Have you told creative lies to get your kids to eat healthy?
Dragons in the hand drier, the tooth fairy and princesses in the tummy - just some of the creative things parents say to steer their little ones.
Modern parenting may be more of a creative art than practical skill - as over 90 per cent of parents have a list of favourite 'tall tales' and creative stories they use to steer their children along the right path in life, according to new research by Warburtons.
The tooth fairy is an old classic that many of us were brought up on, but parents today are using their clever and creative sides to build on this - mixing traditional and modern tactics to help...
Parents’ creative tales include telling children that a small, hungry princess lives inside their stomach whose hunger can only be satisfied with vegetables, while another is a story which warns children they will be washed down the plughole if they spend too long in the bath.
Parents also tell tales of baby dragons living in hand dryers where they practice breathing hot fire to encourage use, while other canny parents helped their children to five-a-day by telling them these foodstuffs turn them into superheroes.
The research from Warburtons, conducted to mark the launch of its Half & Half loaves, found that mums’ have the most tricks in their armoury to convince kids to gets things done, with an average of nine tricks up their sleeve compared to dads’ five.
Just under half of mums and dads (45 per cent) think creative tales are a necessary part of modern parenting, while 35 per cent of parents disguise vegetables in other foods to get children to eat them, and a third of mums and dads spell out certain words to each other using letters rather than say the word in full, so that the kids can't figure out what is being talked about.
Furthermore, one in seven parents wind clocks forward to get children to bed on time/early, and two per cent of parents tell their child that the music played by an ice cream van means they’ve run out of ice cream.
The traditional tale of the tooth fairy remained the most popular story, used by 38 per cent of mums and dads, whilst other prevailing stories include giving different foods more exciting names to get kids to eat them, such as calling broccoli ‘trees’, and feigning phone calls from teachers to tackle reluctance to do homework.
Mark Simester, Marketing Director at Warburtons, said: “The tooth fairy is an old classic that many of us were brought up on, but parents today are using their clever and creative sides to build on this - mixing traditional and modern tactics to help keep children healthy and happy.
“Providing children with a balanced diet has always been important to mums and dads, so we weren’t surprised to see examples of clever parenting put into practice to get goodness into kids. As we understand the challenges parents face, we have created two Warburtons Half & Half loaves - with a mix of wholemeal and white flour - as a great way for parents to sneak fibre into their child’s lunchbox.”
Parents surveyed as part of the research admitted to getting creative with their children in order to improve behaviour, encourage them to eat nutritiously, improve imagination and their health and wellbeing.
The new Warburtons Half & Half range includes Half and Half Toastie and Half and Half Medium loaves, and is available in supermarkets and selected retailers now. A 750g loaf has a suggested retail price of £1.25.
What creative little lies do you tell your kids? Tell us in the comments below or tweet us @FemaleFirst_UK
FemaleFirst