I left my 16 year old at home for 24 hours and he ate...

[mrsm43s]

A ready meal (mac & cheese)
A pot noodle
A family sized pizza
A full tub of 40 cocktail sausages
At least 2 big buckets full of buttered popcorn (maybe more, but only evidence of two pots where he melted the butter).
4 and half bags of crisps
Several bowls of cereal (I'd guess about 3 or 4 from the number of bowls left)
Multiple rounds of toast/sandwiches- about half a loaf worth, with a mix of fillings - choc spread, jam, cheese, soft cheese
A block of feta
A 2 person packet of fresh tortellini
and something chocolately that came in a plastic tub that I can't remember what would have been in there, but there was definitely cocoa powder residue in the bottom of the container.

He did not eat the cherry tomatoes, carrot sticks, hummus, apples, grapes, bananas or yoghurts.

He's as skinny as a rake!

I'm not complaining as we were away on a Uni visit with eldest, and he was alone overnight for the first time and the house was still standing, the cats and dogs were fed and let out appropriately (the dog wasn't actually walked, but we went early evening to early evening, so we've walked her early Friday then late Saturday and she's only a Chi cross that doesn't need hours of walking), but no poo, so he def did garden runs with her. The house was pretty tidy apart from the stack of dirty crockery and empty food packaging.

How would your 16 year old son have fared?

I lived alone at 17. You either have an extremely immature 16 year old or have gone very wrong somewhere?! What does staying up all night playing on a computer got to do with anything haha. My 37 year old brother has been known to do this on occasion. My 16 18 and 22 year olds would have been more than capable of looking after themselves in their own home.

Are you serious? It’s perfectly normal to do this. I had a baby at sixteen and could look after both of us fairly competently.

I do whether all these teens/young adults will continue to eat such vast amounts once they move out of their parents home and have to fund their own food.

I suspect not!

My own brother for example was happy to eat a pack of 5 donuts in one sitting when my parents had bought them, but he didn’t do it once he had moved out and he was the one buying his food!

🤣🤣🤣

@Lulibee

I agree

I don’t think it’s normal

I mean how and why would someone eat a full block of feta cheese?!

If a girl ate all this in such a short time, people would be really concerned about the prospect of an eating disorder etc.

when it’s a boy doing it it’s considered funny, charming, cute etc ‘boys will be boys’ etc

its bullshit

Well I used to have two fridge freezers and a chest freezer. Lots of bread was stored among all the other stuff. Bread was cheap and filling if some protein was added.
I bought almost catering quantities of certain foods because they were cheap, easy to freeze. Fish fingers, cheese, baked beans, sausages, bacon, chicken.
Pasta was another big filler that I bought cheap, not so much rice as the twins didnt much like it.
Bought spuds by the sackful.
Luckily I only went through this once with having twins, can imagine if I had one then another I'd still be paying the debt off now <<<<joke for those without a sense of humour.

The amount of congratulatory posts on this thread is pretty shocking, especially given the rise in type 2 diabetes amongst young people.

I mean 'teenager binge eats' is hardly front page news (even though I do think the list of food is hugely exaggerated) but comments like "Epic win in my book too. Well done OP and off spring" and other comments too numerous to mention are just baffling.

I think posts on this thread, and the amount of "advice please, I can't stop myself binge eating" from adults do have a correlation. (I also used to do this, so not claiming some sort of moral high ground, just an observation).

Yes, they are teenage boys and growing, but there's growing, and there's greed. Not really aimed at OP as she's said it was 24 hours and not usual behaviour, but there are a lot of posters saying it's completely normal behaviour. There are other implications from the acceptance of this as normal behaviour, gallons of juice would mean mean a lot of dentist bills later! It's also setting a pattern of really unhealthy eating. You may be "skinny as a rake" but your blood sugars and arteries may look like shit. There are hangover days, and poorly but recovering days, where you eat more ice cream/chocolate etc than usual (I am planning a day like this myself this week and have salted caramel ice cream stashed away - much more expensive brand than I would ever buy! ) but people condoning this massive amount of food as a normal routine for teenagers of any sex is a completely different story.

It's the ease of that amount of food too, the fridge always being full as it's expected you'll eat that much. The ease of Uber Eats meaning a McDonalds can be at your door at 20 mins (missing a pack of fries or being stone cold of course ) It's so expensive and it practically encourages bad habits. It also means nothing is a treat, if you have a takeaway or whatever food you desire multiple times a week, it's not as much "fun" as a one off which you can look forward to. I know that makes me sound boring as fuck , but a lot of people are going to have to change their eating habits/takeaways due to finances and may see my point? I would never buy Haagen Daas regularly as it's so expensive but it means when I do buy it it's really a treat and I enjoy it more.

I know everyone here will say their teens eat/ate like this and now they are skinny as a rake and very tall and eat healthily and exercise loads but it's undeniable that we have more obesity and bad health than in the past. Just look at the amount of threads about weight loss on MN!

Yes yes I will be called judgy and pearl clutching and cats bum mouthed, but I will never think it's healthy (in lots of senses) for anyone to eat like this.

I know!

OP’s son has been described on here as “brilliant” and “lovely”

Why?!

All he has done is sat and home and scoffed about 30 quids worth of food in the space of 24 hours.

what’s lovely or brilliant about that?! How is that pat on the back worthy?!

Can anyone explain to me? As I just don’t get it!

Agreed. That people find this level of gluttony cute or funny or endearing is baffling to me. I have a very normal attitude to food and like my grub but some of the amounts being described here - and the types of food being eaten - actually disgust me.

Also, the teeth marks in cheese is so unreasonable it made me shudder - I would definitely be going non contact or grey rocking anyone who did that (I'm sorry I can't see who posted that, but a perching stool and one of these rocking knives makes cheese so much easier to cut. I don't want this to seem patronising especially if you already have one but I speak from experience as I love cheese  and those knives are so useful).

@IheartJKRowling

That makes more sense now you’ve explained the context.

But regardless I wouldn’t want to eat cheese that has someone else’s teeth marks in, regardless of whether or not I am related to them!

Nothing , I would not leave a child alone over night especially one who was immature enough to stay up all night gaming.
I am convinced many parents see the number 6 and convert it into an 8!
But lots of adult do this. He didn't have work or school next day, didn't have to be up with the kids, didn't have to drive anywhere. He hung out with mates and slept in the next morning to catch up. What exactly is wrong with that? I've been known to stay out til 4with my mates drinking and I'm in my 30s with kids.

Teenagers often have bottomless pits for stomachs or hollow legs, as my mum used to say, but that is a heck of a lot of calories! I think teenager may have had help with the consumption of said food 😂
Once they have to fend for themselves & their own pocket is hit with food costs they will rein it in but with absolute freedom then they are gonna eat the addictive foods not the healthy ones.
I imagine my kiddo would do the same 😝

holding a knife is pretty much out of the question while using crutches and balancing on one leg. As for being unhygienic 🤣
I'm not sure that's an excuse for chewing on a lump of cheese and putting it back in the fridge. And of course it's unhygienic, do you not think his saliva over the food you then eat is weird? If he's going to come over to your house, eat your food and then leave and you're fine with that, why not take the chewed block of s+cheese with him?

Why are people laying in to the OP so much?! Especially when the criticism seems to range from 'OMG you left him alone 😱' to 'why isn't this man-boy capable of running a house already?!' Clearly you can't win OP 🤣

Washing your own dishes, disposing of your rubbish and walkng the dog is hardly 'running a house'.

Jesus wept.

My son, would have done the same. But if I didn't leave drinks, he wouldn't have drunk.
He can always find food, but managed to miss the bright red jug, filled with juice, near the cupboard with the snacks in.
So I have to tend to leave bottles of drink around for him.

yes exactly, well said

@Morgysmum

he could have just had water

when he’s thirsty, he’ll drink

My husband is 50 and can eat the whole fridge clean. He's skinny as anything. Some people are just lucky like that

@YukoandHiro

Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should

How come your tap water isn't drinkable? I'd be concerned about a teenager who didn't ever feel thirst.

To be fair to some commentators, my parents left me alone all the time when I was 16. I wasn't expected to run the house but if I hadn't cleared up after myself then I would have been in trouble.

Not washing up his dishes isnt funny.