What Happens if Our Children Eat Too Much Sugar?

Most recent UK survey showed that our kids are getting almost 12-16% of their daily calories from added sugar. As per sugar science, limits of sugar for children vary depending on their age and caloric needs but range between 3-6 teaspoons (12 – 25 grams) per day, translating to a maximum of 5% of their daily calories.

An average store-bought oatmeal cookie contains 10 – 22.5 grams of sugar.

 

 

Eating too much sugar can often mean we’re eating too many calories. If we don’t burn the calories, our body will store them as fat which can lead to weight gain.

If this happens to our children, it is likely they will carry it into their adolescent and adult years and become overweight or even obese as per BBC Good Food

As per childhood obesity foundation, 70 million young children will be overweight or obese by 2025 if current trends continue. Obesity in childhood is associated with diabetes and heart disease and a wide range of serious health complications.

 

healthy oatmeal cookies

When I was growing up one of my favourite cookies was an oatmeal cookie. When I decided to create this gluten-free cookie recipe, I wanted to keep it as healthy as possible, by keeping the sugar low and protein high and still keep the cookie tasting as delicious just the way I remember it.

I combined unsweetened roasted almond butter with butter and used coconut sugar to reduce blood sugar spikes. Coconut sugar has become one of my favourite sweeteners to use in baking.

Coconut sugar is extracted sap from the blooms of the coconut and contains minerals not found in white sugar and it measures the same as sugar.

For powdered sugar, use 1 cup of coconut sugar with 1 tablespoon of arrowroot powder and process in a food processor or coffee grinder.

This oatmeal & almond butter cookie contains less than 3 grams of sugar and approximately 2.5 grams of protein per cookie. I have not added raisins, but if you wish, add 1/2 cup sulphite-free raisins

oatmeal cookies on a plate

Gluten-Free Oatmeal & Almond Butter Cookie for Kids

 

Recipe

  • Prep time: 10 min
  • Cooking time: 13 min
  • Serves: 24 cookies

Ingredients:

  1. 1 cup certified gluten-free rolled oats
  2. 1 cup all-purpose gluten-free flour blend
  3. 1 tsp. GF ground cinnamon
  4. 1/2 tsp. GF baking soda
  5. 1/3 cup melted salted grass-fed butter
  6. 1/4 cup organic unsweetened roasted almond butter
  7. 1/2 cup coconut sugar
  8. 1 Tbsp. Molasses
  9. 1 large free-range egg at room temperature

Directions:

  • Preheat oven to 350 F
  • Place oats in a food processor and process until the oats become about half their size. Add flour, cinnamon and baking soda and blend
  • In a medium bowl mix butter, almond butter, coconut sugar, molasses and egg until creamy. Then stir in the dry ingredients
  • Place a heaped tablespoon of mixture on a non-stick baking sheet flattening them slightly with your fingers and making sure you leave about 1 inch between each cookie
  • Bake for 13 – 14 minutes until golden. Cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring onto a cooling rack

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of onlyglutenfreerecipes or its staff.