Does Anyone Remember When The Nanny State Provided...

[sandyRoe]

...cod liver oil, orange juice, and malt?

They were for children.  Did they help improve the health of the nation?

[youngmafbog]

No, but wasnt it to help with the shortages caused by the war?

So it may well have improved the health as ther was no other way o recieving the nutrients?

[sandyRoe]

You're probably right.  It was the early 1950s I was thinking about.

[johnny.5]

I remeber being force fed a tablespoon of malt with cod liver oil every winter's morning

I also had friars balsam drops on a sugar cube 

and also the polio drops on a sugar cube

[youngmafbog]

Food shortages and poverty from the war went on into the late 50's and for some items even the early 60's.  Free milk was also given at school to redress the nutrient problem.

I am not sure these would do any good nowadays.

[andres]

I remember lining up and being given a spoonnful of one or another of those. That was in the 40s. Didn't do me any harm. 

[ladybirder]

Oh gawd I remember CLO.  I still gag at the thought of it.

But I was so lucky in that my father travelled all over the world in his job and made friends with some colleagues in Australia.  They very kindly sent us a few food parcels full of lovely goodies. My mother would really enjoy the chocolates.  When I asked if I could have one she would say you won't like them they have cabbage in them!!  She knew I hated cabbage.

[Canary42]

Yes, I remember them. Post war shortages meant children's diets lacked some essential components, hence these supplements.

[Dizmo]

I'm waaaay too young for that. I do however remember when we'd all sit down in class, not at break, in class (morning and afternoon) and a lady would come around with cartons of milk.

Is that still a thing?

[Barsel]

In 1947, along with 2 other babies, I was voted the healthiest, happiest baby in Old Trafford, due to our mothers giving us cod liver oil and orange juice. We had our picture in the local rag!

 

[sandyRoe]

I think Thatcher did away with the free school milk.

[diddlydo]

Indeed she did. There was a famous cartoon by Steve Bell at the time with a brilliant poem which included the immortal lines "Margaret Thatcher milk snatcher" - it hung in my loo for many years. Shame on that evil woman.

[retrocop]

At least war rations stopped the damaging obesity that kids, especially ,suffer today.I recall being made to swallow a spoonful of castor oil when I capsized a kayak occasionally in a large lake called the Welsh Harp. Hendon.

[sandyRoe]

A tablespoon of malt was ok, the orange juice great, but the cod liver oil..ugh

 

[barry1010]

I do!  And the nit nurse and dreaded school dentist

[DTCwordfan]

thank God that Thatch got rid of that warm, watery substance supposedly called milk, the wretched dregs of the British Milk Marketing Board and, frankly, it would have been better used to help accelerate concrete or prevent potential immigrants from coming here.

[DTCwordfan]

Are we surprised, retro...no. Your choice ground leeks or cod-liver oil...how were rugby players formed in Wales with the closing coal pits.  I thought that Harp was a lake of pish-lager that Guinnless once made....

[douglas9401]

Cod Liver Oil And The Orange Juice.

A classic tale of  transactional love by Hamish Imlach.

😄

 

[hellywelly4]

I was born in 1940 and remember the orange juice very well. It was absolutely delicious. I loved the CLO as well - seem to be the only person who did. School milk was nice too, even when we had to thaw it out next to the radiators. Does anyone else remember Nestles Milk(?). It was in a big tin and used to crystallise inside.  
we used to get the O/J and CLO from the place where we got our ration books from.

[Atheist]

Oh, Dougie. Dear old Hamish. Had the finest dirty mag collection in Scotland. Ask Alex Atterson; (sorry, now deceased).

[jourdain2]

I didn't get force-fed the malt - rather envied the kids who did get it because I liked Horlicks - but at school in the 50s there was a cod-liver-oil capsule to accompany the 1/3 pt. bottle of milk every morning break.

It was necessary because - well, people had been starved of food during the war and rationing was still continuing. To try to build a healthy generation was the aim and yes, it succeeded.

Shame we have the overfed kids I see around today (I include 2 of my grandchildren).