To ask if you think 6 fish fingers is too many for a 3 year old boy to have for dinner?

[BasinHaircut]

along with half a 400g run of baked beans and chips.

Need to settle an arguement.

Cheers

It is fucking LOADS! 6 is a lot for an adult, unless you are using them in a sandwich, IMO.

Yes - my 7 year old has 3-4 fish fingers, 1/3 tin of beans, peas and some form of carb, and he eats a lot, often more than me. My 4 year old eats less than this.

Fish fingers and chips isn't a healthy meal at the best of times and those portion sizes were substantial. Provided that it was a once off and not a regular occurance, I don't think I'd bother saying anything to MIL though.

However, if she was regularly feeding the child chips and fishfingers (especially in those quantities), it would be a different matter.

Not too much if he is asking for them, even on top of the baked beans and chips. Small children can sometimes ask for what looks like a lot if they are having a growth spurt. If he asks, I wouldn't refuse.

My DS would eat about 15 of them when he was 10 and it got worse when he was in his teen years. He wouldn't touch fish fingers when he was three but he would eat a good deal of chicken or anything else that he liked. I used to have four fish fingers in a toast sandwich for breakfast on school mornings from abut age five on. Yes, yes, I know.

I think you should ease off on your worries about him developing a weight problem if he is not showing any signs of having one, and if he is active.

If he is able to pack away six fish fingers plus the beans and chips then maybe you should consider that you are underfeeding him a bit?

I wondered how a thread about fishfingers could get over 200 posts on it,should've remembered the competitive eating weirdness of mumsnet.

People should eat when they're hungry and stop when they're full regardless of whether the plate is empty or not.
Maybe all this angst could be avoided by adopting this way of eating from the very start.

he's asking for them / eating them because he can.

doesn't mean he should.

There was a thread recently where someone stated that peanut M&Ms were more nutritious than potatoes. Because mashed potato is basically the most nutritionally deficient food there is. Apparently.

So I suppose Haribo are more nutritious than fishfingers?

When she was 3 she would have 2 with one waffle and some veg

I'm fairly partial to a fish finger sandwich (comfort food) but I'd only have three. Six seems excessive.

That's too much for me as a 42 yr old, I give my son who's 6 about 3 fish fingers with a few beans, and about 10 chips max. Or sometimes I give him a corn on the cob as he is not keen on beans

I am going to go against the grain here and say if he ate it it may not have been too much. Perhaps he was extra hungry? Or do you think his granny might have coaxed him into eating it when he didn't want it?m

Older women do not have the nutritional needs of growing children. Children can go through hungry phases associated with growth or periods of extra activity or even the change to colder weather.

I agree with you Liiinoo. My only qualm would be if gran was making him eat/clean his plate.

I personally was only limited to four fish fingers by the size of the average slice of bread as a child. I would have eaten more in my breakfast sandwich if I could have fit more in.

Way too much considering his tummy is the size of his hand ! Although I have had this argument with my partner who feels the need to put huge servings on the kids plates .

Yes

I'm going to disagree with the majority. My DS could have eaten it easily. Not every day but every now and then he'd go through a growth spurt, turn ravenous, eat more than I'd ever believe then ask for more.
He's now a slim if very tall six year old and eats a lot more than me sometimes.

I'd have 3 or 4 myself and 1/2 a can of beans. And I am size 20/22 so yes far far too much!

My 6 year old dad has been having 4 since she was 3 and often asks for more, if DH is on dinner duty she has been known to con him into giving her 8!!

By the way, she's very active and healthy and is around the 2nd percentile

my 2 and a half YO will easily eat half a tin of beans but he'll only eat 1 fish finger even though he loves them, it does seem like a lot.

when i was 6 i could easily eat 5 "chick sticks" for dinner with mashed potato and vegetables, it was my favourite meal and I was always hungry, don't think my mum realised how big my appetite was. i was very slim and active though as a child

That's too much under any circumstance.

Doesn't the size make and quality count. Did eats 4 of an everyday brand but will have two if homemade or a decent brand.

Six is a lot but what's all this shite about stretched tummy's and children's meals 'should' be like dolls house portions. No wonder dc can't get from one meal to the next without the constant face stuffing now.

DS1 (three) can make his way through three weetabix and two slices of toast covered in peanut butter for breakfast or eat five bananas on the way back from nursery. I don't encourage him, don't praise him for eating a lot, but also don't tell him to stop or otherwise tell him off. It balances out - huge breakfast usually means very little for lunch or dinner. Sometimes he'll down huge portions for a few days and then eat almost nothing for the next few days. Sometimes he podges up a bit and then we know there's a growth spurt coming. It works out fine in the end and we avoid drama. Now getting dressed, that's another matter...

I also think, if he has no weight issues, and doesn't tend to overeat generally, there is no problem as a one off.
My children will sometimes eat literally nothing at a meal, and will sometimes eat what would be considered a portion far too large for their age and size. They are able to regulate their eating based on hunger, and are both slim. I have not once told them they are not allowed more of a savory food.
I understand, that some children may have a tendency to over eat, but most should be allowed to eat until they are full. I have seen some friends unessessarily restricting food(especially sadly with girls) which has resulted in their children seeming to be obsessed with eating.

At that age and even now (older DD is 5) I wouldn't restrict food quantities. So if one day my girl had wanted 6 fish fingers and a full tin of beans well no problem! Id just make sure the next meals are bit more balanced/healthy but no major problem. I restrict what I offer (not many of those junk kids yoghurts, no sugary treats - some nice biscuits/dark choc if need be -, no fruit shoot crap, etc) but not quantities. Kids at that age know their appetite much better than we do.

My 3-year old girl gets 3 fish fingers and maybe one tablespoon of beans - with a small side of peas/corn. Most of the time she manages to finish all but there are times she leaves a little. Don't know if this is too big a portion or not but she's always been on the 50% line on the growth charts.

^^ Sorry meant to say she's 2.5 not 3.