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Behaviour/development

should I be worried what my 7 year old eats?

1 reply

Riantload · 17/09/2017 20:24

My DS has always been a good eater and not especially fussy, although he is not keen on sweet things. He has been known to eat adult size portions of food but then will have very little the rest of the day. (my DD who is 11 is very fussy, barely ever finishes a meal but is always hungry and asks for snacks, usually sweet things, multiple times a day)
I have noticed recently that DS has been hungrier than usual and I was not sure whether to be worried that he is eating too much. Last sunday for example, he had breakfast (either non sugary cereal or beans on toast- can't remember)
then he went to a party and had pizza, chips and beans about midday
he went to another party in the afternoon and had sandwiches ,crisps and mini sausages
We had a roast in the evening, and I thought he wouldn't eat much and he had a full roast dinner and seconds.
Yesterday he had his evening meal which was pizza. He had about 2/3 of a large pizza and some carrot and apple.
Then later myself and my husband had an indian takeway and DS came and asked to have some rice, poppodom and a small piece of naan bread. He doesn't eat a lot at school and asks me not to pack a snack for morning break.

He is quite active and in a healthy weight category. He doesn't snack or eat sweets but wondering if I should more carefully monitor what he eats?
Or might he be having a growth spurt? (I am very short and so are my kids so the idea of a growth spurt is quite alien to me!!)

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skankingpiglet · 17/09/2017 22:16

My DCs are much younger but are both human dustbins. When DD1 was 2ish I was so concerned about the amount she was eating I took her to see the HVs at the local baby weigh-in clinic: she was matching my portion sizes for breakfast, lunch and snacks. It was only my dinner that was bigger (and I'm not one to starve myself either). We would go out for meals with friends and they would be slack-jawed at the amount she would pack away, it was crazy. The HV weighed her to humour me I think (she's always been a little above average height, but tracked just above the 25th percentile for weight, so a slim build which she still is) but said I just needed to look at her. Did she look healthy? In proportion? Was she active and eating a range of foods? Her advice was as long as she was active and the food she was eating was healthy homecooked stuff I should trust her to eat to appetite. That's what I do with both DCs now, it's made the whole thing far less stressful (although our weekly shopping bill is horrific). DD1's (now 3) intake has settled a bit these days so it's at the larger end of 'normal' rather than in the freakish category, but there are still days she'll eg have several (child-sized) bowls of cereal, toast with peanut butter, and fruit for breakfast then be badgering for a snack an hour later.

If he isn't looking overweight and he isn't stuffing sugary/fatty treats I'd trust his judgement and remortgage ready for the supermarket bills. Smile

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