Very greedy almost 4 year old

[LoubyLoubyLouLa]

My DD was born with a cleft lip and palate and struggled to feed until her repairs were completed at 7 months.

When I weaned using BLW she took to food so well, she eats everything and anything. Will always try new food, we can take her to any restaurant and know she will sit still and eat beautifully.

So whats the problem, you may ask! She is now almost 4 and her appetite is huge, she would continue to eat constantly. She is always asking for something to eat. Should I refuse her food when I think she should be full? Or continue to give her fruit and veg to snack on until she bursts?! I also make sure she has water to make sure that she is not confusing thurst for hunger.

She is not overweight but is certainly not skinny. She eats a varied and relatively heathy diet. Does have treats (chocolate, ice cream) but will eat mountains of fruit and veg.

The reason this worries me is my relationship with food. I am always so envious of people who eat when they are hungry and stop when they are full, the ability to leave something on their plate! I have been on a diet since I was 13, I am not overweight but it is a struggle for me to have a positive relationship with food.

I so want to be able to teach my daughter to have this positive relationship with food... Any suggestions?

Before going to bed this evening she had a snack of grapes, satsuma, breadsticks, yoghurt and as she went to bed was still trying to convince me she was hungry!

Hello,
I'm certainly no expert and others might feel differently but I wouldn't restrict her food intake except for making sure that her extra snacks are healthy and low calorie so that she gets into the habit of making healthy choices if she has the munchies. It sounds like you are pretty much doing this already. My mum still watches everything I put in my mouth and I can tell you there's nothing more irritating, it makes me want to run upstairs and gobble a chocolate bar while she's not looking!
At 4 she seems a bit young to have an unhealthy food relationship so maybe she is hungry and if so I would direct her towards the fruit bowl, veg crudités etc. Unless she has seen you picking a lot between meals (apologies if not!)?
It's so hard I know, you don't want your daughter to struggle with her weight like you do but I would put it out of your mind as she will sense your feelings even if you are hiding them.

It think if she says she is hungry, let her eat. If you start to restrict what she eats or give her the idea she is doing something wrong by eating, then she will develop a problem with food. I think we are naturally self regulating and eat to appetite, and you shouldn't try to interfere with that.

She could easily be hungry, she's growing so much!

If she's eating pretty much constantly throughout the day then it's unlikely she is hungry.

You could try giving her more protein rich foods as snacks as protein is better at reducing hunger than sugars (and even though fruit is a healthier option than biscuits it's still high in fruit sugar).

Is she eating because she's bored, or just because she can? What does she do if you say no, it's not time to eat yet?

Is she very active?

Thanks for your advice, it really is the one area of parenting that I worry i am doing wrong and I so want to get it right.

sidge more protien is a great idea. When she asks for more food immediately after eating I try to tell her that she needs to wait for it to get to her tummy before she can decide if she's hungry. A minute later she'll say 'it's in my tummy I'm hungry' or 'can I have something else now' ' when can I have just one more thing?'! I think that boredom may have something to do with it..... Not good, I always eat when I'm bored....

thechamomile she's as active as most 3 year olds although she does like quiet sit down activities (colouring, crafts) more than running around in the garden.

ladyandthechocolate I so don't want her to feel that I am monitoring her food. Someone watching what I eat makes me want to eat more too!

Do you try distracting her from food by giving her something to do? Or will she still be focused on eating more?

Could you try secretly writing down everything she eats and totting up the calories so that you know roughly how much she is getting - you might be surprised that it's either a fair bit, or completely normal! I think the average caloric intake for a 4 year old is about 1400-1600 which is a fair bit of food really.

If you take her for a little walk soon after a meal it might help keep the hunger levels down as she'll get an adrenaline boost from it. It also helps draw a line at the end of a meal.

Thanks smash I've just googled calorie intake and I'm shocked it is that much.

Maybe I just need to chill about this and let her be?..