It’s the first day of half term as I write this. And already I’ve had enough of the requests for snacks.
Here’s my problem:
Child: I’m hungry. Can I have a snack?
Me: What would you have?
Child: Crisps? Biscuits? Cereal bar?
Fml
Me: What about: hummus and pita? A wrap? A banana?
Child: Nah…
Me: So you’re not actually hungry. You want a treat.
————
The problem is that by calling them “snacks” the children are disguising their desire for “treats”. They’re not hungry (I’m pretty sure that neither child spends mid-afternoon whining to their teachers that they’re sooooo hungry and need a snack.)
What they want is a treat. Something good. A sugary rush. A distraction.
And my problem is this: the girls KNOW that shouldn’t have unlimited treats. We all know this right? But by asking for “snacks” they’re kindof circumventing the feeling that they’re feeling.
According to Public Health England, children in England are eating on average at least three unhealthy high-calorie sugary snacks and drinks every day. And about a third of children eat four or more. Its response is to urge parents to draw the line at two and make sure they are not more than 100 calories each.
I think that’s the wrong response.
We are consistently fed this lie that we need to be snacking, primarily by an industry that is making millions by disguising junk food as “healthy snacks.”
But in my head it’s super simple: if you’re hungry, you need more food. This applies to adults and children alike.
And if you’re not hungry for food, then you’re craving a treat.
So we’ve had a conversation and I’ve laid down the following rules:
- They can have fruit at any point in the day. They don’t even need to ask…
- If they’re genuinely hungry (and assuming it’s not coming up to a mealtime soon) they can have actual FOOD. We always have cold cuts, pita, hummus, chopped veg (I know, I can dream) available. They can help themselves. They can make a smoothie. A sandwich. A wrap. Whatever. But it’s gotta be FOOD.
- If they don’t want anything from the “FOOD” category, then I want them to recognise that it’s not actually hunger that they’re feeling. I want them to recognise that what they’re feeling is probably boredom, restlessness, tiredness, frustration.
Or they simply want a treat.
But let’s start calling it that.
Because then we can start teaching them to self-regulate.
And this is urgent and important. I know a few us have been dismayed at the amount of junk food available at a particular secondary school. Add to that the fact that most of our children are walking past sweets shops every single day. This is life though: junk food permeates our society.
So how do we teach them that it’s not ok to buy a chocolate bar / muffin / cookie every single day? Just because they’re “soooo hungry” and “neeeeeed a snack”?
The answer to that is self-regulation… But it starts by learning to distinguish between genuine hunger cues vs desires for a treat.
And learning that hunger cues should be satisfied by eating real, actual food.
We then have a duty to also teach them how to deal with a yearning for a treat. But this is gonna have to be a topic for another day.
