How is my 11 year old still hungry!!!

[GotAnyGrapes17]

Hi,

This is only really half joking. Never thought I'd do one of these threads but seriously, what do your kids of similar age eat.

Mine has always barely eating anything, and been tiny and very slight.

She is clearly in the middle of a huge growth spurt as finally in clothes for her age group, but is looking a bit chubby and constantly hungry. I don't think you describe her as overweight, but she certainly is a bit soft in places and no longer skin, bones and knobbly knees!

Is there any point where you start restricting what she eats?

This is what she has eaten/will eat today

Breakfast
Blueberry, whole banana and oats smoothie.

Morning snack
Mini satsuma and babybel

Lunch
Half tuna mayo and sweet corn wrap
Small Handful of carrot and red pepper sticks, tablespoon humous
2 slices of ham spread thinly with cream cheese
Mini apple
Mini satsuma
Small fairy cake

Straight from school snack
Crisps (snackrite)
Small banana

Quick tea before evening sports club
Ham and cream cheese sandwich
Couple of red pepper sticks
Handful of blueberries

Dinner when we get in
Small bowl of pork and bean casserole

Just looks like an enormous amount of food?? Any ideas?

It doesn’t look like a lot but would depend on the quantity of each food too. My 10 year old eats a lot less than that but shes always been a picky eater but a healthy weight.

That's really not a huge amount of food, she's not going to waste away eating it, but they aren't huge amounts either, especially on a day with lots of activity

If you look at calorie requirements by age you might be surprised that by age 11 they’re needed close to what an adult needs. From memory anyway.

Your daughter looks to be eating a lot of little bits. She’ll eat more that way, we’re programmed to fit more in if it’s different, so we get variety. Maybe give her bigger portions of a main thing.

I'm suprised she needs a snack and tea before sports club if she has dinner after...

Doesnt seem a lot to me, my 5 year old would eat not much less then that

@PhylisPrice yes I know what you mean. Today is a bit of an odd example. She came home from school "starving" and had the snack. Club tonight 7.30-9. I knew she wouldn't survive until 9 with just the snack so did the sandwich and tea when I got home from work at 6.

Dinner is on for my and DP so when she gets in she will want to eat again so will just have some of that.

Thanks for all the comments. I think I've just spent so long with her not really eating anything. I'm really trying to keep her topped up with protein where possible as I know it is supposed to fill you up for longer

I can't find figures for an 11 year old, but according to the NHS, a 10 year old girl needs over 1900 kcal/day, so your daughter needs to eat the same as an adult woman. Your list is less than many adult women would eat, especially active ones (you mention a sports club).

Link: www.nhs.uk/common-health-questions/childrens-health/how-many-calories-does-a-child-of-7-10-need/

But everything is a ‘small portion’ so she’s not actually eating that much. DS is 11 and ears waaaaaay more than I do. He’s a normal weight but very active.

Would she eat something more for breakfast?

Maybe poached egg on toast?

Blueberry, whole banana and oats smoothie.

Morning snack
Mini satsuma and babybel

^

Instead of all these bits of snacks and fake food, give her a 3 egg omelet cooked in butter with ham and cheese for breakfast. See how she goes -

It doesn’t seem a lot to me. Lunch doesn’t seem very filling. Why only half a wrap?
I would give a more filling lunch, a more filling snack after school instead of snack and tea then larger dinner.

Lots of comments re breakfast. I would love her to eat a bigger breakfast! That's the only time of day where she is a bit slow to want food. Smoothie is kind of a compromise really.

Like I said before. Normally if sports wasn't on or was a normal time she'd probably just have a snack and then dinner around 7. Tonight's a bit odd and I knew she wouldnt survive on just the snack and would want something to eat when she got home. Hence the 3 meals after school

So for example yesterday was same breakfast/snack/lunch and then when she got in from school she had a tuna sandwich and bag of crisps and then salmon, creme fraiche and lemon pasta for dinner.

That doesn't seem like a lot to me.
My youngest is now 12 and she eats a lot more than that on a school day.
For a start she would eat a whole wrap, or a round of sandwiches (2 slices) at lunch.

My 11 yr old boy eats a HUGE amount. He is all skin and bones and tall and skinny. Today he ate his normal 3 portions (at least) of shreddies for breakfast, at school break had a slice of pizza and hotdog, packed lunch (sandwiches, apple, banana, biscuits, crisps, smoothie, yoghurt and cheese sticks), huge spagbol for tea followed by a lolly and is now making himself peanut butter on 4 slices of toast. That’s the stuff I know about. All he does is eat. He was borderline underweight when they weighed him in yr 6. He does walk a huge amount every day and is very sporty.

@shelikesemwithamoustache I think that's what's concerning me. If she was still as lean as she was I wouldn't be worried. I've always pretty much let her eat what she wants. But she really has gained some weight this summer. It's been had, with both been WFH home full time so she's ended up eating a lot of toast etc that she can make herself. Also there was no walking to school, no PE and no sports clubs.

Maybe now she's a back to being active and once she's finished a growth spurt she will not look as chubby/soft

My 9yo lower-end of healthy weight daughter eats much more than that although your dd's diet is much healthier than mine
Typically
B- 1 Banana. 1 Wholemeal toast and jam/soft cheese. Glass of OJ.
S- 1 apple.
L- 2 slices of bread filled with tuna and salad. Homemade flapjack. Low fat/sugar yogurt.
S- Cheese and bread sticks.
D- Veg curry, white rice and naan bread.
Ice -cream with fruit.
S- Large bowl of cereal. Hot chocolate. 2xcookies.

If she doesn't want breakfast then she's listening to her body and appetite. Best not to override that in my opinion. She would eat a substantial lunch that should include protein. Apart from the tuna and cheese, I didn't see much protein in her list.
I'd aim for a substantial lunch and substantial dinner by 7pm ish. Less snacks. But that's just because I think snacking causes weight gain if it becomes a habit in later life.

@DianaT1969 thanks, although I'm not sure I can send her to school with out breakfast? If she was at home and didn't want breakfast I wouldn't make her, but I just can't see how I can send her to school without any and not get reported to social services!

Smoothie has oats, yoghurt and milk. She is also having ham or cooked chicken at lunch as well as protein in wrap and the hummus so I thought that was quite a lot of protein. But any suggestions on getting more in would be great.

Snack time is a thing at school. That all take one

In what way is fruit and oats 'fake food'?

Well, she's kind of having an extra meal each day, with the sandwich and bag of crisps after school/before sports club. Can she just have a banana or some yoghurt? or alternatively, give her the main meal before her sport club then when she gets home just banana/yoghurt rather than another meal. It's more of a meal than a snack.

Having said that, 11 year old girls do gain some weight and then usually shoot up in height (if that growth spurt hasn't happened already). So it might be that she stretches out a bit soon anyway.

I don't think that its that much really. She is at puberty or starting to go through it so she probably needs lots of calories

I have a sporty daughter who sounds similar to yours they do go through growth spurts and really change shape at that age. My super lean petite DD is now is petite but has hips and bust. Her friends all went through the look bit chubbier phase first. It’s hard balance though my DD was doing sport 5 nights a week pre-lockdown and would of often have dinner 5pm then more beans n toast at 9pm but of course that wasn’t needed the last few months... nuts, eggs, cheese, salad, ham slices are her go to snacks. We had to have a chat about helping herself to lollies, cake, sweets and biscuits everyday in lockdown wasn’t healthy for sporting performance but I try hard to let her self regulate as she’s good at it. (Unlike my youngest DD...) Its s tricky age but sounds like you are doing the right things - my DD portion sizes have definitely gone up in the last year from small plate to adult plate size.

That doesn't sound like a lot for an active day for a 5 year old let alone an 11 year old in the midst of a growth spurt. Mine would have had a whole wrap at lunch by aged 4 for example