Hungry Children
I came across this article today on BBC news about permanently hungry children. A tad worrying, as at the moment, N would be one of those children who doesn’t stop eating.
If I let him, he would eat all morning from breakfast to lunch (he’ll have finished breakfast – 2 small bowls of cereal with some fruit, or cereal then toast, then be asking for a snack 20 minutes later). He’s not so bad in the afternoon as he’ll have a nap and he can go without a snack then, but he’ll have tea at nursery, but then still want to eat with us later. Or scavenge whatever’s on the table at the farm if he has the chance.
N’s always been a hungry child, ever since hitting a growth spurt at around 4 months, and from then was wanting milk every 2ish hours. Weaning, he loved food, but would stop when he had finished, and he will still leave food if he’s had enough.
But for a toddler, he can put away a lot of food. As much as his 4 year old cousin (who eats well himself). At nursery, he’ll often have 2 helpings – obviously allowing for the fact they may give small portions. At home, he’ll have a child plate and for most meals it won’t be full. He might ask for seconds. Then he’ll want a dessert, and may sometimes have 2 helpings of that. Small helpings, but even so, 2 helpings.
He was 9lb 5oz at birth, and around 91st centile, and tracked between 75th and 91st, which I think he’s still on. I’ve never been worried because he’s always so active. He’ll only sit down and chill out when he’s had enough charging around or wants to chill with his dad. And he’s definitely growing upwards now and not outwards. Since I last measured him he’s grown 2 cm, so it’s nice to see all the food’s going somewhere.
I do sometimes wonder where he’s putting all the food he eats though, as he’s not put more than 2lb, if that, on since his 2 year check six months ago. But he seems perfectly healthy, and apart from an (apparently) mild intolerance to dairy, will eat virtually anything you serve to him.
He’s obviously got it from me rather than his father, who’s one of those strange people who can eat only a square of chocolate at one time (although he does struggle with crisps, so maybe he does have a food weakness?), whereas if I’m eating something I love, I can graze all day as well as eating good meals…hence my need to get back to healthy eating and exercise.
So I’ll just have to hope that as he grows older, he’ll continue to be extremely fit and healthy, and always on the go, so it’ll offset any hungry teen and adult tendencies he might have.
