Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

Flip

Original poster

Does anyone have a 15 month old who eats LOADS!

10 replies

tryingtobemarypoppins2 · 28/05/2011 18:45

We have a 3 year old and a 15month old. Our 3 year old in tiny like me and eats like a sparrow, our 15month is a bigger build like my DH, who struggles with his belly!

Our 15 month old has a massive appetite: example of today:

x2 adult size bowls of shreddies
bag of baby rice, curry x1 portion
2 baby biscuits
a slice of carrot cake then pinched his brothers!
1 goodies date bar
grapes and strawberries - handfull
1 goodies bar again!
x1 weetabix (runny really late and tired so needed something fast)

Do you think this sounds too much?? We are going to get him weighed this week, he looks in proportion but I don't want him to struggle with his weight like my DH.

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

catwhiskers10 · 28/05/2011 20:08

It does sound a lot but if his weight is ok then I wouldn't worry about it as long as the food is healthy.
My DD is 15 months and has always had a big appetite and eats a lot. She eats lots of fruit and veg though and her weight is normal for her age and she's very active so I don't see a problem.
If weight becomes a problem, I would address it but as long as he's healthy and you are happy with what you are feeding him I wouldn't worry.

notnowbernard · 28/05/2011 20:17

I've had 2 15m olds with BIG appetites, yes. Think DC3 is going the same way

2 bowls of Shreddies does sound a lot, though. Could you try porridge instead with fruit or something? Maybe more filling

The snacks are the sort mine used to have

Otherwise sounds ok to me (am guessing he'd usually have a 'normal' evening meal?

lecce · 28/05/2011 20:28

My ds1 was like this at that age. I wouldn't have given 2 bowls of shreddies though, he used to have 2 weetabix with fruit and then 1/2 slices of toast - so I suppose a similar amount but perhaps less sugary/ more varied?

I remember once I took him to La Tasca with friends and their dc and one friend was amazed and said , "He eats like a bloke!" He ate a lot more than her (picky) 15yr old and the meal cost me a fortune as it was decided he had eaten more than his fair share.

Yes he ate anything and everything, loads of fruit, full meals and lots of snacks such as oat-cakes, bread sticks etc.

He is now 4.2 and has a much lighter appetite and has become fussy after 2 years of eating anything put in front of him. He still has the same breakfast but often only has a few mouthfuls at meal-times.

I do think it's normal for babies to eat loads but they don't always keep the habit.

Tigresswoods · 28/05/2011 21:52

Yep, similar to what DS (15 months) ate today. We find we have a run of hungry days and then a few "bird" days. He was ill about 2 months ago and lost a lot of weigh, it was then I realised it was actually quite good he was tubby as it wasn't too much of a problem when he lost some.

DS has started walking a lot recently so I guess he has a lot of energy being burned. If he is awake he is pretty much on the go!

Firawla · 28/05/2011 22:49

my ds2 can also eat loads, he is 17 months now but he was the same at 15 months. like if i got a plate of pasta thinking him and ds1 (nearly 3) can share it maybe ds1 would eat a tiny bit and get bored then ds2 would be there ready to finish the whole lot! but i think they do tend to grow out of this habit when they get a bit older? as long as they are kept active and give them opertunity to fill up on healthy and good food, not like junk things then i think it should be okay? ds1 also used to eat quite a lot as a baby but now he doesn't eat huge amounts all the time

MoonFaceMamaaaaargh · 29/05/2011 10:14

Ds is 15m and goes through phases of eating lots. However a lot of it is fruit and i find quite a lot discarded around the house so while i am forever giving him things to eat i'm not sure what he gets in the way of cals iyswim!

I have been told that untill the age of two they are very able to self regulate what they eat. I can believe it as ds has even turned down sweet stuff on occasion when he's just not bothered.

I'm trying to help preserve this appetite regulation thing two ways. Firstly i never ever praise for eating anything. I was praised for eating as a kid and have trouble with portion control now. Secondly i give him a portion at the lower end of what i think he needs. He can always ask for more (one of his few words) or stand near the fridge/fruit bowl later and i can get him a healthy snack (this is what he does...he's very clear when he is hungry). Like your ds he will grab things from others too!

Shreddies are salt free aren't they? I was amazed how much salt's in wheetabix! It really adds up when they are eating a lot.

monkoray · 29/05/2011 12:33

Yep OP, my DS ate about that much when he was 15 months, now 19 months he eats even more (lots of cheese, fromage frais, raisins, biscuits, blueberries, as well as three big meals a day), but believe it or not i recently took him to be weighed because i was worried he might be losing weight. He is very active and i think he just burns off a lot of the calories. He's been on the 98th percentile since he started on solids.
When you get him weighed have a look at the weight chart - as long as the line is consistent your fine.
If your DS is active and getting lots of opportunities to burn off any excess calories I'd carry on feeding as you are doing.

tigercametotea · 29/05/2011 13:03

My DS was like that, since he started solids at about 8 months old he had always been a big eater and wasn't fussy about his food, he ate everything, even greens. I don't think what you're feeding your DS is too much and especially if he's bigger of build it sounds fine as long as his weight has always been consistent and he is physically active. My DS though is just naturally quite small of build and is still 25th centile (has always hovered around 25th centile since birth but that's probably because I am small of build) so he doesn't look very large despite the massive amounts he eats. My other 2 are DDs and they have never had such a big appetite so I was quite surprised when DS came along and was like the proverbial "vacuum cleaner" of the family. What we did was we just paid a lot of attention to what we fed him - only wholesome nutritious food, no junk... and to encourage him to drink more fluids (particularly water because it doesn't have sugar or sweeteners) because its healthy and also will help decrease the appetite a bit. Anyway he's nearly 3 now and he's developed some food preferences along the way so now he prefers meat over veg, but we make sure he gets enough veg and doesn't overdo the meat because its so easy for him to. He now eats almost just as much as his 4 year old sister does every meal, and that's enough for him, but he's not such a big eater now compared to his younger days.

jubilee10 · 29/05/2011 14:21

My ds3 has always had a big appetite and they do self regulate but there are a lot of "treat" foods in that list. Two biscuits, Two bits of cake, Two goodies bars. I realise this is only one day but if this is a true example of his daily intake IMHO it needs a bit more thought ie. yogurt, vegetables etc.

Original poster

tryingtobemarypoppins2 · 29/05/2011 19:50

Today:

Weetabix and 1/4 banana
5 rice cakes
Nibble of a chicken drum stick, a little salad, few spoons of yogurt,
2 grapes and a strawberry
1 organic sausage, 2 spoons of beans 1 new potato
4 strawberries

I guess that shows some days he does eat less!! Less ish!!
Jubilee10 I think that is well balanced.

OP posts:

Flip