My 10mo boy ate a whole baked potato for tea.

[squidzin]

Hi, DS is about 85th centile in height and Weight so is admittedly big. He's actually the same size as my friends 18mo boy.

DS eats A LOT. We're pescetarian.

I cook rather than buy babyfood. Every morning he has porridge made from normal Sainsburys oats and he'll have a small adult sized portion. He'll often have a whole banana after his lunch.

AIBU in worrying about leading him into obesity so young? I don't over encourage, or stop him eating. He just eats so much more than all other 10mo babies I know...

My ds probably ate more at ten months than he does now at 24months.
He was a bottle refuser and didn't bf much after 10mo but we did give him lots of cheese and yoghurt and made his morning porridge up with formula.

Our oldest DS was the same,he still eats loads now but he's slim and muscular and 6ft 1 and I breastfed him till he was 13 months old and he had 3 meals and a couple of snacks a day.

He's never been overweight and he's 19 now and still growing height and foot wise.

I never gave mayonnaise at such a young age though.

All your advice is really helpful thanku.

I wouldn't worry about it. My two kids used to eat loads as babies, but at 20 months and 4, they eat less I reckon, especially the older one. I totally think they self regulate if you let them. I often give my kids quite large portions, because I am crap at portion control, and they rarely finish it. They know when they are full.

I wouldn't worry too much about the milk either. I know 'food is for fun until they are one' etc. but plenty of babies just take to food really well and just don't need loads of milk, providing they are having a balanced diet.

My 10 month old dd could easily eat a whole baked potato and then more, she's massive too, 91st centile for height and weight and just going into 18-24 month clothes.
She's does stop eating when she's full even if there's still food left so I'm just trusting that she'll self regulate. She doesn't eat much protein either, it's always offered but she'll either not touch it or only eat a tiny bit of it. She's all about the carbs.
I'll worry about her size if it becomes a problem later but I reckon she'll definitely eat less as she gets older.

At least he can't get in a car then run himself over, Brian Harvey style

He'll be fine. If you think he's overweight then yes, restrict portions, but generally children that age eat what they need.

If he's hungry feed him. It's not going to do him any favours keeping him hungry when his tummy is rumbling for more!
My dd eats a lot and when she was younger I used to worry it was too much (and others liked to point it out too which was upsetting) but now she's older she still eats a lot but she's slender. She's on the 85th percentile. Being taller and growing more than those on (for example) the 25th percentile means she needs to eat more, so I'm sure that's the same with your boy.

My dd was polishing off portions like that too. If she had any sort of casserole/ spag bol she'd usually eat an adult size cereal bowl full. She was a right fatty, became a normal weight toddler, and a skinny kid. She's now a skinny preteen. And always been exceptionally tall. At all ages food was always about hunger and nothing more.
That said I think I'd also bear in mind what your own eating habits/ size is like. If you tend to over eat and have weight problems, it's easy to miss the difference between hungry toddler and eating because it tastes nice, boredom etc which is where a healthy appetite becomes over eating.

Ehm giving a 10 month old mayo? Also I do not think baked beans are good for such a small child as they are full of sugar and salt ...

Mayo - eggs and oil. Kids need fat

I dont agree with large portions for children. It sets them up for problems. I gave my DS a small amount relevant to the size of a tiny stomache and let him ask for more.

My DH and I were reminiscing this week 'do you remember when ds ate all that jacket and beans'. He would have been 10 months or so, and it was the best food for him on a cafe menu.

Now he's much more likely to have half of one, haven't weighed him recently but in a mix of 2/3 and 3/4 clothes (he's 3 and four months), can see his ribs, and seems in proportion. So it may not last.

My 7 month old will eat a whole baked potato with cheese!

hahahaaa at tiny stomach/small portions. My kids screamed for more food at that age. ds1 91st centile and ds2 off the chart. They both ate, on an average day, 2 weetabix and a banana at breakfast, 2 slices of toast and a scrambled egg and beans for lunch, a small adult portion of shepherds pie and veg and gravy and fruit and custard for dinner. Never snacked - i don't so it never occurred to me to give them any. DS1 now at 3yo is as skinny as anything (still 91st for weight but looks 5 with height) and eats way less. He seemed to eat really well and be quite a podger till 2yo then his appetite dropped and he grew quite tall. DS2 is only just 1 and eats way more than ds1. I'm not worried, he's very tall too and altho a right armful of cuddle, he looks in proportion and is wearing 2-3yo clothes

The equation is about 50 calories per pound that they weigh at that age. So as my 10month olds weighed approx 30lb, that meant they needed 1500 cals per day. If you think 2 weetabix and a banana is about 4-500 cals, same for 2 slices of bread and 1 egg and beans, same for dinner etc. It all seems fine and adds up to roughly 1500 (neither of them drink milk btw).

If you are worried work out your ds's weight and how many calories he needs and then calculate what he eats in a day.

Why is it funny to put small portions on a plate at first? They do have small stomachs and it worked for me. My son has never gone through a bit of a chunky stage. He's remained a right body weight throughout and still is at 17.

autumn I don't think mrskoala would have been force feeding her dc, I assume like me by 10 months she had a good idea of what portions they usually ate.
My dd looked like she was preparing to hibernate in the Arctic as a baby. Just as well, considering how much weight she lost by 4. We don't do tiny portions.
Age 11 she wears adult size clothes and eats loads. Today was fairly typical. 3 crumpets, a bacon sandwich at break. School dinner of fish and new potatoes, not sure of portion size but presume reasonable as she only ate half a bread roll with it. A good size lump of cheese. Adult portion of meatballs and spaghetti with 1/3 garlic baguette and half a biscuit. Plus at least 5 portions of fruit, probably more, and a few portions of veg.

From that she sounds like she's huge and food obsessed. She's actually 5'7, wears an adult size 4 but could do with a 2, as they're the closest fit. And has done more exercise than I care to list. What suits one child doesn't suit them all.

At 10mo you shouldn't be resticting food imo.
As long as he is getting a healthy, balanced diet then he should eat until he doesn't want any more.
Make the most of it whilst he's wanting to eat!

My 10mo ds is the same. He has 3 decent sized meals per day but only 2x 6oz of formula (refuses to have anymore than this). He'd easily eat a whole jacket spud plus ours! Its nothing to worry about. My ds is much bigger than most 18month olds but he's not overweight in the slightest. Id prefer him to have a good appetite than to be a fussy / picky eater.

Why are you twisting my words Lurked. You are in charge of potion sizes surely? A small stomach equals a small amount of food. Its not rocket science. Give appropriate amounts of food to a small child. More than that and the stomach will grow and the child will expect more.

portion

When my two were babies they ate loads as soon as they got into weaning. Now they are toddlers, they are more fussy discerning and sometimes have a large meal, then not so much other days. I'm pleased they don't feel they have to clean their plates.

Stop and think for a minute autumn. Do you think those of us who had big eaters just randomly decided to quadruple portion sizes one day and see if they'd eat it? Hasn't it crossed your mind that by 10 months most of us had a rough idea how much our babies usually ate? Just like making a meal for myself. I don't make a half portion, eat it and then cook the other half. I have a fair idea of what I normally eat and thus serve myself the usual large amount.
I did feed appropriate amounts of food. Appropriately large. Nor do I see that it's had any negative effect on expanding her stomach. Quite the opposite.

Lurked to be fair an 11 year old girl in adult clothes eating that much on a daily basis is shocking. And you saying 'we dont do small portions' just reinforces the need for portion control as some kids just do not self regulate their appetite

Im only giving my opinion and not wishing to offend Lurked. I always just gave small portions and it worked for me and my DS. He has remained a steady weight throughout his growth. I do believe that stomachs stretch to accommodate. By doing this I honestly believe that I guarded against my child becoming overweight. I believe babies do regulate but by the age of 1 they are no longer self regulating and its down to what we put on their plates.

sharon try reading the full post before sharing your thoughts, you've made yourself look quite silly. She's 5'7 and wears a size 4 because size 2 is like rocking horse poo, thus it's the closest I can get to accommodate her height. Is that clear enough? Or do you have such a warped sense of size you think that's on the chunky side?
Perhaps if you are going to offer your opinion on someone's child and eating habits you should read the whole post.
I eat shit loads too, guess who had the other 2/3 of garlic baguette with their meal? I also struggle to find clothes to fit in high street shops. Because I'm 6' and a small size 6. Go on have yourself a ball being shocked and talking about my inability to self regulate with that one too.