Raisingkids.co.uk supports The Daily Telegraph campaign

Raisingkids.co.uk's founder, Dr Pat Spungin, was one of the signatories of this week's letter to the Daily Telegraph, urging the government to make the social and emotional wellbeing of children central to policy-making in this country.

The letter raised a number of issues around childhood, namely that academic pressures, electronic play and a lack of interaction with adults in their life, are leading to an increase in childhood depression and behavioural problems.

What do we at Raisingkids.co.uk think about it?

Real Food
You are what you eat. The evidence that children are eating too much of the wrong is incontrovertible, though we should not forget the other side of the coin, that children - especially teenagers - are not exercising enough.

At Raisingkids.co.uk we think that children's food habits are learned when they are very young. Good food starts with weaning. If children are given a variety of fresh foods when they are young, their taste buds will attuned to more flavours and not just to sweetness and blandness.

One of our particular bugbears is the 'Children's Menu' with chips, beans, burgers and the rest. Have you ever seen a children's menu in France Spain or Italy, or in a Chinese or Indian restaurant? No, their children eat what the adults eat.

Finally a lot has been said about marketing to children. It is said that children see ads on television and then pester their parents for the products. They probably do; why else would the advertisers continue to advertise? BUT - and it's a big but - what happened to parents saying 'No'? Parent power should be stronger than pester power.

Real Play
Play matters. It's a process of discovery, exploration and growth as well as fun. For small children play is learning about the world and the things and people in it. It develops body and mind, imagination and creativity. Play with other children encourages social skills and emotional growth.

Screen-based entertainment is no substitute for real play. When children sit and watch TV, however good the programmes, or play video games, however imaginative and creative, what they are experiencing is someone else's creativity and imagination. Dressing up and let's pretend, making a picture book or birthday card, writing a poem, cutting, colouring and sticking - all these activities stimulate a child's own creativity.

Real Play, Interaction and School Life
To read our opinion on the other Toxic Childhood issues, click here for page 2.

• Standing Up For Childhood - Page Two
• Raisingkids' Back To The Table campaign