Talk

Flip

1 2

AIBU?

to think she's not eating enough?

39 replies

happylittlefish · 03/07/2016 09:01

Dd13 is quite skinny and very small for her age. She's really active but I'm convinced she's not eating enough. Yesterday she had

2 weetabix with milk
Chicken sandwich, apple
Salmon fillet, rice, broccoli

She complains of being hungry but doesn't eat anything except her meals.
What do your kids eat? How can I ensure she eats enough?

OP posts:

Report

Benedikte2 · 03/07/2016 10:19

Maybe encourage her to eat cheap protein like eggs which are healthy and sustaining. Maybe Google good food for athletes and explain to her she needs food which will help her maintain her endurance.
Seems like you are doing a great job with such a large family with conflicting needs!

Report

RubbleBubble00 · 03/07/2016 10:28

What about her coaches. Cousins coaches encouraged them to eat lots of protein. Or perhaps dietician too help her with her diet to show the type of foods she needs to be eating to fuel her body for sport. Explaining she won't be able to compete very well if she hasn't eaten enough or the right foods

Report

happylittlefish · 03/07/2016 10:32

Yes, I think I'll have a word with her coaches to see if they can encourage her to eat more. She does quite a lot of sport so really does need to eat more. Thanks for all replies so far 😊

OP posts:

Report

bananapeanut · 03/07/2016 10:44

This sounds like what I ate every day when I had anorexia, almost to the letter.

I ate quite "a lot" for an anorexic

Maybe keep careful eye OP?

Report

sleepwhenidie · 03/07/2016 10:49

Wimbledon is the perfect opportunity to illustrate the point, observe the players taking on fuel (usually dates/bananas) to keep their performance up

Report

specialsubject · 03/07/2016 10:55

Twisted perception of ' healthy' , possibly due to peers talking babble, toxic TV and magazines and celeb nonsense ( remember what paltrow boasted about doing to her kids due to ignorance)

Healthy is not starving. No food is unhealthy.people need food in the right proportions and right amounts. Children need more than adults. Hope she can see this.

Report

ILostItInTheEarlyNineties · 03/07/2016 11:00

When I was 12 yrs old, my older sister had anorexia and had started some counselling, everyone in the family was very worried about her, she was under a lot of stress with her exams.
I started limiting my own food. Partly because I felt I wanted some attention in my large family, partly because my older sister and I were quite competitive and as also, as you have mentioned, food became such a huge issue in our house with a lot of focus on what we were all eating.

I wonder if your Dd feels the same? She may be feeling under some pressure about her upcoming sporting events as well and thinks losing weight is one thing she can do to be more successful.

Report

PrincessHairyMclary · 03/07/2016 11:00

Definetly yes about coaches talking to her and possibly approach from a "if you don't fuel your body properly you won't perform as well" direction.

You sound like you are doing a fab job. Do you prepare her meals, you could always hide some extra high calorie foods in with her meals such as seeds and nuts with her weetabix etc. flax seeds are really good and if you buy them ground up she wouldn't know she was eating them. Green smoothies are very popular at the moment or smoothie bowls topped with fruit and stuff. Or ice cream made from frozen bananas.

Report

ILostItInTheEarlyNineties · 03/07/2016 11:07

Eating disorders are often about being in control so it might help to let your daughter chose some foods to put on your shopping list, and to allow her to prepare some meals for herself.

Report

happylittlefish · 03/07/2016 11:08

Yes I do prepare the meals - it is a lot easier than having 8 kids wandering around the kitchen!
As pp said I think she may be limiting her own food due to her sisters situation, and I'll have a talk to her about it. Thanks for replies again 😊

OP posts: