Diet induced behaviour

Curry_Queen · 22 March 2005 at 6:11AM

With all the recent publicity surrounding school meals, and the quality of food our children are receiving, much has been mentioned in the press about behaviour being affected by certain types of food, with processed stuff being a major cause for concern.

I'm wondering how many MSE'ers, considering many of us have ditched processed ready meals in favour of cooking from scratch with healthy ingredients, have noticed any difference in our own kids.

I hadn't really paid it much attention as my son doesn't have behavioural problems as such, although he does have a short attention span and can be very forgetful :rolleyes: It was only on reading his school report last night that I noticed the following comments from his subject teachers:

"occasionally in the past his behaviour has been disruptive but recently his focus and effort have been first class ... recently he has begun to focus and be more attentive in lessons ... much improved concentration and more attentive towards the end of term"

The only thing I can attribute these improvements to are his diet! I had already started making a conscious effort to cut out the crap and cook more meals from scratch around xmas time, but I was still buying the odd frozen pizzas, burgers, chicken nuggets etc (usual kids food!) Since finding MSE I've even cut those out and we now make our own pizzas and burgers and have doubled our intake of fruit and veggies

I think we owe it to our kids to make the effort and I'm sure thousands of school teachers up and down the country would thank us for it too

Sarahsaver · 22 March 2005 at 10:13AM

I am quite pleased really that my kids' entitlement to free school meals ends, and they will have packed lunch after the easter hols. At home thay have 99% homemade food, that includes bread and cakes, and I felt bad sending them off to school to eat crap just because it was free. Now they know they are going to have healthy food all the time.
I don't just think its whats in the food that is important, its learning to make food, cooking methods, creativity, and sitting down with the family to eat.
You can make chicken nuggets if you get a chicken breast, I have posted the method, will do so again if you can't find it. Odd, they taste of....chicken!!!:)

tillytot_2 · 22 March 2005 at 10:27AM

i'd love to know how to do chicken nuggets, had a look and can't find it, but if you can post it again, or post alink that'd be great.

thanks.

Galtizz · 22 March 2005 at 10:29AM

It's not just kids. I have been cooking everything from scratch since about Xmas too and didn't really notice any behavior changes until last week when DH popped into McDonalds on the way home for a cheese burger. By the time he Got home he was bouncing off the walls :eek: Even he commented that the Maccies had made him totally hyper. Good news was he used to love McDonalds and go there quite often and he said the buger tasted like cardboard and the cheese like plastic so hurray, looks like he won't be going there again.

I have also noticed that, since Xmas, although family and friends have been coughing, sneezing and snotting all over us neither of us have had a cold or any illnesses since Xmas.

Despite what everyone thinks it doesn't take much longer to cook from scratch.

Cooking processed crap - dash to supermarket to buy tonights tea, remove packaging bung in oven for 45mins, go and watch rubbish on telly until it is done. Total time taken about 1 1/2 - 2hours

Cooking from scratch - chop and prepare food then cook, total time taken about 30mins - 1hour (much less at night if done in slow cooker in the morning). Whilst chopping and cooking have conversation with family then eat around the table instead of infront of telly.

Cooking from scratch has changed our whole lifestyle. We talk more and have more time, I only go shopping once a week and don't get trolley rage every night whilst I'm dashing around the supermarket with no idea what to buy. We feel healthier and calmer. Definatly better.

honey · 22 March 2005 at 10:35AM

I totally agree, we really owe it to our children to make sure they're being fed decent food and not a big heap of "tasty" rubbish.

We are now trying to switch completely to homemade food.

I have a problem with squash though - I read somewhere on these boards yesterday about the horror of sugar free squash (which we always have as thought it would be better for teeth!). So I went to Tesco yesterday only to find that the normal versions still contain the scary sweeteners alongside sugar anyway?!

I try and encourage them to drink water but would like a healthy squash option for them - does anyone know of any?

Sarahsaver - I'd really like to have a go with your method for homemade nuggets, I couldn't find your previous post - would you mind posting it again? Thanks

Galtizz · 22 March 2005 at 10:51AM

honey wrote:

I try and encourage them to drink water but would like a healthy squash option for them - does anyone know of any?

Lots of ideas on THIS thread

Austin_Allegro · 22 March 2005 at 11:05AM

I have definitely noticed an improvement in my concentration at work since cutting out coffee, mars bars, sweets, biscuits, crisps etc, which I used to guzzle non-stop. I now have a cup of tea in the morning and afternoon only, and eat fruit if I'm hungry.

Cutting out booze during the week and going to bed half an hour earlier has also made a difference.

Curry_Queen · 22 March 2005 at 11:06AM

Sarahsaver wrote:

I am quite pleased really that my kids' entitlement to free school meals ends, and they will have packed lunch after the easter hols.

I don't know how old your kids are Sarah, or whether they've yet reached High School, but my son's school runs a cafeteria system whereby hot food is available both at break and lunchtime (break is 10am but they start school at 8am, with lunch at 1pm and home by 3pm) so what he does is use his meal pass at break to get a bacon roll or beans on toast, as he often skips breakfast, then I give him a small pack-up of healthy snacks for lunch (tuna salad, fruit, etc). This way we still use the free meals entitlement but he can opt out of having to eat the processed crap they serve up for lunch

Curry_Queen · 22 March 2005 at 11:13AM

Austin_Allegro wrote:

I have definitely noticed an improvement in my concentration at work since cutting out coffee, ....

This is my major downfall and something I know I should sort out. I drink on average 8-10 cups of coffee during a morning while doing my online stuff and I often end up with the shakes/irritability by lunchtime. I've tried cutting back or using decaff but I end up with a huge headache, presumably from caffeine withdrawal

Sarahsaver · 22 March 2005 at 11:13AM

tillytot wrote:

i'd love to know how to do chicken nuggets, had a look and can't find it, but if you can post it again, or post alink that'd be great.

thanks.

Get one or two chicken breasts
cut into nugget sized pieces
mix with a beaten egg
put the eggy chicken pieces into a big plastic box with a lid, or a carrier bag if you can find one without holes these days!
bung in a cup full of breadcrumbs which you have made from stale bread
shake vigorously in the box with the lid on, or in the bag holding the top securely, until the nuggets are coated
heat a deep fat fryer to the right temp for chicken
fry!
They take 5 or 6 minutes.

By the way deep fried food isnt too fattening as long as you have the oil hot enough to start with, so it seals the food rather than soaking fat into the food.;)

Ticklemouse · 22 March 2005 at 11:13AM

My DS1 has a terrible temper (Irish great granny's side) and I've always tried to give him home-cooked food, having been aware of processed junk for ages. However, he did have school dinners to start with, because they said how 'good' they were. He came off them after about 1 1/2 terms. I find DS1's problem is not drinking enough and getting bad tempered due to dehydration. Now I stand over him in a morning and make him drink, give him a large carton of apple juice at lunch, he wants to use his flask but never drinks enough and once a carton is opened, he has to drink it all. I can tell immediately he comes out of school if he doesn't drink at lunch times. His problem is going for tea or to parties at other people's houses - bouncing off the wall when I collect him!

I make my own nuggets, but if you are in a rush and can get to Costco's, their frozen premium nuggets are made out of whole lumps of chicken breast. They do have a few 'nasties' in the breadcrumbs, which gives them the modern accepted nugget taste, but not too bad. Also, not that much more expensive than buying decent chicken breast and doing it yourself.

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Diet induced behaviour

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