Important notice to customers — product packaging changesLearn More

NEW FOOD PACKAGING IN STORE NOW

From August 2018, customers will notice our rebranded food packaging start to appear on shelf in all major stockists.

  • CURRENT Packaging
  • new Packaging

We are excited to announce our new packaging will start to appear on shelf from August 2018. This transition to new packaging will occur over a number of months. During this time there will be a mix of current and new packaging on shelf.

There are no major changes to these products, in some instances there is a small name change or slight recipe improvement, see below for the full details.

Products purchased via the website will be delivered to customers in our old packaging until the end of October. From November, products ordered from the website will be delivered in the new packaging.

Please note, our Infant Formula packaging will not be rebranded until later in 2019.

For any questions, connect with our team of accredited practising Dietitians on +61 3 6332 9200

Product name changes

  • Cereal Name Changes
  • CURRENT Packaging Organic Baby Rice
  • NEW Packaging Organic Rice with Prebiotic (GOS) Note: Our Baby Rice recipe has been upgraded to now include GOS Prebiotic
  • CURRENT Packaging Organic Vanilla Rice Custard
  • NEW Packaging Organic Milk & Vanilla Baby Rice
  • CURRENT Packaging Organic Apple & Cinnamon Porridge
  • NEW Packaging Organic Apple & Cinnamon Baby Porridge
  • Ready To Serve Name Changes
  • CURRENT Packaging Organic Banana, Pear & Mango
  • New Packaging Organic Banana, Pear, Apple & Mango
  • CURRENT Packaging Organic Mango, Blueberry & Apple
  • New Packaging Organic Blueberry, Mango & Apple
  • CURRENT Packaging Organic Peach & Apple
  • New Packaging Organic Grape, Apple & Peach
  • CURRENT Packaging Organic Pumpkin & Tomato Risotto
  • New Packaging Organic Pumpkin, Sweet Potato & Tomato
  • CURRENT Packaging Organic Broccoli, Beef & Brown Rice
  • New Packaging Organic Beef & Vegetables
  • Note: We have also upgraded some of our RTS recipes to remove added sugars and to remove some of the more complex ingredients that are not required for young children such as Tamari.
  • RUSKS NAME CHANGES
  • CURRENT Packaging Organic Milk Rusks Toothiepegs
  • New Packaging Organic Milk Rusks
Home/Nutrition & Recipes/Articles/Why Children Lie and How to Encourage Honesty in the Home

Why Children Lie and How to Encourage Honesty in the Home

bellamysorganic - Why Children Lie

Most children are partial to the odd fib or two, but the first time your child lies it can come as a surprise. How do you handle it? What are you supposed to do?

Simply put, lying is a normal part of a child’s development – but so is learning to tell the truth. By teaching your child that honesty is important, you teach them to limit the lies and strive for truth telling whenever possible.

Why do children lie?

Children lie for a number of reasons. For starters, kids aren’t born with a moral code. Telling the truth is something they have to figure out and comes with learning important social rules. They watch us adults constantly to see what they are supposed to do and how they’re supposed to negotiate their world. The need for truth telling and the ability to understand the concept of lying are things that your child needs to grow into.

From birth to three years, your child is part of a highly confusing world and they depend on adults for their very survival. Often what looks like “lies” are either honest mistakes or efforts to protect themselves or to mollify the grownups. Your child will take their cues from your tone of voice, therefore, “Did you knock over that milk?” said angrily is likely to get a “No, it wasn’t me” response. Your child depends on your love and the last thing they want is to upset you and risk their protection. Children need to feel safe.

For children aged 3-7, they are still figuring out the difference between fantasy and reality. They create imaginary worlds within their play and sometimes they are not clear when their creations leave off and the real world begins. This isn’t always helped by the fact that many parents encourage these fantasies, sometimes going as far as to set a place at the table for an imaginary friend. Pretend play is crucial for development, but it also creates confusion. As a parent, you don’t want to shut down your child’s creativity, but you do need to establish when it’s appropriate to tell tales and when it’s not.

By age 7, your child should have a good understanding of what it means to lie. If they have been raised in a home and neighbourhood where the rules surrounding truth telling are clear, they will likely do their best to comply. At the end of the day, most kids simply want adult approval and want to be on the side of truth and justice.

Common reasons for lying no matter the age include:

  • Fear of upsetting someone (“I didn’t lose your necklace”)
  • The truth being tangled by an initial lie/backpedalling
  • The fear of doing something they don’t want to do (“I haven’t got any homework”)
  • To get something they want (“Mum always lets me have lollies before dinner”)
  • The desire to ‘fit in’
  • The desire for attention
  • The want to make stories sound more interesting
  • When parental limits are too strict
  • Mimicking parental behaviour (such as calling in sick to work when not sick)
  • An underlying mental illness such as conduct disorder or compulsive lying disorder

Creating an understanding of the consequences of lying

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Once children are old enough to understand the difference between truth and lies, it’s important to encourage truth telling. You can do this by emphasising the importance of honesty in your family and by praising your child for honesty – even if it means they’ve done something you don’t approve of.

Our job as parents is to be consistently good models of honest living. By living your life with integrity and by refraining from ducking responsibilities, we demonstrate the importance of honesty.

As mentioned, children are born with no moral code – it’s up to us to teach them one. They also aren’t born with the knowledge that lying can be hurtful, so again, you need to teach them this. Most children recognise that lying is frowned upon and that it can come with consequences, but many don’t understand that lying can be hurtful. To them, it’s no big deal that they ate a sugary snack right before dinner, because it didn’t hurt anyone. Why should they confess to it?

When a child doesn’t see lying as hurtful, there are two different value systems in play: the family’s value system that says lying is forbidden, and the child’s value that says if it’s not hurting anyone then an action can be rationalised. The outcome is a dishonest situation.

Tell your child that you do not like it when they lie to you by using words such as, “When you don’t tell me the truth, I feel sad and disappointed”.

Encouraging honesty

To encourage honesty in your home you should:

  • Respond appropriately to storytelling. Instead of saying “That’s clearly a lie”, try saying, “Wow, that story could be made into a book. What a great imagination you have”.
  • Avoid situations in which your child feels they need to lie. Watch your tone of voice and language if some milk is spilt. Try saying, “I see you spilt some milk. We’ll need to clean that up”.
  • Boost self-esteem by praising your child more. If your child is telling ‘bragging’ lies, it could be a way to get more admiration and respect.
  • Ensure your home has clear rules and consequences surrounding acceptable behaviour
  • Use words such as, “I’m really glad you told me the truth. I like it when you’re honest.”
  • Explain that while there might be consequences for their actions, you won’t be mad as long as they tell you the truth.
  • Read books or tell stories that highlight the importance of honesty. The Boy Who Cried Wolf is a great example of how lying can work against you.
  • Take time to explain when it’s acceptable to stretch the truth. Talk about how we sometimes wish that something was true and that it can be fun to pretend, but help your child to understand there’s a time for play and a time for real life.
  • Understand that comprehending moral issues is difficult. Give your child the benefit of the doubt and the opportunity to back down from a lie. Then talk about what happened and what they can do differently next time they are tempted to lie.
  • Look for reasons behind the lie. If it’s about avoiding embarrassment or the quest to fit in, talk about other ways your child could achieve the same goal.
  • Refrain from forcing the truth out. If you know your child is lying, instead of insisting they are lying try instead to inform them of your disappointment at not getting the issue resolved.
  • Never label your child as a liar. When a child’s identity gets tangled up with a label, it becomes harder and harder to correct.

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Important Notice to Parents and Guardians

  • Breast milk is the best for babies. The World Health Organisation recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life. Unnecessary introduction of bottle feeding or other food and drinks will have a negative impact on breastfeeding. After six months of age, infants should receive age-appropriate foods while breastfeeding continues for up to two years of age or beyond. Consult your doctor before deciding to use infant formula or if you have difficulty breastfeeding.
  • The content on this website is intended as general information for Singaporean residents only and should not be used as a substitute for medical care and advice from your healthcare practitioner. According to recommendations from the Singapore Health Promotion Board, solid food should be given to babies only after 6 months.