What the SugarSwaps involved
The research started on Thursday 23rd October, and for 2 weeks the whole family had to individual keep a log of everything they ate and drank at specific times of the day (breakfast, lunch, after school snacks, dinner and other snacks). During the second week we were told what the SugarSwaps would be so that we could plan our shopping. In weeks 3 and 4 the family made the SugarSwaps; and in weeks 5 and 6 we were under no obligation to use the swaps. For all 6 weeks the information was entered online. There was also a support forum on Netmums and plenty of help and advice on the Change4Life website, as well as from the other families in the research. We were also asked to record how difficult we felt it was on a scale of 1-10, and any problems we incurred.
Why I volunteered myself and my Family
“Warburtons have conducted some research which shows that as a nation we no longer consider breakfast to be the most important meal of the day as one in five parents (20%) admit that their average weekday breakfast consists of pastries, chocolate and even crisps. 43% of children start each school day with a sugary breakfast. Research also show the public are confused on the benefits of carbohydrates and by refined grains, and instead one in five choose foods for breakfast which are high in sugar and /or fat. New donation packs of Warburtons wholemeal hit shelves nationwide from 19th Jan to 20th Feb, and for every loaf sold, 5p, will be donated to the British Heart Foundation (BHF) as part of Warburtons pledge to raise £1million and help keep British families hearts healthy.”**
Surprises
I was actually surprised to see that we didn’t actually have that many SugarSwaps to make. We already have low sugar squash, water, or semi-skimmed milk. We had previously tried skimmed milk and decided it was not for us. If we have fizzy drinks it is usually a treat using the Sodastream. We do not have after school snacks and puddings only on Sundays. I was really surprised to discover that our breakfast cereal was so high in sugar – as it was preserving fruit. We also use quite a few of the after-school snacks as lunchbox fillers. We were also surprised that our portion sizes were much bigger than we thought they would be (showing that we are clearly over-eating).
Resistance to Change
The Excuses
Keeping things in routine is easy, making changes are hard. We all are guilty of making excuses so that we can just carry on as we are. One of the excuses we found was going out – whether that was peer pressure with friends (I mean it’s a given to eat sugary things at the cinema with friends), or embarrassment (asking the waiter for tap water just looks tight). Time and energy is another big excuse – the supermarkets didn’t seem to make it easy – for example when looking at packed lunches or the convenient yoghurts were high in sugar. We had to think of new ideas. We tried fruit in tins to stop it going off – but because they are not so convenient to pick up and take out of the house they did not really get used. Again options to eat healthily when out weren’t that clear. Things took longer to prepare and cost more money. Of course sometimes it was harder to control – like the fact the younger 2 boys were offered sugary puddings every weekday as part of their free school meal.
Choice
The children did not like the plain yoghurt option (all except from the teen who would eat it with fruit) but again this was not practical for taking into school. We have stopped buying our “fruit” cereal now as the whole reason we bought it was because we thought that it was good for us – and it is clearly not.
Going without
When no desirable swap was suggested it seems the family were just going without instead. This lead to everyone being low on energy, depressed and snappy. The children normally ask for everything but were found to be stealing sweets (that they wouldn’t normally have) and even eating milkshake powder straight from the tub.
Clearer in Supermarkets
Discoveries
I already knew that we should be eating more fruit and vegetables. I found that both during and since as a family we have upped our vegetable and fruit intake. The younger boys like to have an after school fruit snack (as we eat as a family when everyone is home). Meal planning has been a big factor in helping our diet, as well as relying on the freeze more. We are eating a lot more frozen vegetables to keep the convenience factor part of the equation. If you are going to buy tinned fruit make sure that it is in juice and not syrup.
Advice for families signing up for SugarSwaps
I was financially compensated for the research but these are all my own honest opinions.
** The words in ” ” have been provided for me.