Nursery World - Unhealthy confusion

I'm always interested when the Scottish Executive produces another initiative on healthy lifestyles for children, and of course wish this latest one success, but I think much more needs to be done at local school and community level to prevent the sorts of mixed messages which seem to be being conveyed by well-meaning but confused professionals. In my daughter's own small school, a healthy eating initiative is counted a success; children are awarded stickers for bringing healthy breaktime snacks. But teachers seem unsure what constitutes a healthy snack, so that one child is rewarded for taking in a lump of cheddar, while another is marked down for her organic, no-salt ricecake sandwiched with some organic, no-sugar-added peanut butter. At the same time, children as young as five are being taught that some foods are 'good', others 'bad', a concept which I personally think is thoroughly misguided if food-related issues are to be avoided as they reach adolescence and beyond.

In my daughter's own small school, a healthy eating initiative is counted a success; children are awarded stickers for bringing healthy breaktime snacks. But teachers seem unsure what constitutes a healthy snack, so that one child is rewarded for taking in a lump of cheddar, while another is marked down for her organic, no-salt ricecake sandwiched with some organic, no-sugar-added peanut butter. At the same time, children as young as five are being taught that some foods are 'good', others 'bad', a concept which I personally think is thoroughly misguided if food-related issues are to be avoided as they reach adolescence and beyond.

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