OK so I wasn’t thin, my Mum used to feed us LOTS of food, but my brother and I were a ‘normal’ weight and healthy, energetic kids. Mum made sure we never missed a meal, I could learn things from my Mum. But it made me think how did we eat such big meals and stay lean? I tried to remember a typical day as an 11 year old…

Breakfast
A large bowl of oatmeal with sugar
Lots of buttered toast

Packed Lunch
Large slices of freshly cut bakers bread with cucumber and cheese
An apple

Dinner
Full Sunday dinner with roasted chicken, potatoes and lots of vegetables
Apple pie and custard

Supper
A slice of cheese on toast or some home cooking like a rock cake with a glass of milk

Our portions were really large but the food was delicious. There was NEVER any fast food when we went out (Mum always made sandwiches) except for the occasional ice cream if we went to the zoo and we had one glass bottle of coke and one small packet of crisps maybe once a month when Mum and Dad took us out to a beer garden..

I didn’t understand how school friends would say they didn’t have breakfast. I got a little jealous of school friends who had crisps and chocolate bars in their lunch boxes and always had a bag of sweets in class. I got annoyed that Mum would NEVER let us take anything out of the cupboard to eat… 4 meals a day and “no” eating between meals!

But now when I think about it Mum knew best! Not only did she ensure we had good regular food but she averted childhood obesity AND kept her food budget down!

When I look at the 1940s way of eating I see a similarity in an actual respect for food and for 3 or 4 square meals a day to provide adequate nutrition. No snacking or grazing, it was OK to feel hungry before your next meal.

C xxxx

PS: And OH as someone just pointed out to me, WE WALKED EVERYWHERE TOO! 🙂