By Wladimir Budnik
Well Naturally Food Scientist
Australian children are getting fatter, with 1 in 3 kids either overweight or obese. While various lifestyle and dietary factors are responsible for this, there is one major contributing factor: the excessive daily intake of sugars in our children’s diet.
This leaves many caring parents deliberating: how do I get my child to eat less sugar and still enjoy healthy, balanced foods?
First and foremost, the problem with sugar in our modern diet is not sugar per se but the sugar that is added (either by us or by food manufacturers) over and above the natural sugars present in the everyday foods and beverages that we consume. There’s plenty of natural sugars in our diet in the fruits, vegetables and cereals that are available – we should use these to still make food fun to eat for kids whilst weaning them off those foods with added sugars.
Somewhat alarmingly, much of the “hidden” sugar in foods we consume today are often lurking in products targeting children such as snack bars (usually labelled “lunchbox friendly”), breakfast cereals, breakfast drinks, fruit juice drinks (juices diluted with water and lots of sugar added), yoghurts, soft drinks, sports drinks and of course in chocolate and confectionery. Most of these products will contain 20-50 per cent sugar.
As recommended by Nutrition Australia, a good general guide to follow for your daily sugar intake is to stick to foods that contain less than 5g of sugar per 100g and no more than 15g per 100g. For drinks it’s less than 2.5g sugar per 100ml and no more than 7.0g per 100ml (Coca Cola for example contains almost 11g sugar per 100g).
Top tips: Making food fun to consume, without the added sugar
Breakfast cereal
Ditch the sugar-laden children’s cereals and stick to plain, whole grain alternatives such as oats, Weet Bix or Vita Brits and then add your own fruits such as berries, bananas, mango and any other fruits that your kids like.
Snack bars
Choose snack bars that have a “No Sugar Added” statement on the label such as Well Naturally No Sugar Added Cereal Bars or make your own using cereals like oats or crushed Weet Bix blended with mashed dates, other chopped, dried fruits, desiccated coconut and even a little cocoa powder for extra taste which can then be pressed into bars or rolled into balls.
On the go snacks
Pack some rice crackers and some pre-cut fruits and veggies such as carrot and celery sticks, grapes and mandarin segments. When your child gets hungry, you’ll be ready with a healthy snack.
Yoghurt
Choose those that have a “No Sugar Added” statement on the label (Tamar Valley has a good range) and which usually contain around 6g of sugar per 100g. Better still, chose plain yoghurt with no added fruits and syrups and then add your own fruits such as blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, banana and any other chopped fruit that your kids like. Make it colourful and let them choose their own fruits.
Chocolate
Last but not least, chocolate treats – choose chocolate that has a “No Sugar Added” claim on the pack and preferably those sweetened with the natural sweetener Stevia. A good example is Well Naturally No Sugar Added Chocolate.
Traditional milk chocolate contains anywhere between 50 to 60g sugar per 100g, while Well Naturally No Sugar Added Milk Chocolate contains just 9g of sugar (naturally present in the milk used in the chocolate) per 100g. Kids will still love the great taste of creamy milk chocolate, and you’ll know they are consuming no excess sugar.