Countryfile host Helen Skelton says living in France made her a 'tough mum'
COUNTRYFILE host Helen Skelton admitted living in France changed her outlook on motherhood as she revealed it made her a lot “tougher”.
Helen Skelton shows her struggle to get to work in the snow
The Countryfile presenter moved to France with her rugby player husband Richie Myler when he signed up to Catalans Dragons club.
The couple lived in a rural part of the country with their two sons, Ernie, aged two, and Louis, who is seven-months-old.
Opening up about life as a mother living abroad, the 34-year-old admitted French women have a different attitude towards raising their children.
"I learned a hell of a lot about the way the French do motherhood and a lot of it has stuck,” she told Daily Mail.
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Helen explained that while a lot of British mothers tend to avoid puree baby food and don’t allow their offspring to use spoons, French women aren’t as strict.
The TV favourite said: "French mums think that’s ridiculous. They have no problem pulling out jars of puree if they are busy, whereas some mums I know in Britain feel they have to apologise if something isn’t home-made and organic.
"Now I try to give my boys as much seasonal produce as possible – and I puree."
Helen Skelton also revealed French mothers won’t snack in between meals and don't indulge in takeaways.
I learned a lot about the way the French do motherhood
She continued: "I’d never see the girls I was with scoff a chocolate bar. They would eat tons at meal-times but they didn’t snack in between and they didn’t do takeaways.
“They don’t sit around eating biscuits like I had done at home. This is something I’ve stuck with.”
The blonde beauty, who confessed their way of life helped her shed her baby weight after the birth of her son Louis, added: "My baby weight completely fell off in France even though I ate lots of great food. I think it was simply because I wasn’t snacking."
Helen has since returned to Britain and is living with her family in Leeds, following Richie’s move to rugby club Leeds Rhinos.
And Helen has certainly got herself stuck in with work as she recently hosted ITV’s Tonight show.
But the stunner may have wished she was back in France as she got stuck in the Beast from the East snow, which put the programme in jeopardy.
Helen filmed herself attempting to make her way to work and admitted the snow was causing “chaos” for her as she was forced to abandon her car.
Countryfile continues tonight on BBC One at 6.30pm.
