Ask our children:

1. What is junk food?

2. What is healthy food?

3. Should we eat healthy food or junk food?

Now tell them the story:

There was once a little boy named Ja’far. He was very clever, and had very good manners – but he had one BIG problem. His problem was that he only wanted to eat junk food!

For breakfast, he would sometimes have chocolate milkshake and chocolate cake. For lunch, he would sometimes have fried chips and a burger, and for supper, he liked to eat waffles with ice cream! Whatever meal it was, he only liked to eat junk food!

His mother would make the most delicious food for him, but he would refuse to eat it because he only wanted junk food. His mother would beg him saying, “Ja’far! Please eat some of the tasty food I cooked!” Ja’far would reply, “I don’t want to! I don’t feel for that food! I want fried chips! I want fried chicken wings, or takeaway pizza, or a yummy burger!” His mother would explain to him, “Ja‘far! Junk food is very unhealthy food! If you only eat junk food, you will become sick! You need to eat healthy food that is good for your body and will make you strong!” But no matter what she said, or how much she explained, Ja’far was just not prepared to listen.

Finally, Ja’far’s junk food problem became so bad that his mother had to take all the sweets, chocolates, chips and biscuits, and place them in a high cupboard where he could not reach, because he was eating too much of junk food! She told him that from now on, he was only allowed to eat one item of junk food a day, and she would only give it to him if he ate his healthy food first!

This made Ja’far VERY sad and upset. He couldn’t manage without his chocolates and chips, wafers and waffles, cokes and candies, and pizzas and pastries. But then, Ja’far had a plan…

That night, when everyone was fast asleep, and Ja’far’s mummy and daddy were snoring, he crept out of his room, walking on tiptoes, until he came to the kitchen. Then, he took the ladder from the pantry, placed it next to the high cupboard, and began to climb up. When Ja’far reached the top of the ladder, he looked down and immediately felt afraid. He was so high that he could touch the ceiling – what if he fell down?

But Ja’far was hungry for his snacks and junk food, so he quickly forgot about the height and opened the cupboard, finding all his favourite foods in front of him. He quickly grabbed a packet of chips, a slab of chocolate and a box of biscuits. Then, he saw a yummy, round Lindor chocolate at the back of the cupboard and he really, really wanted to eat it! The problem was that the Lindor was right at the back and he wasn’t sure if he could reach it.

Ja’far leaned forward, and then he leaned forward just a little more, until his fingers touched the Lindor, and then… he fell from the ladder and landed on the floor! He didn’t dare to cry or make any noise, because then his parents would catch him. So, although his body was paining, he took all his junk food and crept out of the kitchen, returning to his room. Back in his room, he hid under the blanket and ate ALL his junk food, until his little stomach was round like a balloon. After he finished all the junk food, Ja’far rolled over and went to sleep.

The next morning, when Ja’far woke up, he felt ill and sick. His stomach felt as though it was a washing machine, turning round and round! He began to groan in pain, until his mother came in to see what the matter was. She asked him, “Ja’far! What happened? Are you sick?” Ja’far was in so much of pain that he barely managed to answer. He said, “I don’t know! My stomach is paining!”

Just then, Ja’far’s father walked into the room and said, “I know why his stomach is paining! It’s because he was eating junk food the whole night!” Ja’far was shocked and didn’t know how his father had caught him. His father explained, “You were in such a hurry to eat your junk food that you left the ladder next to the cupboard!”

Ja’far’s father then called the doctor, and after he heard the whole story, he said to Ja’far, “Little boy! It’s fine to eat junk food sometimes, but you must not eat it too often, because it will make you sick. There are many patients who come to my surgery with sicknesses that were caused by eating too much of junk food. You must eat food that is tasty AND healthy – then you can be a strong Muslim with a healthy body.”

Then the doctor gave Ja’far the ‘yuckiest’ and most ‘gross’ medicine that he ever tasted in his whole life. It tasted so bad, and his stomach pained so much, that Ja’far decided, once and for all, that he would listen to his mother. From now on, he would only eat a little bit of junk food everyday.

Lessons:

1. Junk food is food that is not good for our bodies. If we eat too much of junk food, or we eat it too often, it will make our bodies weak and sick.

2. Healthy food is food that is good for our bodies and makes our bodies healthy and strong. Healthy food can also be yummy and tasty.

3. Our main food everyday must be healthy food. If we want to eat some junk food, then we can have some now and again, but must not eat too much of it or eat it all the time.

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