Rickets making a comeback.

[peanut]

I can't say I'm surprised, kids tend not to go out these days and they live on processed food so I don't know why the Drs are surprised by this.

On a separate (related) note, I've been diagnosed with a vitamin D deficiency which is causing no end of problems at the moment, but can I get the medication needed to help with it, can I hell. I've been after Ergocalciferol now for the last 3 months, hassling my GP and consultants but they are just arguing over who's going to supply it. Chemists won't get it in as it has to be imported from France so that ramps up the costs. Boots has it, but only the 1000 parts per unit stuff, I need 50,000 parts per unit stuff that this country has a problem supplying. Has anyone else here been on or had Ergocalciferol? I'd like to hear other stories if possible as I'm at wits end.

Anyway, linky here

[Ignitionnet]

I can't say I'm surprised either. I am incredibly tempted to go on a rant about lack of personal responsibility leading to urine poor responsibility for offspring's welfare but that would be boring.

To be honest when I consider the complaints I used to hear and read back in the 80s about middle class parents feeding their smaller off spring with skimmed milk,low fat spreads and high fibre diets which was completely wrong for developing tots, I'm not surprised either.

But then they didn't know lots of things like not to give aspirin to children under the age of 14 because of the possibility of Reye's Syndrome.Indeed I bet there are still parents today who know nothing of it.

Education must be the key and teaching children as well as parents about nutrition should be part of the school curriculum.Unfortunately it's been some while since 'cooking' was part of the school timetable.I'm beginning to think they should reconsider childcare as part of the curriculum as well.

[Ignitionnet]

Originally Posted by Maggy J

Education must be the key and teaching children as well as parents about nutrition should be part of the school curriculum.Unfortunately it's been some while since 'cooking' was part of the school timetable.I'm beginning to think they should reconsider childcare as part of the curriculum as well.

Have we as a society become so utterly reliant on the state that we are incapable of having any idea how to bring up our children or what makes (what I thought was) common sense nutrition without the government teaching us?

Some greens, some dairy, some protein from meat, fish or some pulses and beans. Sugar and fat to be moderated. Not rocket science.

Given we as a species have raised children with reasonable success for quite a long time no idea why we've suddenly forgotten how to, parental instinct and the need to procreate successfully have evidently disappeared.

It's a pretty grim indictment of us and a genuine shame but somewhere along the line we have evidently completely lost the plot, along with any pretence of looking after ourselves.

[Osem]

So much information so readily available to so many yet this sort of thing is happening.

Perhaps common sense needs to be taught along with the '3Rs'....

Originally Posted by Ignitionnet

Have we as a society become so utterly reliant on the state that we are incapable of having any idea how to bring up our children or what makes (what I thought was) common sense nutrition without the government teaching us?

Some greens, some dairy, some protein from meat, fish or some pulses and beans. Sugar and fat to be moderated. Not rocket science.

Given we as a species have raised children with reasonable success for quite a long time no idea why we've suddenly forgotten how to, parental instinct and the need to procreate successfully have evidently disappeared.

It's a pretty grim indictment of us and a genuine shame but somewhere along the line we have evidently completely lost the plot, along with any pretence of looking after ourselves.

Not everyone has the fortune to be as smart as you..

I learned nutrition at school where us girls were given a good grounding in Home Economics, a subject no longer taught to either sex.

Today's generation are lucky if they get to cook once a fortnight let alone learn what nutrition is.Most of the cooking experience of secondary age children consists of them designing a food item and designing the packaging for that food item..and even then most of them have no idea of the disgusting practices that go on in the industrialisation of food such as meat reclamation which I would have thought would have been a paramount learning experience.You only have to remember the reality TV programmes last year about how food gets to the table to know how much ignorance there is.

Indeed there are junior children who do not know where vegetables or meat comes from.

You would be amazed how many children(and their parents) don't know what the different food groups are, and what they do and how they function.My generation had a pretty good idea though.

And if their parents are equally ignorant whom is going to educate them if not the schools and the government?

The number of times we have been nagged in the last 10 years about child obesity should underline how much it is costing us as a nation(and in the future).

[Osem]

Clearly it's hard to blame young children for their parents' failings. I wonder about the world these so called parents are living in when they're seemingly oblivious to all of the information around them regarding even the most basic dietary advice. In many cases I just think it reflects a lack of parental responsibility and I'm pretty certain poor diet isn't the only area in which the children of such people suffer.

Another frightening thing is watching young families doing a weekly shop..Taking a peek in their trolleys is a real eye opener.You can spot those that have a clear idea of nutrition over those that don't.

Some seem to think beer is a food group.

[Osem]

So many parents just seem to buy what their children demand i.e. the high sugar/salt/fat processed junk, for any easy life. It's as if they've absolved themselves of any responsibility for their offspring...

[superbiatch]

Originally Posted by Osem

So many parents just seem to buy what their children demand i.e. the high sugar/salt/fat processed junk, for any easy life. It's as if they've absolved themselves of any responsibility for their offspring...

It is purely for ease or because parents just don't have the skills to cook proper home cooked nutritional food these days?

I don't have any little ones yet, but i do plan some and i also plan to feed them properly from day one. My mum taught us all how to cook healthily and as an adult i have decided to eat much more healthily than in my 20's - i don't want fussy eaters as me and the other half will literally eat anything

[peanut]

Having seen some of the Jamie Oliver shows lately, though I'm not sure if they paint a true picture or not but it is shocking that the level of ignorance when it comes to diet. Kids eating kebabs, left over take aways for breakfast, won't eat fresh food because it doesn't look like a chicken nugget it is quite shocking.

As for looking in other people's shopping trolleys as mentioned, I do have a bit of a habit of checking them out and Maggy is right on it, the lack of fresh food and veg compared to the frozen ready meals, packets of quick and easy meals seems to be the main. I actually feel like the odd man out sometimes when I put our fresh veg and ingredients on the checkout and again seeing the junk piled in front and behind by other people I'm forever raising my eyebrows.

I'm not sure if parents don't have the time to cook, or the know how, or the money for fresh food (yet they don't skimp on buying the junk), so my opinion is that parents just can't be bothered, or it's just anything for an easier life but it is sad.

I see that the 'Sun' paper is blaming 'game addicts' which is half right, but still comical.