Making sure growing children do not feel hungry is a full-time job, as just hearty meals won’t do, they want snacks at regular intervals too. Most parents try to make it a point to feed them healthy snacks only, but it doesn’t help that foods like chicken fingers and fruit roll-ups taste so good.

What are you to do in this scenario? Although you don’t want to deprive your kids of fried snacks occasionally, there are some foods and drinks that you should give children as rarely as possible. Some of these snacks that you need to keep away from kids might actually surprise you, and if you’re unsure which ones are not good for them, read on to know more.

1. Apple juice
All the juice boxes and pouches of apple juice that you give kids thinking that they are quite healthy are just sugar. All boxed drinks are carbonated and extremely unhealthy, but since they are fruit juices, parents assume that they make for healthy snacks for kids. Even the boxes that say 100% apple juice has around 160 calories per cup and it’s almost entirely fructose. The kids are also missing out on the fiber that they can get on eating an apple and also all the other nutrients that are packed in the peel.

2. Honey
It is not advisable to give a child honey until the age of two. Honey contains toxic bacteria that cause botulism, which is a potentially fatal disease. The immune system of young children is not fully developed to fight this bacterium off.

3. Soda
Soda is high in sugar content and is linked to obesity, type 2 diabetes and aggressive behavior in children. You need to bear in mind that a 20-ounce bottle of soda can have over 60 grams of sugar. Syrupy flavored drinks may contain more sugar; hence it is just best to keep all these beverages away from kids.

4. Boxed mac and cheese
Boxed mac and cheese is loaded with sodium and preservatives. It is also highly processed and devoid of any nutrients. You will be better off picking up some whole grain pasta and fresh cheese to make the dish at home instead.

5. Fruit snacks
Gummy fruit snacks, fruit rolls, and jellies are nothing but sugar. Although many of these snack varieties proclaim that it is made with real fruit on the package, they still boil down to lots of added sugar and food flavoring. If you are on the lookout for an easy snack, then go with dried fruits instead of fruit snacks.

6. Canned tuna
Although fish can be an excellent source of lean protein, healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals, there are a few varieties of fish that have high mercury content like canned tuna, mackerel, swordfish, and tilefish. The nervous system of growing kids can get affected by these varieties of fish, making them a snack to avoid

7. Flash fried finger foods
Frozen chicken nuggets, fish sticks, and mozzarella sticks are sky-high in sodium, saturated fat, and preservatives. They also contain low-quality chicken, fish, or cheese, thereby making it a poor snack choice for kids.