Childhood obesity - when does it start?!

[Smarshian]

So we all know that children are getting fatter and that we need to as a society tackle this problem.
My DD is 17 months. She eats and eats and eats and eats. I feed her a healthy diet, plenty of fruit and veg etc but she will keep going. She very rarely doesn't finish a meal. She always wants some of anything we have and won't be distracted until all the food is gone.
When I was weaning/ over the last few months everyone has told me not to worry and that she will self regulate. When do I worry? When she is 2? 3? I feel like everyone just dismisses my concerns and that I am going to end up with an unhealthy child.

She is currently 98th centile for height and 95th for weight (although this was about 3 months ago - not been to hv since).

not really underweight... just not as big as other kids would be at that height. Percentiles are becoming deceptive given that so many kids are becoming fat, the avg is now heavier than it should be ideally.

re fat kids: can happen at any age.

She won't eat like this forever. Kids eat a lot. The trick is to offer a balanced diet, not too much processed food and make sure they move a lot to burn it off. Stick to water/milk for drinks and save others for special occasions. When they have treats, they share them, so they aren't denied (I think that this is important) but amongst the four of them, they don't get huge amounts each.

My kids have their annual check ups and we discuss it then. My Peadiatrician told me last year to watch one of my kids, as their weight was starting to creep up a little. I cut back on shop bought snacks and tried to be more prepared so I was able to make more meals from scratch (have very busy schedule).

This year, no concerns were raised at all.

Try not to make an issue about it and use your common sense. Sounds like you are doing a great job so far.

Op forget the measurements.

Kids can seem to put on weight and then shoot up in height.

All our 6 kids have been bullky then skinny as they grew. Especially around aged 9/10/12/ when they all seemed puppy fat and then growth spurted up.

The best thing you can do as a parent is move with your kids. Swimming/dancing/running/ cycling. Feed her fruit/veg treats and keep moving.

Toddlers can look plump. The fact you are worrying means you are on top of things

Teenage boys eat constantly. Literally constantly.

I had a Buddha baby... DS1 cried for more milk constantly and once on solids ate everything possible. At first it was great compared to his sister a year older who did not like food at all. By aged 2 and 1 they were the same weight!
By 2 he was 'solid' by 3 he was square... definitely on the porky side . I was really concerned that he was going to be the fat child at school, but at some point between 4 and 5 he just slimmed down as he grew, with no particular change in diet.
Ever after he was on the thin side... not very tall (25th centile) but never over 25th for weight either..after being 99th centile as a toddler!

Now an adult... who moans that he can't get to 10 stone (he's 5 ft 10 so not tall but not short as he was a kid) He became a very active kid.. rode a 2 wheeler from 3 years old, got his first skates at 4 and has been a stunt skater ever since... He can still eat incredible amounts of food, but generally only eats one real meal a day...tons of pasta, and is built like a whippet!

I think if we had been a 'snacky' family he might have stayed heavy, but as we generally eat healthily, he naturally stretched up and out as he grew.

Just keep an eye on snacks and portion sizes and you'll probably find that your dd just stretches up and not out as she grows :)