My Saturday Morning Treat !

Some of my earliest memories include the usual type of growing up things. Playing in the garden, visiting the park, watching 'Watch With Mother'. Do you remember 'Andy Pandy' or ' Bill and Ben'..... now remember I'm a child from the 50's, so programmes like 'The Clangers' and Camberwick Green' although loved by many were after my generation! Some families didn't even own televisions so playing games, making our own entertainment and using our imaginations, which to me, is so important for those early years development were key.

Also key was family life, meals shared together, books shared together, going for picnics to the park or out for a family walk. We were fortunate to enjoy three good meals a day and very little snacking. Snacking would often consist of a glass of milk, a piece of apple and things like sweets were very rarely in our house.

We were allowed sweets, but they were a once a week treat, usually a Saturday, and as I've written before on this blog, I can remember a weekly visit to our local sweet shop to buy a small bag of sweets - four chews a penny or similar.

I read earlier an article where the new NHS guidelines are saying children should never be given sweets, I did wonder is this 'going over the top' a little but read on and see what you think. 

"Children should NEVER be given sweets, say new NHS guidelines. New anti-obesity advice slammed as 'the worst kind of nannying'

Experts say parents should NEVER give their kids sweets as a treat.

The advice – slammed as 'the worst kind of nannying' by critics – has been issued by the NHS's National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in a bid to tackle child obesity.

It says parents should set far more strict rules about healthy eating, and says sweets should not be given 'as a reward' or a regular gift.

The guidance also instructs families to consider 'TV-free days' or limits on screen time to make children more active.

The new guidance says parents should be advised about 'maintaining healthier physical activity and dietary habits most days (including at weekends) and during holidays (for example, the school summer holiday)'.

Tam Fry, from the National Obesity Forum, welcomed the strict advice.

He said: "Finally NICE is getting the message Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind."

"Children, and maybe their parents too, will rebel against the advice that sweets should never be offered as treats on any day of the year - but both will welcome the advice long-term."

But Philip Davies MP said: "It's the worst kind of nannying and also counter-productive. You have got to wonder what planet these people are on.

"We are not all idiots, every parent knowns that chocolates and sweets are not health foods. What they should be saying is that children should be eating treats in moderation and as part of a balanced diet."

Professor Gillian Leng, NICE deputy chief executive and director of health and social care, said: "This guidance sets out the many things individuals can do to maintain a healthy weight that are known to be effective: walking more, limiting TV and other screen time, eating more healthily, avoiding sugary drinks and drinking less alcohol."

Words and picture from original article here

All the best Jan