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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Wtf do kids eat this much?

444 replies

Esmeismyhero · 01/03/2016 16:35

Ds is 5 and 3 months (I don't know if that is relevant)

He goes to school, he does karate one day a week and the weekend he is usually running around out etc. After school he watches his iPad, does homework, runs around the house, plays toys etc.

He is very slim but very tall for his age. Lately he has been eating me out of house and home.

Today for example he ate

A bowl of cherrios
An apple
A school dinner
1/2 punnet of grapes
5 strawberries
2 x chicken dinosaurs
Beans

He is apparently still hungry????

Hasn't he had enough? Or Aibu?

He will have milk before bed and I'll ask dh to give him a carrot if he is still hungry while I'm at work tonight. He likes eating whole carrots on his own, I keep finding the carrot stalks hidden :/

OP posts:
dementedpixie · 01/03/2016 16:37

No carbs with the turkey and beans?

dementedpixie · 01/03/2016 16:38

Not many calories in the fruit either

dementedpixie · 01/03/2016 16:38

Sorry chicken not turkey but question still stands

AlwaysDancing1234 · 01/03/2016 16:39

I'd say you need some carbs with the chicken dinosaur and beans like a small jacket spud or some pasta.

SunnySomer · 01/03/2016 16:40

I'm not sure what a chicken dinosaur is, but don't you give him any carbs for tea? Maybe some potatoes. My DS would probably have a yoghurt for pudding. School dinner could be massive or virtually nothing depending how he feels, so I don't tend to rely on it to be a substantial meal.

Katedotness1963 · 01/03/2016 16:40

It doesn't seem excessive over the day. No carbs with the evening meal?

whifflesqueak · 01/03/2016 16:40

fruit is great but it's mostly water.

not going to fill him up much.

Moln · 01/03/2016 16:41

What was the school dinner. Carbohydrates are a little on the low side - can he eat bread?

FrozenPonds · 01/03/2016 16:41

Gosh, my five year old eats way more than that.

Eggs and toast for breakfast, a sandwich mid morning, lunch, a few biscuits, and dinner with pudding.

SweepTheHalls · 01/03/2016 16:41

That really doesn't seem very much to me..... ) DS 7 and 5 here )

JuxtapositionRecords · 01/03/2016 16:42

That's a lot of sugar and not much protein. The sugar will burn off quickly leaving him with a 'sugar low' and then feel hungry again.

Can you get more protein into him and less sugar? Eggs, cheese, meat etc

Tiggeryoubastard · 01/03/2016 16:42

You're not feeding him enough! I'm not surprised he's still hungry, poor kid. Seriously? 2 chicken dinosaurs and beans for his dinner? What a miserable meal. He needs more than that. And school dinners are tiny.

nickEcave · 01/03/2016 16:42

It depends how big the school dinner is. At my kids primary the portions are tiny and they are always starving when they come out of school. My 5 year old DD is tiny but on a typical school day will eat bowl of cereal, slice of toast and peanut butter, school lunch, apple, 2 pancakes, and dinner might be something like 3 sausages, mash and peas.

LagunaBubbles · 01/03/2016 16:42

Doesnt seem that bad or excessive to me really. What makes you think it is?

confusedandemployed · 01/03/2016 16:42

My 3yr old would probably eat more than this Confused

slanleat · 01/03/2016 16:42

i would be giving him something more than a carrot after that list. If it had been my son at that age he would have been eating more than your list (I admit I do not know what is in a school dinner but assume its the same as you might get at home.)

I'd give him a sandwich or cereal before bed, not a carrot.

SunnySomer · 01/03/2016 16:43

Actually for a snack after school my DS tends to have a piece of toast, or a toasted tea cake or something filling like that. (He's a bit older, but has always been hungry after school). Maybe if it has to be fruit a banana would be good?

mamapants · 01/03/2016 16:43

That isnt very much. My 18mth old and four year old eat more than that.

JuxtapositionRecords · 01/03/2016 16:43

Also how much does he drink, hunger and thirst can get confused

LagunaBubbles · 01/03/2016 16:43

And carbohydrates are needed for energy.

ollieplimsoles · 01/03/2016 16:44

That doesn't seem like much at all to me, fruit is just water really and is digested really quickly.
He needed a jacket potato or something with evening meal, what did he have for dinner at school?

At first I thought stealth boast at the amount of fruit he ate tbh..

ShoppingBasket · 01/03/2016 16:45

School dinners are small. If Reception times are the same as here he is having dinner at 11.45...
My DS eats another full dinner in the evening.

MLGs · 01/03/2016 16:45

It doesn't seem much to me either. I would serve some potatoes with that dinner.
My DD would probably have wanted toast or similar after school at 5 (she's now 7) rather than just fruit. And yogurt or something for pudding (full fat). She's very skinny BTW but tall.

fredfredgeorgejnrsnr · 01/03/2016 16:45

A sedentary 5 year old, should probably be eating about the same number of calories as their sedentary mother. Of course on top of that you really hope neither are sedentary and actual calories used exercising will be less for the child, but still you'd've thought an active 5 year old would require more calories than their mother unless she exercised a lot.

What did you eat today?

Vandree · 01/03/2016 16:46

Add up the calories over the day. Doesn't sound like a lot. How much fat and protein does he have in the day? Fruit doesn't have a lot of calories and breakfast had no protein and dinner had not a lot of carbs. I have 2 very active slim girls who eat more than that. Breakfast is weetabix with fruit and a slice of wholegrain toast with peanut butter. Lunch is a chicken salad sandwich with fruit, babybel and 2 breadsticks (over 2 small lunch breaks). Dinner will be spaghetti and meatballs with veg and they will have natural yogurt, nuts as snacks and a banana if still hungry. They are both tall and are on the lower percentile for weight according to their height.