is 15yo dd eating too much?

[nuttyveg]

i've posted on teenagers, but i haven't gotten many responses, so i thought i'd post here for traffic.
15yo dd has been eating more recently and i don't know if it's too much or not, she's a healthy weight, not like a beanpole but not fat.
today she's had
2 slices of vegan cheese on seedy toast and a milky coffee made with oat milk and stevia for breakfast
about 5 wedges, 4 mini falafels, 3 oreos and a small handful of salt and vinegar crisps for lunch
4 more oreos as a snack
and will be having chickpea and roasted vegetable soup for dinner with a slice or two of seedy bread
and homemade apple cake with custard for pudding
and she usually has a bowl of cereal with oat milk before bed, so i imagine she will tonight too.
thank you for any responses

My two year old definitely eats more than that 😂 defo not eating too much other than the Oreo's & cheese pretty low calorie intake x

I eat more than that and I'm three times her age! Only thing I noticed is the complete lack of fresh fruit and vegetables - is that normal for her? 5 a day is a minimum to aim for.

@StatementKnickers some days she would have 10 portions of fruit and veg, but others like today she would eat a lot less.

When I was a teen, I used to spend all my dinner money on chips and doughnuts every day...but my mum fed us nutritious meals as well as we were really active so it balanced out.

I don’t think she’s over eating at all, but I would make sure she was getting more nutritious food in there too and plenty of exercise. She should be eating more grains, pulses and veggies if possible.

My 15 year has had a bowl of cereal, a banana, tomato soup with crusty bread for lunch and some oreos. Dinner will be vegetable fajitas.

That's not a lot at all, I think it sounds very little, especially only having soup for dinner because you're having pudding! It's a friday in a pandemic, live a little.

And it's very bizarre you say if she started to gain weight you would restrict her food! At what point would this be? A few lbs, half a stone, a stone?? In my experience teens weight fluctuates as girls especially tend to put it on and look a bit over weight and then develop hips and slim out. Then maybe put a bit more on and then develop boobs and slim out. It will probably fluctuate between ages 13 and 18, you cant control her food!

It doesn’t seem like a lot to me, my 14 yr old eats way more than that. Too many biscuits though but again not unusual for that age. They’re growing and hungry

That doesn't sound like a lot to me, I eat more than that and I'm 47 and slim. Today for example I had two poached eggs on sourdough with butter, a cup of tea, a little bonne maman almond cake with a flat white made with ff milk. A chicken thigh, paprika potatoes, salad, coleslaw and corn on the cob, (butter on the corn, dressing on the salad, aioli for my potatoes), passionfruit cordial and sparkling water. Bowl of fruit salad. I'm making pizza, garlic flatbread and caesar salad for dinner, will probably have a coke. A few beers and possibly a couple of margaritas later. Crisps will probably feature somewhere too. And I don't think that's a great deal!

there is cross contamination in the manufacturing process so they will contain trace animal products. But most vegans ignore this as everyone needs a treat!

The cross contamination thing is because of allergies. They are basically covering their backs so they don't get sued.

Cross contamination isn't really something vegans worry about however because it's all about reducing demand for animal products.

If we want to argue that oreos aren't vegan because they may have come into contact with milk at some point then nothing I make in my own kitchen is vegan either because DS and DP both eat meat and dairy and it may come into contact with the vegan food I make.

lots of nasty processed crap in there and not much actual filling food. OK, vegan but where's the fruit and veg beyond the soup and a bit of apple in cake?

if this is the odd 'eat crap' day then fine. If that's what she normally eats she will be both fat and malnourished. Vegans, especially teenage vegans, need to work at getting the right nutrition.

What is her diet like on a typical day/in a typical week? 7 oreos plus cake and custard would be concerning if it happened daily, but you indicate that today is something of a one off. So why did you choose to write about today as if it somehow represented her usual diet?

The real issue seems to be that you struggled with eating disorders in the past and may still have some disordered thinking around food. IMO it's really important to face up to that and work through those issues.

Honestly don’t bother to analyse her food too much. Mumsnet is protein and carbs obsessed and will tear meal plans apart. It is not an unhealthy diet and she is eating healthier than most teens. Move on to worrying about something else.

The cross contamination thing is because of allergies. They are basically covering their backs so they don't get sued.
Yes, I agree it matters more for allergies because that is dangerous and does open themselves up to a lawsuit. But their FAQs categorically state they are not vegan, because they are not.

Well OP, I'm neither vegetarian or vegan so can't give specific advice but presume that she is aware that going for a limited diet doesn't just mean cutting things out and replacing with similar? This needs to be thoroughly thought through and properly balanced, especially when they are still growing.

I would suggest that she is eating "rubbish" because she is hungry as her diet isn't filling her or keeping her feeling full. I suggest that she needs (and you) to look at what a balanced vegan diet actually looks like and introduce some more filling healthy foods into her diet.

Most folk are eating more and eating more treat foods because it's become the focus of our days so I wouldn't worry about that, this situation won't be forever.

It doesn't sound like a lot. It doesn't sound the healthiest but shes a teenager and this lockdown!- she needs to eat more fruit and veg , protein and probably some B12 unless putting yeast flakes on food.

But and I mean this kindly- OP do you have food issues? What shes eating is pretty good for a 15 year old. Pretty good for most people really...

Why are you monitoring what your daughter eats and her weight so much?! Is it really the end of the world if she did gain a few pounds? You sound like my dad and I now can't eat in front of him because of years of him making comments and observations about what I eat. So damaging

That and her not being allowed to eat in her room. She's 15, not 5!

Put it into myfitnesspal, it really isn’t a lot of calories

And yes MN is weirdly obsessed by carbs and sugar, a poster was being berated the other day when she said that she'd replaced carbs in her meals for raw grated carrots. Carrots are apparently 'very carby' and 'full of sugar'.

But their FAQs categorically state they are not vegan, because they are not.

They are because they don't actually contain animal products.

Their FAQ's is just to cover themselves because of allergies.

I would swap oreo & crisps for lunch with something else, maybe salad etc. Amount is fine, but balance isn't. Too much empty calories.

I would not put your dd on a diet ever. She would need outside support if ever necessary, which it isn’t right now. You don’t know how to do it by the sound of it at all. You could seriously damage her mental health.

I think you need to change your thinking about proper puddings. These are fine to eat after a proper meal.

If your dd is not busy and not exercising, perhaps it would be a great opportunity right now for her to make some healthier treats than Oreos. My dd eats a low sugar “cake” for breakfast some days for example. Far better than a croissant. I would much rather dd ate home made apple crumble made with far less sugar and processed crap than Oreos. She also eats the latter btw.

I have a really disordered relationship with food, so I tried to make it a non-issue with my son. Slightly scuppered by the ex-husband giving very strong 'food is a reward' messages, but hey ho.

My son has always eaten loads - he was eating more than me from age 7. He's been skinny, he's been plump. He's now skinny again (18).

He eats like I do not know what. It costs me so much with him being here for COVID19. I wish I could eat that much without gaining weight - but he doesn't.

I think if she is eating intuitively and is not overweight, I'd leave her be. I began dieting at 12. I've not stopped since. I've been skinny and I've been fat, but I've always been dieting. Just like my mum.

I'm hoping the chain is broken with my son.

It doesn't sound like much but it is a lot of processed food.

As a one off, though, I really wouldn't worry.

Doesn't sound much and very healthy to me (except the cookies) we have munched through more here but also have run 8km (well panted through!)

@Mummyoflittledragon thank you. i'll ask her later if she wants to make some cake or cookies together tomorrow.