
Katy I'm not sure what percentage to go for plus I think it is different for an 8mo verses an 18mo yk since the latter will be able to eat other healthy foods more than the LO. Plus I think if a cereal has natural sugar in from fruit or the like then that is more acceptable to me than added sugar which is just empty calories.
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The weetbix 'kids' is much less salt- here sanitarium does weetbix, they are a sevetnth day adventist company and do a lot of wholefoods, so often lower in sugar and salt- you still have to check the box- but are on the whole a lot better.. (I had friends at uni that were SDA- oddly i was essentially in the SDA group, i'm not religious at all!- and they were into clean living clean eating stuff.. )
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Oh yes actually we can get baby Weetabix here, I think cow and gate make them.
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I get the cow and gate wheatabix no sugar or salt, he doesn't eat them very often though.
I use the baby muesli or baby porridge to make finger food cereal balls, DS will eat them like that but not as a sloppy bowl of cereal.
I don't think there is a single cereal on the shop shelf worth buying in the UK, apart from the plain muesli or porridge oats. In fact I think the entire cereal aisle should be linked with the chocolate and sweets aisle, it's the same stuff.
I made the mistake of buying special K once (for me not DS) thinking it would be good for me and being in too much of a hurry that day to read the box. Only after I'd forced myself to eat the stuff did I realise a bowl of that is about the equivalent of a mars bar. Give me the mars bar any day. If I'm going to eat rubbish at least let me know I'm eating rubbish and enjoy it!
I'm pretty sure sweet potato is classed as carbs isn't it? Not suggesting it for breakfast but if you are concerned about carbs intake but LO loves the vegies then it could be a winner.
Have you tried cous cous or polenta?
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I like how sometimes i've had cereal and had some of the milk left in the bottom separately when the cereall is finished (on a spoon- not in a glass), and it tasted really yummy!! Bad sign!
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I don't think there is a single cereal on the shop shelf worth buying in the UK, apart from the plain muesli or porridge oats. In fact I think the entire cereal aisle should be linked with the chocolate and sweets aisle, it's the same stuff.
^^^^this^^^^ and
Give me the mars bar any day. If I'm going to eat rubbish at least let me know I'm eating rubbish and enjoy it!
^^^^this!^^^^
In total agreement! Def here in Thailand, and it is only maaaarginally better in NZ. I'd much rather have my sugar intake for the day in the form of chocolate or dessert, and really enjoy it!
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I think you have to be careful not to go completely overboard. The sugar in shreddies is mainly from malted wheat to again not refined. I alternate things like shreddies and rice krispies with completely no added sugar options but I don't think they're that bad. If you're really concerned, ready brek or home made porridge are good options. I don't like giving the 'baby' cereals for too long tbh because even some of them are surprisingly high in sugar and they're so expensive. Most of his breakfasts till he was 1 were ready brek but at some point i felt I needed to ease up, albeit not giving chocolate cereals mind!!!
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The baby cereals are really expensive aren't they? I just use the plain ones ans sweeten myself with breast milk. I like all the extra vitamins they have before Lo is eating a better balance of solids.
I always remember Ready Brek being implicated in a baby's death due to too much salt but I know they don't add salt now so it's no longer an issue.
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I always remember Ready Brek being implicated in a baby's death due to too much salt but I know they don't add salt now so it's no longer an issue.
I remember this as well but I believe the baby was only 12 weeks old when they were feeding him ready brek, and they were also giving him all of their own table foods which included a lot of other salty foods, not just ready brek.
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Ahhh, that explains things. I'd always been baffled by why seemingly sensible people on here would recommend cheerios as a first finger food :P
Me too! Never wanted to say anything but it was very strange.
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The ready brek case wasn't due to the ready brek and in fact the manufacturers complained about the judges comments because there's never been salt added to ready brek. The issue was the parents also gave him instant mashed potato and instant gravy both of which are high in salt.
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WHat a terrible story! I'm sure there were other things going on for that family...
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I always remember Ready Brek being implicated in a baby's death due to too much salt but I know they don't add salt now so it's no longer an issue.
I remember this as well but I believe the baby was only 12 weeks old when they were feeding him ready brek, and they were also giving him all of their own table foods which included a lot of other salty foods, not just ready brek.
Yes it wasn't just ready brek, that and lasagne were just the two things they named specifically. Not ready brek's fault of course just an irrational association with it in ky mind was all I meant. Here is the full story in the interest of clarity.
http://m.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/1999/jul/28/familyandrelationships.features101?cat=lifeandstyle&type=article
LT, thanks for the explanation of the malted wheat in sheddies causing them to be high in sugar. The manufacturers should think about explaining this on the pack because someone like me just looks on the pack and sees that sugar and invert sugar syrup are the second and third ingredients on the list after wheat and assume it is from those ingredients.
So sheddies would be good for BF supply then I guess since malt is isn't it?
Steffi, I guess that is why cheerios are not a first weaning food in the UK (not that I've ever heard of anyway) since we don't have the low sugar variety.
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This is what I thought Cheerios were ::)
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we call them 'froot loops' - notice how they don't actually have 'fruit' in them... they are yummy... but are best eaten as a party snack!!
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Wow I haven't come across those before steffi! They certainly couldn't claim to be a natural product.
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You;re so missing out Ali!! They come as part of the kellogs 'variety pack' often enjoyed at a sleepover at nannas! Oh how things change in 30 years!
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I've seen the variety packs and had them as a youngster but those were never in them over here. They look very artificial.
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I don't think they are something you eat if you are looking to eliminate artificial colours and flavours...
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They certainly couldn't claim to be a natural product.
They don't try to.
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They certainly couldn't claim to be a natural product.
They don't try to.
Oh no I know Mashi just the neon colours are shocking to me since they are clearly targeted at kids.
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Yeah, froot loops are scary! Cheerios in Australia are essentially those without the neon colours...
Katy, I think even these have something on the pack that says "source of fibre" as some kind of proclamation that they're healthy... it's on every cereal packet here!
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hmm... i might have to get some cheerios... they sound yummy ;P
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Ah, yes, love how the manufacturers slap "Made with Healthy Whole Grains!" on the label and you come to find out there's at least as much sugar as doughnuts in there. :( http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/6431776/Breakfast-cereals-contain-more-sugar-than-a-jam-doughnut.html Yes, the doughnuts contain more fat, as the industry spokesperson pointed out, but no child needs that much sugar. And the coloring.... UGH, the coloring! Josie's teachers at school were giving her a hard time about her knowledge of food coloring when she would turn down treats at school; one teacher even told her she should be careful before making claims like most food colorings in the US are derived from coal tar, so I did some research and wrote her up a blog post to refer the teachers to. (http://crunchyprogressiveparenting.blogspot.com/2012/01/color-my-world-on-second-thought-please.html
Frankly, I'd go ahead and let the kids load up on veg and fruit (especially veg - fruit juices and some fruits are surprisingly high in sugar http://dsc.discovery.com/life/sodas-evil-twin-the-dangers-of-fruit-drinks-infographic.html) for carbs, maybe get them used to a homemade porridge - we made one with soaked mixed grains like millet and barley and rice and added just enough maple syrup to make it barely palatable LOL before we ended up going gluten-free - instead of the Cheerios at all. Kids can still use other foods as finger foods. JMHO
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It's scary in the US how many parents give their kids cereals like fruit loops and lucky charms without even thinking about all the sugar and food colorings that are in it! My MIL says all the time how dark sodas cause cancer and then gives my nephew cereals, popsicles, etc with all kinds of artificial colors in them. Not sure why she doesn't think red cereal would be bad?!?!
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Oh wow, I never realized how much sugar was in Cherrios. I would have never known just by the taste! And to think... I used to eat lucky charms, frosted flakes, honey combs everyday!! :-\ No wonder my mom said I was "super active"... :P
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Thanks, Deb. Makes a lot of sense when you say it like that... I think of what I feed DS and realise that most of his carbs are fruit/veges rather than what one typically thinks of as carbs - rice, pasta, bread. I make an oat porridge which he devours quite happily, even eats around the sultanas I put in :P
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Btw that salt case, here's another link:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/404667.stm
And here was the response from the makers of ready brek:
http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/home/ready-brek-acts-to-clear-death-salt-charges/2052321.article
Tbh from a nutritional point of view after 6 months I think ready brek and the own brand versions are really good for kids. It's fortified with no added sugar or salt. I can see why they got distressed about it as a company. I mean take a look at this thread!
http://www.netmums.com/coffeehouse/children-parenting-190/general-parenting-192/515205-ready-brek-responsible-death-baby-so-why-did-my-hv-recommend.html
Anyway, I take it all with a pinch of salt (lol, sorry, couldn't resist the gag!) I try to offer minimal processed foods, minimal salt and minimal sugar even now my son is 21 months old. I see some parents of toddlers my age giving their kids chocolate. If you're even bothered to look at the nutritional panel of a breakfast cereal you're doing better than most of the population!
I reckon if you give a cereal which does have some added sugar or salt, then just be careful about what other foods you give in the day.
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Thanks LT, I looked for a link about them challenging the comment after your last post but couldn't find one. I guess that comment has done them some damage since all these years later so many mums still think twice about using it due to the presumed salt content.
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All good points, Lemonthyme.
We have a fruit gel product here which is a baby jar food marketed to munchkins from 6months and the 110g jar contains 12.9g sugar. Granted, its mostly from fruit and I'd be interested to see what is fructose and what is glucose...
If they the ingredients on the label and it specifically says 'sugar' as an ingredient, I would take that to mean added glucose rather than that being fructose from the fruits in the product. Would that be right?
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If by "sugar" they mean basic table sugar, as an ingredient, that would be sucrose, which is half glucose and half fructose. But since it's in nutrition information on a jar of fruit product, I'd venture to guess that unless they actually added MORE sugar to it, most would be fructose.
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If sugar is an ingredient on the list then it is added. However in the nutrition label, under sugars, that will be total sugars per serving/package, and that is a total of what is in the fruit and what additional sugar they have added.
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soooo if i;m looking at a product... say canned fruit (just an example...) and it doesn't say 'sugar' in the ingredient list then it's ok to give it to my guy as the 'sugars' listed on the nutritional panel include the natural sugars that are in the fruit?
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That's sort of a 'how long is a piece of string' question.... Just because it does not say sugar does not mean there is no added sugar as there are dozens of other names for sugar iyswim. Also it depends on how the fruit is packed - packed in water, syrup, juice, own juices, etc. Different things are better/worse. So I would look for a product that has been packed in own juices or in water, with nothing else at all added.
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YEah.. most of the stuff i look at for him at the moment only has a few ingredients, so it's easy to see if any sugar has been added... but will be on the look out for those other sneaky ways.. (just looked at the sultana bran- has 'invert syrup'.. sounds sugary to me...)
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Yep invert syrup is made from sugar.
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Yes, that is what I mean when I say you have to know what other things are just different forms of sugar. Syrup is sugar!
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I suppose it never occurred to me that people would be confused by it but then I work in food and have to look at ingredient declarations all the blooming time.
I suppose sugars are sugars, naturally occurring or not. I mean, is it genuinely any better to use concentrated apple juice in a biscuit rather than fructose syrup? Genuinely the two substances are probably not far apart nutritionally. That said, when I'm baking I try to use natural sources of sugar in their natural form, e.g. fruit, whole not from concentrate juice and dried fruit (ok, almost in their natural form). I think you can drive yourself mad if you're not careful. Some pragmatism is important. I got recently ticked off by someone on twitter for never feeding my child high sugar items too. They had a point. He's surely going to go nuts right when he does have it? So now once a fortnight or so, we go out for tea and cake where he has a couple of mouthfuls of my (full on sugar) cake. At 21 months I don't think that's too bad and he has plenty of low sugar baking at other times and sugar in shreddies, rice krispies, dried fruit, fresh fruit etc.
Personally although I do restrict sugar, I don't ban it entirely now. I stay away from artificial sweeteners though.
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I always find it funny that if i said to people that i was having no added sugar in my diet they'd say 'good on you- great choice for a better life!', but if you do that with even a baby under 1 people think you are an extremist!!
And LT- I definitely feel when they are older the lesson of 'sweet treats are for sometimes' is a great one to have. They will eventually have a more sugary diet, but learning when and how to have it is valuable i feel.
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Yeah I wasn't meaning anyone here was extremist, after all, I'm only now giving tiny amounts of sugar at nearly 2 years old! I also get fed up with my parents saying I'm depriving him. His favourite foods are carrots, vintage cheddar, pate and pears. They aren't diet foods but they offer a mix of nutrients and a more sophisticated palate. I'm sure that staying away from sugary foods must help with that. Although he is slightly nuts about cheese, he even eats Parmesan on it's own.
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Yeah I wasn't meaning anyone here was extremist,
No no no- i mean friends and family- who just have kids eating cupcakes at 7 months old 'because it's just easier...' .. Dunno- i guess there's things i can't be bothered with that they probably think i'm neglectful (she casts her mind to the over full nappy bin in baby's bedroom)
ANd I gave hamish a bit of brie (my very favourite food!) the other day- loved it!! I figure the fact that there are cheaper ways to keep a baby happy i'll go with that!
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I'm not so worried about the fructose he's getting from all the fruit he eats, it is sugar, but from my limited knowledge (chemistry/biochem at uni but certainly not food science) I like to try to avoid added sugar - glucose, sucrose, etc. I was asked at christmas why I wasn't giving him icecream and christmas pudding! ummm... he's a BABY!
The best we can do is try to be as knowledgeable as possible and make educated choices with health in mind. I do think that he gets a better variety of tastes and textures staying away from added sugars and processed foods.
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It is actually somewhat important to keep an eye on fructose consumption; some kids can't handle it well, and you don't realize it till you give a kid a juice box and she falls apart and has allergy shiners 20 minutes later. :-\ (Welcome to our world.) Also, fructose is not metabolized the same by the body as glucose. Processed or not, there's such a thing as too much sugar, natural or not, added or not. The processing can add other stuff - HFCS uses mercury in some of its processing, for example (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/26/AR2009012601831.html) - that people don't want but often don't know about, but on its own, sugar is sugar.
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Fair enough, Deb. So how do I work out how much fructose is in a piece of fruit he's eating and whether its too much? We don't really do juice in our house... DH has one glass of OJ in the morning at breakfast, I don't drink juice at all unless out for lunch/dinner which is once every months or two, DS hasn't ever had it and I would dilute heavily with water if/when I do introduce it.
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I like this site for seeing what's in food: http://nutritiondata.self.com/
Here's their analysis of a basic apple: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fruits-and-fruit-juices/1809/2
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I think eating an apple is very different to drinking juice; the apple has lots of fibre too which is largely removed in the juice. Also the juice will be made from 4-5 apples which no-one would ever eat in one sitting. Yes, I agree too much juice is a bad thing too but too many apples would be tricky IMO.
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True - I don't know anyone who'd eat that many apples in one go. Munchkin grabbed two bananas from the fruit lady today and ate them both this afternoon... one he even ate some of the skin because he took a bite before I even got to peel it. BANANA BANDIT ALERT!
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BANANA BANDIT ALERT!
Lol!!
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one he even ate some of the skin because he took a bite before I even got to peel it.
F has done this at the market too! She's in a front pack and I still haven't learnt not to stand too close to the fruit and vege stands as I can't always see what the little hands are grabbing....it was a cucumber yesterday. Chewed to pieces before I even noticed ::) Luckily the day she went for the super hot thai chillies, the lady at the stall alerted me!
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super hot thai chillies
Ah= the hazards of bringing up children thailand!