Majority of Children Eat Over Half of Their Daily Sugar Allowance Before School Begins

Although the warning to parents was only given in the United Kingdom, it can be reasonably assumed that children in the majority of first world countries are also eating high portions of sugar with their daily breakfast.

According to public health services in the United Kingdom, most children are starting their day with excessive amounts of sugar and calories thanks to sugary cereals and artificial fruit juices.

Public Health England (PHE) says that the average English child eats 11 grams of sugar every morning, which is the same as giving your child three cubes of sugar.

Not only does this contribute to obesity, but also to issues related to weight problems like diabetes.

Public figures show that one in five children in the United Kingdom start primary school overweight, and by the time students start the equivalent of high school, one third of students are categorized as overweight.

This statistic mirrors similar rates of childhood obesity in the United States, which suggests the two countries share a very similar, and troubling, problem.

The National Health Service (NHS), the single payer healthcare system in the United Kingdom, urged parents to give their children a healthier start to the day by cutting down on the amount of sugar they allow them to have during breakfast.

The Telegraph cites an unnamed study stating that 91% of mothers of obese or overweight children do not see their child’s weight as a problem.

Fathers fare somewhat better in the tough love category, but still 80% of fathers of overweight and obese children are not concerned by their child’s weight.

Experts state that children are routinely eating three times the amount of sugar they should be consuming in an entire day.

And while parents can’t watch their children for the time they are at school or in after school activities, they can serve a healthy breakfast and instill in their kids that eating a healthy diet is both nutritious and tasty.

Nutritionists advise parents to give their children water or semi-skimmed milk as a beverage choice at home and limit fruit juices to one per day in addition to avoiding sugary cereals for breakfast.