5 year old secret eating?!

[Frozenheart]

My lovely 5 year old DD has always been a very good eater ever since she was weaned.
The last couple of months, I have come downstairs to find my fridge and cupboards raided. All of this is being eaten before I wake up in the mornings.
Yesterday, her morning raid consisted of:

6x small petits filos yoghurts, 1x dairylea dunker, 1x apple and 1x satsuma.

This morning, she ate 6x more small yogurts, 1x packet of wotsits and 3x plain tortilla wraps

We always make sure we have filling, healthy meals during the day, but the words ”im still hungry still come out after finishing her meals and when we put her to bed!
In reception class last year, she was weighed and measured and it later came back to us that she is overweight. This wasn’t a surprise to us, as she has always been ahead of ages in clothes for her age. and her dad and I aren’t the slimmest of people!

So my main question is, would any see this as a cause for concern and to contact the gp? Is there anything we could change?

Gotta love MN, an unsupervised child is helping herself to all sorts in the morning and there’s discussion about unsweetened porridge or having protein with your breakfast. I’m pretty sure a bog standard child breakfast of weetabix made by a supervising parent will be just fine.

Which is why full fat milk is so good for children. It also has more vitamins in it.

You're not a five year old girl @EspressoDoubleShot. I'm glad you enjoy but I'd rather go without than eat it.

Thank you everyone for the encouragement after filling you all in on the morning I had with DD.
She’s been under the weather today with a virus / cold, and hardly ate her lunch or tea, have just added lots of healthy snacks to our weekly shop for tomorrow (loved the idea from someone of porridge oats and a little bit of maple syrup and pecans for myself!) and some frozen fruit to go in DDs porridge. Breadsticks with dips, and some deli meat rather than packet ham. I’m making a homemade chicken curry tomorrow for tea instead of using a jar of sauce.

She also said to me today she’d like to take up doing her ballet lessons again! (Stopped just before Christmas) so think that’ll give her some more exercise as well as 2x PE days at school and walking to and from school 5 days a week.

That's great Frozen, well apart from her being under the weather obviously

Hi OP, as one of the PP who gave you some robust responses upthread, I'd like to say bloody well done you.

You took the suggestions of how to change your situation on board while weathering some pretty hard words, & that takes a lot of guts.

I admire your bravery & determination, & hope you are going to have a lot of fun getting up with DD, keeping her company, & teaching her about managing hunger with healthy nutrition. Also hope that her dad takes turns with you to do this (if he doesn't step up like you have, post again & the vipers will kick his arse for you).

@Clymene I do not know any 5 year olds (or actually many people) who would happily eat unsweetened porridge.

I’m responding to your observation. I don’t eat sweetened porridge nor do my kids. They don’t know it any other way. Just saying

Don't leave fruit out for her in the morning.
Try prioritising getting up and supervising her over having a bit of extra sleep.
If you are there making her breakfast instead of sleeping then I'm sure she will sit raiding the cupboard

@Frozenheart hope your girl feels better soon. She’ll be loving mum time & breakfast. You seem focussed with a good plan. That’s really fab

I think the porridge you get in the little microwave style packets is already sweet - even the plain stuff. My Dc are adults now but always either ate it as it comes or with some blueberries or frozen fruit puree (when they were little as a cube would cool down the porridge prett quickly too.

I grew up on proper oats cooked in water and either served with a sprinkle of salt and/or a bit of milk. Weetabix on the other had us piling on sugar when DM wasn't looking! Again DSs ate it with fruit or nothing. DS2 also loved all bran which I feel is not usual for a small child!

Poor DD not feeling well OP but well done for the changes you've initiated! Keep it up and hopefully you'll all see rewards soon.

[quote EspressoDoubleShot]@Clymene I do not know any 5 year olds (or actually many people) who would happily eat unsweetened porridge.

I’m responding to your observation. I don’t eat sweetened porridge nor do my kids. They don’t know it any other way. Just saying[/quote]
And how is that relevant or indeed helpful to the OP? That was my point. I didn't think it needed spelling out.

Anyway, let's move on as I'm sure this derail isn't helpful either.

@Clymene It’s not a derail. It’s actually quite straightforward. You made a point I offer an alternative. That’s how mn works. A derailment would be introducing a whole other unrelated topic. You not wishing to continue the point or feeling you’ve adequately answered and don’t want to elaborate is fine. Calling it derailment. Not fine not accurate. I don’t expect or want a further post, it was only a brief reply to your generalisation.

Also hope that her dad takes turns with you to do this (if he doesn't step up like you have, post again & the vipers will kick his arse for you).

That is so true! We're not known as the Nest of Vipers for nothing

It sounds like you’re on top of it.

[quote EspressoDoubleShot]@mswales you’re describing being awake and supervising breakfast then sleep for up to 1hr
That is completely different to the op scenario. There is no comparison
Her child is up for 2.5hr no breakfast and is unsupervised
Can you see the difference?[/quote]
Sort of but I wouldn't call watching my son eat a small tangerine for three minutes as the TV warms up "supervising breakfast". He definitely needs a lot more food for breakfast, this is just to keep him going long enough for me to get a bit more kip! Also most other kids I know whose parents sleep while they watch TV or ipad in the morning don't eat anything until their parents wake up. Unfortunately mine won't let me sleep if he's had nothing at all...

Also sometimes I sleep for a bit more than an hour. Not 2.5 though as I'm lucky my son doesn't wake up that early

Also most other kids I know whose parents sleep while they watch TV or ipad in the morning don't eat anything until their parents wake up

So the difference here is that the OP’s daughter is eating while unsupervised. So she needs supervising. Which the OP is doing, and it worked well today by the sounds of it.