anyone got a child that constantly asks for food?

[fattybum]

Ds1, 5.6, has always been a good eater. Up until he was about 3 I thought this was a really good thing, makes a change from all the fussy eaters blah blah. But as he has gotten bigger, it has become a cause for concern for me. He basically seems obsessed with food. The minute he wakes up he asks for breakfast, and would eat non stop if he was allowed. He has gotten a bit better with regards to accepting no for an answer, whereas before he would have had a tantrum if told no to food, he now accepts it. But it is still stressful. He will eat almost anything e.g cabbage, lentils, which I find bizarre as most kids won't touch stuff like that. When there is food freely available eg parties etc he gorges unless you step in and tell him enough's enough. He is not overweight, but not skinny either. I'm pretty sure he'd be overweight if we weren't strict with him.

We are healthy eaters, although I do allow treats regularly because I don't want him to think of it as the "forbidden fruit". Ds2 is much more "normal" with food, eats ok but can be fussy and stops when he is full.

Does anyone else have/know a child like this? Do they develop self control at they get older, or is he destined to a life of obesity?

Thanks

will watch this as I appear to have a clone of your ds,mine is 6 and I often wonder if it will ever stop and mine still has the tantrums when I say no.How did you stop them ?

My friends dd is always asking for food. She is 5 too. I don't know but it seems like a habit to me. She was always giving them food as toddlers and she picks them up from school with food ready for when they come out.

She comforts them with food eg If they fall over and also she uses to to keep them quiet, like in assembly.

She has told me that she thinks I am cruel to say to my children that they can't get anything to eat if they say they are hungry. I don't think I am. There is nothing wrong with feeling a bit hungry IMO.

I feel like we can't have a nice time together as the constant asking for food takes over. We go roller skating but she has to come off to eat when the whole session is only an hour.

ds is 5yo and he eats constantly, he's pretty skinny tbh, I go by the train of thought that if he eats 'good' stuff i don't mind too much so theres always plenty of fresh fruit and veg around and he happily eats that. I hope as he gets older he will keep the healthy habit if he still needs to eat constantly!

Yes! My nearly 15 year old DS? He has hollow legs, taller than me and can lift me up .

He is never not hungry!

my dd is 5 and is exactly the same.

as she is eating her breakfast, she is asking what time is lunch

she eats all fruit and all vegetables (i too thought this was strange) and she would eat non stop if i let her. She talks food constantly...

i'm amazed more because despite eating more throughout the day than I do, she's a skinny little thing

Oops at should have been a ! not a ?

How did I stop them? not quite sure, possible he just realised that no meant no and no point making a fuss, but I'm sure you've probably tried that too!

Savoy, I also get fed up with people who always have snacks ready for their children, don't seem to think they can go out for a couple of hours without food. I am definitely not a feeder, don't do food as comfort and often make ds1 go without food if I feel he's had enough. He claims he is "starving" even if he has only eaten an hour ago. I really don't think I encourage this behaviour, often tell him he's not hungry just needs to find something to do. Seems to me some kids are just like this, as I said ds2 is much less food obsessed!

I think he could be thirsty fattybum rather than hungry sometimes. Kids often mistake this for hunger.

DS can be in the middle is say lunch and his thoughts will already be on what we are having for dinner.

Ds1 will also happily eat fruit, veg, breadsticks etc. It's not junk he's after, just any food. I wouldn't mind so much if it was just at home, but he can seem like a complete pig around others, never knows when to stop and, to be honest, I find it quite embarrasing. I'm trying to teach him not to ask others for food, not to eat too much as there needs to be enough for everyone etc.

Maybe he's not so unusual after all!

Although I am slim, I also love my food and can be a bit of a compulsive eater, but just assumed children were less likely to be so. Obviously not!

My mum thinks I should sometimes just let him eat as much as he wants so he can learn his own limits, but I'm not sure that's such a good idea?

both my dds are the same. will eat anything, any time. dd1 (4.9) quite often eats to the point of nausea (although not actual vomiting) if left unattended near a buffet table. she's as greedy with carrot sticks as with chocolate buttons.

we do have to keep an eye on dd1's intake, as she is not a naturally active kid, and so does not burn it all off. dd2 is only little but is already showing signs of being more active, so we might be able to give her a bit more of a free rein.
we don't routinely offer snacks, as both girls eat large portions for their ages at mealtimes.

her behaviour around food is becoming more appropriate over time though - she no longer overloads her plate, and doesn't badger for food all the time. She knows its "not healthy" to overeat (we don't mention weight) and that it is healthy to have a balanced diet with not too much junky stuff. she can remember this most of the time, although as stated before she finds parties a challenge too great.

she also knows being active is healthy, and is rewarded (non-food, obviously ) for this. I am sure that sounds bonkers to most parents, but otherwise it becomes a battle to draw her away from her craft, dolls house, and get her out to the park and swimming pool.

Hmm, not sure if they outgrow it....dd1 is now 10 and will still overeat given the chance. She just loves food, which is nice to see but if she wasn't so active (organised sports and swimming) she could become overweight.

She will always be the one to ask for food first - my other 2 dcs are not so into eating. It's difficult with dcs who are different about food - ds is really good at regulating how much he eats and will stop as soon as he is full, whereas dd will just keep on eating if she likes it and I'm not there to tell her she's had enough. If ds asks for food I can be pretty sure he needs it.

At home we have meal times and snack times and they don't really get anything at other times. After dinner I announce that "the cafe is closed". Obviously as she gets older she will have to take responsibility for her own eating. She knows it's not healthy to be fat etc and can make healthy food choices - she just eats a bit too much. I aim to get her to 18 at a normal weight then it's up to her!

My dc have been through stages of doing this and it always seems like a habit they get into. "What can I do? Oh yes I'll say I'm hungry!"

Basically I reduce any snacks down to boring level: bread/some fruit like apples or something that's not majorly interesting, and if they refuse that then they're not hungry. I also won't let them have a snack when I've just said it's time for bed/to tidy their room/other thing they want to put off.

Also I won't always give it them straight away. So if they say they're hungry, I might ask them to get changed out of school things or would they like to see the letter we got today or something. If they've forgotten about it at the end then they're not that hungry.

They now rarely ask for snacks, and when they do it's often just before a meal time, so I'll ask them to wait for the meal.

If I think it's reasonable that they're hungry (eg after school/exercise) then they will get a much freer (and nicer) hand in what they can eat.

Mine is 7 and will just eat and eat. He is skinny though. He has been know to walk in from a three course meal in a restaurant and straight into the kitchen to find out what there is to eat.

Last week he was wailing at his Dad (who does the cooking in our house) 'I'm soooooooooooo hungry. I haven't eaten in at least an hour!!!

He will eat practically anything and it's easy to make sure he eats healthily (one of his favourite snacks is olives).

Oddly his elder brother (11) is the exact opposite. Eats practically nothing and has no interest in food whatsoever. If I didn't make him eat at meal times I actually think he would starve!

Mine will also eat a massive meal then asked for something to eat. I don't know how he can fit it all in without being sick!

We don't have set snack times, I just follow my instinct as to whether it's hunger or greed/boredom, roughly about three snacks a day inbetween meals. It doesn't matter what you offer, he will eat it.

I too feel that if I manage to keep him a healthy weight when in my care then that's all I can do, if he goes on to become overweight then there's nothing I can do about it. Hopefully he will at least take away healthy eating habits, not just junk.

give him a glass of water instead sometimes?

set snack times maybe too

Fattybum- I was wondering if you have an update please! Struggling with this issue.