'poor Children Are Overweight' - Emily Thornberry Defends Free School Meal Plan

[mikey4444]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-39544692

I have to agree with her here. When you look at photos taken of poverty in Britain in the 1930's, you see painfully thin children. But now, the poorer you are, the fatter you are likely to be.

[tamborine]

Give poor kids all free meals & board together so parents can work & pay. Similar to Eton school ;)

[hellywelly4]

Having worked in cafes over the years, it is always the fat people who have the marshmallows on hot chocolate or a huge slice of cake. It's also not just poor people who are fat. I can't understand why people who are obese don't seem to realise it.

[ummmm]

I don't think it has anything to do with takeaways. It often comes down to parents pandering to their children's wants and giving them too many options. If the child doesn't want the healthy prepared meal they give in and let them have sausage and chips.

My sons friend would only eat chicken jets and chips for dinner. That's all he would eat for years.

[ummmm]

Helly - I think they do realise it. Some just don't care, some just can't resist.

[Islay]

Helly I am a fat person and I would have never had cake whilst out or had marshmallows on my hotchocolate!
Please don't generalise about fat people.

[Smowball]

My daughters friend has a girl who's 7. She's worked out that by having a complete hissy fit she will get McDonalds or pizza every night. And I mean every night. If mum dares to put her foot down she will have a tantrum like you have never seen. Mum can't cope and backs down. There is no way I'd be manipulated like that but clearly some are

[Old_Geezer]

Playing devil's advocate here, maybe (some) poor people are spending so much time trying to earn more money that they don't have the time nor energy to spend periods in the kitchen planning and creating nutritious foods; and so opt for the quick & easy options, high fat stuff that just needs warming, and trusting fast food stuff that ought to be occasional "treats" ?

[carolegif]

I think there are several factors in play. Loss of Cookery lessons may have some bearing, but since I left school I have never cooked junket or soused herrings! I learnt from my Mum who was not a good plain cook, but would spend hours making 'fancy food'.
Another factor is that a working mother or father, after putting in an eight hour day, is not going to be able to make a meal from scratch and eat before 8pm. Sometimes you can prepare a meal the night before, but who wants to peel potatoes at 10.30 at night!
Finally, some children will only eat rubbish unless you want a fight, the culture of giving in to children's every whim is having an effect on their,health.
You can get it right, but it takes a lot of time and effort on behalf of the whole family.

Ps: I did notice on Newsnight that a child getting his school dinner had two potatoes, plain pasta and a Yorkshire pudding on his plate, no meat or veg!!!

[Old_Geezer]

When I was at secondary school, only the girls had cooking lessons. I reckon all would benefit from knowing about half a dozen simple nutritious meals they could prepare well without having to refer to a cookery book. Cookery books are fun for novel twists and special events but one needs a set of basic skills​ for day to day.