If your child has sweet tooth, maybe it is time to curb their sugar intake before it would cause serious problems in the future.
The average 10-year-old has consumed as much sugar in their lifetime as the recommended limit for an 18-year-old, according to Public Health England (PHE), which is warning of serious implications for obesity and health.
Children are consuming the equivalent of eight excess sugar cubes a day, or 2,800 a year, says PHE, which has launched a new healthy eating campaign under its Change4Life scheme. National guidance recommends no more than five or six sugar cubes (20g-24g) a day for children aged four to 10.
One-third of children are overweight or obese at the age of 10 and 4.2% are severely obese in year six at school. Obese children often become obese adults, at risk of heart attacks, strokes and type 2 diabetes.
There are a lot of healthier alternatives with low amounts of sugar in them. It would be best if you could educate children about the long-term effects of their lifestyle choices - eating habits and exercise - so that they could develop and maintain these habits as they grow older.
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Even for meals we didn't even have desserts often. Desserts were saved for special occasions like having guests over.