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#11
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Need advice on child's feeding
"Ignoramus13806" wrote in message ... In article 9ydhb.30432$k74.580@lakeread05, Julianne wrote: "Ignoramus13806" wrote in message ... My son is 2.5. He oftentimes refuses to eat much during regular meals. This is frustrating because we cook for him etc. Then he might get something -- like a piece of cheese or some such thing -- in between. I now think that it is unhealthy and that if he wants to eat during a meal, that's great. If he does not, he gets nothing until the next one. Would that be a reasonable policy. We never give him anything with sugar and no junk food. He does not know what junk food is at this point. Children are not like adults. You would be hurting your child to deprive him of food between meals. If he begins to feel deprived at age 2.5 then he will learn by the time he is three to overeat at meals. Why can't he just eat at meals? He gets breakfast, lunch, then he sleeps, then he eats at 4pm, and then he gets dinner. Why would he feel deprived if he ate well during a meal? What you are suggesting sounds counterintuitive to me and I would like to ask if you have any references backing up your suggestion. None that I can cite off hand. However, I'm sure you can research pediatric nursing, medical and dietician journals and find similar information. Consider that breastfed infants are programmed to eat q 2 hours. As they grow, some of the night time feedings are omitted. It is a long time re-programming the body to accept enough food at one meal to sustain the caloric requirements of the day in three large meals. If everyone took a lesson from toddlers and ate only when they are hungry, obesity would not be an issue in this country. This is false. I respectfully disagree. 'Reasonable Policies' are for corporate entities - toddlers are not defined by reason. |
#12
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Need advice on child's feeding
"Julianne" wrote in message news:9ydhb.30432$k74.580@lakeread05... "Ignoramus13806" wrote in message ... My son is 2.5. He oftentimes refuses to eat much during regular meals. This is frustrating because we cook for him etc. Then he might get something -- like a piece of cheese or some such thing -- in between. I now think that it is unhealthy and that if he wants to eat during a meal, that's great. If he does not, he gets nothing until the next one. Would that be a reasonable policy. Toddlers have much different nutritional needs than adults... Like babies, they need smaller more frequent meals for their quickly growing and developing bodies. Just as it is suggested that adults eat smaller frequent meals to stabilize blood sugar and prevent cravings, children do better on such a schedule. As long as they are eating healthy, I wouldn't restrict them from eating, at any time. Our bodies are very good at telling us what we need - and when I feel hungry, I don't ignore those signals, I just make sure that I'm giving my body something it really needs... det |
#13
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Need advice on child's feeding
"Beth Kevles" wrote:
: The big thing to understand is that a 2 1/2 year old's eating habits are : very little like the eating habits of an older child. You will NOT be : setting yourself up for behavior problems is you let your child snack : between meals. : : My kids, and most of the kids I know, all ate three meals plus three : "snacks" every day. The snacks were just as nutritious as the meals, so : really it was six meals a day, but MUCH smaller than regular meals. : Two-year olds still have small tummies and really NEED to eat more : frequently than 3 times a day. : : To avoid behavioral problems with eating, start enforcing some basic : rules, such as staying seated until you're done. Enforce a place where : eating is okay and other places where eating is NOT okay. Help your : child use forks and spoons correctly. (Wait a bit to introduce a knife, : and make it a butter knife at first.) : : DOn't make special meals for your kids. Instead, make sure that one or : two things in the meal are things your child likes anyway. For example, : you might offer macaroni and cheesefrequently as a side dish if your : child loves it. And in our house, we serve the vegetables first, then : proceed to the starches and proteins. Sweets, when offered, come last. : : As long as you only offer healthy foods, then don't fret about exactly : what or how much your child consumes. At this age, you'll discover if : you write down everything he eats, that over the course of about 3 days : he'll be naturally consuming a varied, healthy diet. (This works for : most kids.) : : Do excuse your child from the table when he's had enough (but don't let : him come back and forth to the table frequently). That is, once a : particular meal is over, it's over. Then wait at least an hour before : the next "meal". Remember that an hour is a VERY long time for a small : child. : : These suggestions have worked well for my family. My kids are now 6 and : 8, and they eat well and politely most of the time. Mealtimes were a : bit of a hassle when they were 2 and 3 years old -- not the least : because I had to mop the floor and wipe down the chairs after most meals : -- but by the time they were 4 I could definitely see improvement. I was going to post on the topic until I read this, agreed with all of it, and decided I had nothing to add, except "excellent post!" g -- Ruth B -- Remove the blinders to send email Stewie (reading the Bible): "My my, what a thumping good read, lions eating Christians, people nailing each other to two by fours. I'll say, you won't find that in Winnie the Pooh." --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.524 / Virus Database: 321 - Release Date: 10/6/2003 |
#14
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Need advice on child's feeding
Ignoramus13806 wrote:
You see, I am not concerned with quantity. Let him eat however much he wants. But I want him to eat during meals. Now if that's not a good thing due to well established reasons, I could let him eat whenever he wants, but it is not my preference. He should learn to eat *something* at meals. If he's snacking all day and refusing to eat at meals, that's an issue (and perhaps one that has nothing to do with food itself). But most kids his age can't really eat enough at three meals a day to get them through the whole day. They need some "top ups" in between, hence the nutritious snacks. And really, my kids are 6 and 8 years old and *still* need at least an afternoon snack. They can manage without a morning snack, but would much prefer to have one (and it doesn't mess up their eating at meals). I suspect as puberty approaches that they'll be eating even *more* during the day. There are, of course, practical issues to consider. You shouldn't have to be a short order cook all day. I don't allow snacks right before a meal (because then they *don't* eat the meal). I don't allow constant grazing (because it's just too much work). If I tried to eliminate snacks, though, it would be horrible. I'd have whiny, cranky kids much of the day because they'd be *hungry* much of the time! Best wishes, Ericka |
#15
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Need advice on child's feeding
Ignoramus13806 wrote:
My son is 2.5. He oftentimes refuses to eat much during regular meals. This is frustrating because we cook for him etc. Then he might get something -- like a piece of cheese or some such thing -- in between. I now think that it is unhealthy and that if he wants to eat during a meal, that's great. If he does not, he gets nothing until the next one. Would that be a reasonable policy. No. Most kids need more than three meals a day at that age. A morning and afternoon snack are quite appropriate. There's no reason not to have a nutritious snack. Toddlers are not known, generally, for eating huge meals. Your expectations about the amount he should be eating at mealtime may be out of line. Toddler portions are *quite* small. Best wishes, Ericka And some children have a favorite meal time. My nephew (21 months) eats the most at breakfast - he just picks up at lunch and dinner. My daughter (5) and youngest son (22 months) love dinner, whereas my other son (almost 4) eats the most at lunchtime so I don't worry about him not eating as much as his brother and sister at dinnertime. I'm not saying be an open 24/7 short-order cook but I can't imagine what's so wrong/hard/time consuming about 3 meals and 2 snacks a day. |
#16
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Need advice on child's feeding
In article ,
Ignoramus13806 wrote: You see, I am not concerned with quantity. Let him eat however much he wants. But I want him to eat during meals. Now if that's not a good thing due to well established reasons, I could let him eat whenever he wants, but it is not my preference. It depends on how many meals. His little tummy is too small to just eat 3 times a day. Heck, many nutritionists tell us that WE would be better off eating smaller amounts more frequently rather than 3 big meals a day! But for a little one, 5 or 6 meals a day still makes sense: we just call the extra meals "mid morning snack" and "mid afternoon snack" and "bedtime snack" . . . (Elevensis, anyone?) meh -- Children won't care how much you know until they know how much you care |
#17
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Need advice on child's feeding
Ignoramus13806 wrote:
thereis no particular reason for dried fruits. He eats real ones as well. But dried ones are more portable and easier to split into little bits. Dried fruit is barely different from candy, though -- very concentrated in sugars. -- jamie ) "There's a seeker born every minute." |
#18
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Need advice on child's feeding
Ignoramus13806 wrote:
no, it is not the case in my house at all. He only eats what I consider healthy food. I consider more or less anything healthy food unless it is sweetened artificially, has margarine or it is packaged food (junk food). For example, I consider eggs, butter, dried fruits, home baked bread, etc to be healthy. I do not believe the crap about cholesterol one Personally, I think you should rethink the dried fruit. It's marketed as healthy snacks, but it's a "natural" candy. -- jamie ) "There's a seeker born every minute." |
#19
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Need advice on child's feeding
Ignoramus13806 wrote in
: My son is 2.5. He oftentimes refuses to eat much during regular meals. This is frustrating because we cook for him etc. Then he might get something -- like a piece of cheese or some such thing -- in between. I now think that it is unhealthy and that if he wants to eat during a meal, that's great. If he does not, he gets nothing until the next one. Would that be a reasonable policy. not at all. it's perfectly normal for a 2.5 year old to not eat much at one time. humans actually evolved to eat many small meals throughout the day. it has only been since industrialization that the 3 meals a day thing became the norm. your child's stomach is approxamately the size of the palm of his hand (or fist). hopefully this illustrates why he doesn't eat much at one sitting my 3 year old eats whenever he's hungry, which does mean he may not be hungry when we eat dinner... he helps me cook by sampling things sometimes he'll eat if i expressly forbid him to taste my dinner when he wouldn't eat otherwise (it's a game). i don't really care to start food wars over when he eats as long as he eats good snacks during the day. the easiest thing to do is provide healthy snacks, yogurt, cheese, meat bits, frozen or fresh veggies & fruits (Boo loves frozen green beans for some reason), etc. every couple hours, or when he asks. give a choice if possible, too. while i do allow candy & sweet treats, i don't allow them within the hour to hour & a half before dinner. if he wants snacks then he gets veggies or fruit usually, or preview samples of dinner if it's that far along. lee |
#20
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Need advice on child's feeding
Ignoramus13806 wrote: You see, I am not concerned with quantity. Let him eat however much he wants. But I want him to eat during meals. Now if that's not a good thing due to well established reasons, I could let him eat whenever he wants, but it is not my preference. I don't see anything wrong with expecting him to eat during meals, unless your mealtimes conflict with when a toddler is getting sleepy. For example, when I knew my husband would be working late and home around 8 p.m., no way did I make the kids wait until 8 for dinner. We ate around 5:30, and my husband could fend for himself when he got home. I don't let my children snack right before a meal (say, within an hour before the meal) - that way, they'll both eat *something* at dinner. Clisby |
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