Should I let them have dessert?

United States
January 28, 2012 7:53pm CST
I have long struggled with the idea of dessert. Normally we eat dinner pretty late, around 7pm and bedtime is around 9pm. Should I allow my kids to have dessert when dinner is so soon. I was thinking about letting them have dessert around snack time so they still get it, but I don't know. Any ideas? Anything would be great.
4 responses
Mashnn
@Mashnn (4501)
•
29 Jan 12
What type of dessert do you give them or what are you planning to give them as dessert? I would prefer giving my children the full course meal (dinner time)including dessert than giving them as snacks unless they cannot take them all together.
minnie0923
@minnie0923 (136)
• United States
29 Jan 12
I try to give them fruits or a small amount of ice cream. I just have to watch how much sugar is in things, so I go for the sugar free items at the store for desserts. I am just wondering if I am doing more harm than good, since it is so close to bedtime.
Mashnn
@Mashnn (4501)
•
30 Jan 12
That good desert and I think the two hours interval is quite ok. I think if you find that they have problem having dinner together with the desserts then, you can decide to give them earlier but that only if they able to eat their dinner properly without been so full. On the other hand, if eating the dessert (snack) before dinner affects the way they eat their dinner meal then I would prefer giving them desserts after dinner. This is because you do not want them to be full during dinner and misses to finish their food.
cutepenguin
@cutepenguin (6431)
• Canada
1 Feb 12
I think having a sweet snack - maybe fruit, a bit of ice cream, or even a cookie - a couple of hours before dinner wouldn't ruin their appetite. There's no harm in sugar so long as you limit how much of it you have and just have a little bit. Our son goes to bed an hour after dinner time (he's still pretty young and goes to bed around 7) so I give him some fruits and vegetables around 4. It's not really dessert but we don't eat a lot of dessert like food because my husband isn't big on sweets and I never think to get any. (Besides, I think my parents and my husband's parents feed him plenty of cookies).
fannitia
@fannitia (2167)
• Bulgaria
31 Jan 12
I think that letting them have dessert at snack time is a good idea. Experts say that people should eat a little amount of food four times of the day. And it's not healthful for them to have meal and desert when they will go to bed about an hour later.
WakeUpKitty
@WakeUpKitty (8694)
• Netherlands
31 Jan 12
I don't know when your snack time is? I frequently give dessert first if they are just home out of school. Mostly they are hungry and it's not time yet for dinner. By now we do eat earlier (5 pm) because of winter time, it's cold and they go to bed at 7pm latest. So if we have dinner early they have a dessert also but there are plenty of times there is no dessert.