Parents urged not to treat with sweets

PARENTS have been warned to reduce sweets and other high-calorie treats in their children’s diet if they want them to stay healthy and avoid becoming overweight.

Safefood, the food safety promotion board, highlighted the findings of a recent survey which showed almost one-fifth of the calories in children’s diets come from chocolate, crisps, sweets, cakes, biscuits and pastries and other treats.

The Irish Universities Nutrition Alliance (IUNA) also found that the average Irish child aged between five and 12 eats twice as many treats as they should.