Kids overloaded with sugar, even by breakfast-time

LONDON, U.K. (WPVI) -- Kids' breakfast foods are so sugary, they're getting half their daily allowance before they ever get to school.

A survey of 200 parents by Public Health England found that between the cereals, juices, and pastries, kids get more than 11 grams of sugar at breakfast alone.

That's the equivalent of 3 sugar cubes.

And over a year, that's 1,000 sugar cubes, just in the morning.

Officials are encouraging parents to use the Be Food Smart app that reveals the sugar content of food and beverages.

Around a quarter of five-year-olds have tooth decay and nearly a fifth of children are already obese by the time they leave elementary school.

Sugar is the prime culprit with the National Diet and Nutrition Survey showing four- to 10-year-olds consuming twice as much sugar as they should be.

How much sugar should children eat?

* Age 2 - less than 13 grams or 3 cubes per day

* Age 3 - less than 15 grams or 4 cubes per day

* Age 4 to 6 - less than 19 grams or 5 cubes per day

* Age 7 to 10 years - less than 24 grams or 6 cubes per day

A small bowl of sugary breakfast cereal contains around two cubes of sugar, spreading chocolate spread on toast racks up three sugar cubes and a glass of fruit juice has a whopping five cubes in it.

The survey also showed that 84% of parents thought they were giving their children a healthy start to the day.