When to be cautious how much a child eats?

[JoeyLin]

From what age should you begin to start taking into consideration how much your child eats?

My baby is 7 months, and a month into weaning and still breastfeeding.

I am giving as much as baby desires.

At what point in future do we need to consider their intake in relation to their weight or anything? I am sure the answer is that it is agess away yet.

I have never limited the amount of healthy food that my DC eat. They remain on a higher height than weight centile (so not overweight). I limit the amount of processed rubbish my DC get but at 7 months your baby shouldn’t be getting any processed rubbish.

At 7 months your baby should still get regular weight checks for a while yet so if you’re concerned then check they aren’t getting too heavy during these checks. If they are then increase the proportion of veg on any solid food offered and decrease slightly the calorie rich stuff, but they still should be offered a range of foods, flavours, textures etc.

Is there something you’re worried about at this stage?

@Dammitthisisshit - not concerned about anythinggg whatsoever. And I really hope that my babies current age is not in any way related to my question.

I was just curious ...as i am sure there will be a time in the future that I dont overfeed my child... especiallyy as the focus for now is let them breastfeed as much as they want, and with weaning It is just however much they fancy in a sitting.

I think it's more about what you feed than how much

If everything is healthy then baby will eat as much as they need. Its only when you add sugars and additives etc that they will continue eating when full

For context my daughter is 20 months and still eating as much as she likes of fruit, veg, main meals etc. The only thing I limit is toddler snacks like veggie straws which she enjoys but will eat even when not hungry

My understanding is that children self-regulate very well themselves in most circumstances. I have just focused on letting them ‘hear’ when their body is full and tried not to interfere with that process. So, I don’t push them to finish their meals, if they say they don’t want more etc.
sometimes they seem to want, what I’d consider huge amounts of food, but I just think they must need it at that time. And give them whatever portions they want of main meals (ie, not desserts).

i focus on trying to improve what I offer them. Sometimes when life is busy etc I fall into quick meals which aren’t all that nutritious etc. I see it as my job to think about what I offer and make available and model to them (in terms of how I eat and talk about food) and I leave them to decide the amounts.

My son has always been a bottomless pit! He loves his food, and never seems to be full - you know, typical boy appetite (he is tall and slim, not chubby at all).

I always fed him for 20-30 minutes and then stopped. That was his meal. Snacks were about 15 min. I did keep an eye on his weight which stayed on his centile line, so this system worked well for us.

Never. follow intuitive eating and trust their bodies.

We have only ever moderated treats-so ice cream, chocolate etc. DD is 3.5. She eats as much as she wants of anything else. Her appetite varies hugely. Some days she will eat a similar amount to me, other days very little. The very big appetite always precedes a growth spurt.

We did BLW and DD was breastfed until 26 months. She’s still tracking the same centiles for height and weight now as she was then.

My kids are teens and I've never had to worry about how much they eat. They're all very slim and active, and as a pp says they are good at self regulation and stopping when they're full. I would intervene if they were overweight or going in that direction, but that's never been an issue here. Hopefully you'll find the same OP.

I don't think you can overfeed. Just don't feed them crap - processed, sugar, salt. Lots of healthy food is great for a growing baby and child

Stay away from sugary foods and particularly drinks as much as possible. Water or milk are fine.
Your baby’s teeth will benefit too.

I think half of it is from a young age not forcing them to eat so that they recognise hunger and when they’re full. Easier said than done with a toddler who will say they’re full after 3 mouthfuls of dinner but then be hungry 10 minutes later but we’ve never had a finish all on your plate approach.
I’ve never limited food, just the unhealthy stuff.

If their eating is extremely restrictive e.g. will only accept one texture or has a list of under 5 accepted foods by age 1.

If they are not showing any progression e.g. still stuck on totally smooth baby purees by age 1.

If there are physical issues with eating e.g. extreme gagging, vomiting.

If you suspect any kind of allergy.

If they show significant/extreme anxiety when presented with foods they don't like.

As you're breastfeeding you can relax a little more as there is no risk to the teeth like there is with bottles. Keep offering a variety of foods, keep breastfeeding on demand. Some (a few) breastfed babies will keep milk as their main source of nutrition until closer to 2 and it doesn't seem to do them any harm as long as it's led by them. Most breastfed babies will swap over to food being the dominant calorie source around about a year old.

I think the tricky part is when many babies who used to eat anything go through a fussy stage around 14-18 months, and parents find themselves trying to get food into them. If you can carry on with a calm, stress free, "they'll eat when they're hungry" approach through this stage, it will help them to maintain a healthy relationship with food as they get older IMO.

I worry more about what my children eat and only consider how much they eat because they're both very slim. They're 10 and 12 and seem to have really small appetites so I do wish they'd eat a bit more! I love seeing kids with hearty appetites. I think as long as they're physically active and eat healthily they should eat as much as they want.

Never - you just present them with food and they will choose how much or little to eat. They are very good at self regulating and it's important that from an early age you don't restrict OR encourage them to eat more when they are finished. That way they are most likely to grow up with a healthy relationship with food.

By contrast I came from a 'finish your plate' household and have struggled with over eating all my life.

I have never worried about the amount mine eat so long as it is healthy.

I have 3 tall and slim teenage DS.

When they were younger I offered mainly healthy food and they had the occasional treat.

I would serve up a small portion with the option of more if they were hungry.

Now they have more control of their own diet they do buy sweets and chocolate for themselves but they are generally very active and the meals and snacks available in the house are generally healthy.

The key I found was to be relaxed about how much they ate, to keep offering a wide variety of healthy foods, to not make a big deal of the occasional less healthy option and to allow them to control their own portion.

As they have grown up we have talked more about healthy options, balanced diets and everything in moderation so fingers crossed they will continue to be slim and healthy as they become adults.