Is weetabix bad for toddlers?

[Sherley]

My lo has two weetabix for breakfast, and a hand ful of Cheerios whilst I make the weetabix and a banana on his weetabix! I wouldn't say two is an adult portion, toddlers need a lot of calories and this fuels him up for the day. Each to their own though, I never noticed it affected his bowels x

 

[lau86]

So if two is too many, what are people giving instead? Because I know my LO wouldn't be full in the morning if I gave him one and would scream- he's been like that ever since I started weaning him. He's a fairly big eater but it doesn't mean he doesn't eat a balanced diet he just eats more of everything. He is on the 25th centile for weight.
I'm reluctant to give him more fruit as he is developing a bit of a sweet tooth and he doesn't like eggs. Any ideas?

 

[mumnbean]

I haven't read all the posts, but when we were growing up weetbix had very high salt and sugar content so it got a bad rep. Now they have significantly reduced this and even have a kids version with even less, so its actually not so bad.

My dd has 2 normal weetbix to a serve, and enjoys it a few times a week, or as a last minute dinner if I'm not organized.

 

[Bingo]

Porridge oats (quick cook) with some diced fresh fruit cooked into it, such as apple or pear, are a great alternative. Great because there's no additives. I give LO kids weet bix sometimes and she will usually eat two so the portion is fine.

 

[PepsiChic]

alternatives can be anything thats low in sugar or salt.

Barry loves oatmeal/porriage, you can add anything to it and it can be served hot or cold.

We also give him Special K. He really enjoys the berry and yoghurt one. He also loves any cereal that has nuts in it or granola is also a great choice.

 

[tommyg]

I give it 2/3 times a week. Variety is the spice of life. Other options are rice crispys, alpen, cornflakes.

I avoid really sugary stuff like frosties and coco pops. I was shocked how sugary and sweet Kelloggs multigrain was.

 

[dpayne]

My lo is under a dietician at the hospital due to his milk allergy and she's said that weetabix are good for him as they have lots of iron in. She said not to give him the baby ones but the normal ones as the baby ones are not fortified with iron. I normally mix some fruit in with his and he loves it x

 

[ay2808]

We have always given LO weetabix (one a day) and she has never had constipation or diarreah. I mix fruit purée or a few sultanas with it and she has a piece of whole meal toast as well.

 

[lau86]

To me, weetabix just doesn't seem like it would be full of sugar and salt, I was genuinely shocked so I went to look at the pack (its not something I eat myself). A two bisk serving with 150ml of milk contains 8.9g of sugar of which 7.5 comes from the milk. Makes sense as they say 100g alone contains only 3.2g sugar. There is 0.45g salt in a serving, of which 0.17 comes from the milk. Am I missing something, this genuinely doesn't seem bad to me but I'm concerned with so many people sayig it's bad

 

[Mrsmitch80]

It's not bad! And give your lo 2 if that fills them up! My toddler sees a dietician as she has health problems and she says they're fine. My 8 month old is a very hungry baby, whilst talking to my hv I told her what she eats in a day, I said that she has 1 weetabix for breakfast and her reply was 'give her more'

Just carry on doing what you're doing xxxx

 

[caz_hills]

I have given myson one weetabix every morning since he was weaning! I am really suprised to read this, I thought it was an excellent food for a toddler as it is full of iron, fibre and not sugary. I'm quite concerned now!!!!

I'd rather give him this than something full of sugar. My hubbie and i have always had bad stomaches and so we wanted to get him onto a healthy cereal from a young age and thought we had.... I'm quite confused now then. Why do the HV's recommend it if it's so bad? x

 

[PepsiChic]

ught his has completely been blown out of porportion!

no-one has said its "so bad" !

giving it every day may make your child constipated but its not going to kill them. The OP mentioned that her LO has a sore bum sometimes and that her father has mentioned it could be a cause of it...which is correct, it "could" be. especially if shes getting fibre from other sources during the day on top of the weetabix every day.

They also may get bored of it and start rejecting it. theres plenty of other healthy nutrious cereals LO can enjoy to mix things up.

but thats about it.

 

[suzib76]

I never said it was bad either, I just suggested maybe the amount was not so great. Everything in moderation and all that.

 

[caz_hills]

Oh ok missed that bit..... Feel like a total idiot now x

 

[Mum2b_Claire]

Cereals are a pain! They're either overly high fibre, or sugar coated and/ or not filling enough, I find!

I'm lucky that Scarlett will eat virtually anything, but she also has sainsburys own mini shredded wheats, they're good.

 

[PepsiChic]

Cereals are a pain! They're either overly high fibre, or sugar coated and/ or not filling enough, I find!

I'm lucky that Scarlett will eat virtually anything, but she also has sainsburys own mini shredded wheats, they're good.

right! im way more lax abotu cereal tbh.

He has special K which has higher sugar then other cereals, but not as bad, theres so many different flavours and he loves them all.

he loves the strawberry frosted wheats or the ones with fruit inside. honeynut cluster cereal is another favourite. or just oatmeal with fruit purees.

He eats well throughout the day and I still watch that the cereal he eats doesnt have too much sugar in, but I dont avoid it completely.

 

[ellismum]

We're fairly lax with Cereal too. There's a mix in our cupboards with Porridge and Cornflakes being his favourite but we also have higher sugar cereals occasionally like Cheerios and Coco Pops. El's has had Weetabix in the past but won't entertain them at the moment but it had no effect on him when he did!

At the moment he has toast for breakfast, 1 slice with Jam and 1 with Marmite. He always has fruit with it too, blueberries being flavour of the month.

 

[Chocoholic123]

When lo has wheatabix he has 2, 1 isn't enough for him, he's a big boy and is still hungry. I alternate with porridge and Cheerios on other days.

 

[ShanandBoc]

DD eats 2 weetbix with mashed banana for breakfast most mornings.

Never had an issue with it

She has the kids version tho as its lower in sugar and salt

 

[kimberleyrobx]

Emily has always been a very big eater, she is such a grubber! she'll finish her breakfast and then she will be after mine, it's like im not allowed to eat if she hasnt got anything in her hands! so we have our meals at the same time! I gave her a bowl of redy brek this morning. It had been a couple of weeks since i last made it so i kept having to put more and more milk in because it was too thick, by the time it was actually ready it WAS an adult sized portion! the bowl was packed, AND she ate the lot! im so surprised she managed to eat it all, she is currently gulping down a big bottle of milk too! although im not complaining, i'd rather have a very hungry child rather than a picky child who wont eat anything, as i was when i was younger! x