How much is too much?

Question

Healthy eating for a five year old?
Hi. I know that some of you are going to say, 'shame on you', but trust me, I have already said worse stuff so you wont hurt me anymore than I have already done. I need some help, real help not some fly by night operation just trying to score some points. My son is five years old and weighs 80lbs. Yes, it is my fault. I am the adult here and I could have said no. I really would like to know what I can do to get his weight off, eat healthy, etc. His dr. says he needs to lose about 20 lbs (he is very tall). How much is enough? He always says that he is hungry. I feel that I should give him something to eat and I know this is wrong. Yes, he wants the junk stuff. Should I just throw away everything in the house and start over? What should he be eating? Acup? 2 ounces? Help me please...

Answer 1

First, this post is just the tip of the iceburgh...you need to educate yourself in nutrition and what is good or not for children. There are TONS of sites available that are packed with information to help you. It is up to you to be motivated enough to protect your child's health.

how many calories is recommended for children, per day??

Age Calories per day
Boys Girls
1–3 1,230 1,165
4–6 1,715** 1,545
7–10 1,970 1,740
11–14 2,220 1,845
15–18 2,755 2,110
Adults 2,550 1,940


For your child, 1,715 calories, a day, is recommended. This is an approximation...If you go under it..your child will be hungery and will potentially binge. If you go over this and depending on his metabolism and activity level, he will potentially gain.

Calories (FOODS) can be concidered jam packed with nutrients...or empty. For example, your child needs (aside from a daily vitamin suppliment) certain nutrients for cognitive and physical development. If you have a choice between a serving of donut and a serving of apple slices that are the same in caloric value...what food item do you think has more nutrients?? Yes, the apple. If your son eats foods in high caloric value, but are low in specific nutrients...he is going to be "hungry." His body is telling him that he has to eat, especially if it is craving a specific nutrient that he is not getting. This is one reason we fall prey to over eating junk food.

There are sites that will give you an idea of approximately how much calories are within specific food items. In fact, on packaged foods...there are Nutrition Fact panels that provide how many calories are within a given amount of food. You could have more than 1 recommended serving of a specific food, but it is up to you to monitor how much calories are consumed. I have given you the best site that I believe to be available. The USDA site. This site has links to a variety of pages that will educate you and will help you feed your child better.

You will learn about the pyramid....even if it has been critisized by some...it is one of the best tools out there.

As you will learn...you have to be more aware of fats and salts. Even though some salt and fat is necessary for a variety of reasons...we have become consumers of junk that well exceeds the amount of fat and salt that we really should consume. Children should consume less salt and fat than adults, yet we feed them prepped food that we eat..or adjust salt content to our adult taste.

- Grains
-Vegetables
-Fruits
-Milk
-Meat & Beans
-Oils
-Discretionary Calories (junk food...it is recommended that kids consume only 100-300 calories a day in this category...that isn't much!!)
-Physical Activity

^these are parts of the pyramid.


Explore the sites that I have given to you below....keep a calorie journal (this will be difficult at first, but will become second nature over time) for everyone in your family..if not just for you and your son.


DO NOT GO BELOW HIS RECOMMENDED DAILY CALORIE INTAKE. He is a child...his weight will adjust...since he is being fed more calories than he should be now. (unless he does have a medical condition). You can fill him up with foods that are low in calorie and high in nutrients and bulk...look for them. He will adjust his demand for foods. You put it in front of him, and after a while he will get hungry enough to eat it. Seriously.
Good luck!!!>:D<

Answer 2

This one is tricky, because no matter how healthy he is fed at home, he is in school all day and if he is prone to junk food, he'll get where ever he can, so an age appropriate "healthy eating" lesson may be beneficial. I suggest first trying to make games about healthy eating, and a rewards board for making the right the decisions...note this is all about healthy eating, not about how much weight is lost (don't need to foster an eating disorder by concentrating on being thin). As long as you're getting him into all this healthy eating, make it a family affair and not just because of him...let him know its time the whole family eat more healthy so everyone can be together for a long time. If possible, try to eliminate the really bad junk foods items by replacing them with more healthy choices...it may take some time to find ones everyone will like. Well, good luck!

Answer 3

Has the doctor checked him for a medical problem that makes him hungry all the time? Throw out all the junk. No take out any more either. If he is always hungry give him carrot and celery sticks, pickles, apples and other fruits and vegis to snack on. He can eat as much vegetables as he wants keep fruit down to 2 a day do not give him fruit juice!!! He should drink low fat or skim milk and no more than 3 cups a day. Keep fatty meats and cheese to a minimum. No soda a little candy might be alright but not everyday. He may not like it but he will thank you later.

Answer 4

Wow... Anyways, you should start giving him a healthy diet, try the food pyramid for example, you only can give him very less amounts of junk food, like about 2-3 candy or a small bag of chips. He might be able to eat some poultry or dairy food, like chicken or turkey or fish or (meat or) cheese or yogurt or milk etc, you should give him like about 1 or 2 of these about 3 times. you can give him fruit and veggies, same servings about 6-8 servings daily. He should really eat bread and rice and wheat products, those are healthy, he should eat about 9-13 servings? anyways, that was the old pyramid, the new pyramid now contains what you really need to do after eating any food, is exercise - your son needs to execise, like run or even walking helps, let him go outside and play in the playground, play with his friends, play tag, you might be able to teach him what you've been exercising when you were young... Anyways, that's the best I can do... hope that helps

Answer 5

I am sure you have had more than enough finger pointing; however on the brighter side you have taken responsibility and are making efforts to change the situation in a positive manner. I commend you for the turn around. Stay committed and focused in creating a healthier life style for your child.

To minimize or eliminate the temptations it would be best to purge the junk food and replace it with healthier items. Rather than candy stock up with fresh fruit, dried fruit, fruit leather, etc. Rather than chips replace it with natural popcorn, crackers, cheese, etc. Also stock up on fresh veggies. Rather than soda offer juice, water, and/or milk. It doesn’t mean that your son cannot have any junk food; however it should be in moderation. Continue to offer healthier alternatives.

Also consider having 3 meals (Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner) and 3 snacks for the day. If he continues to be hungry offer items that would be considered a free food… Veggies like baby carrots, celery sticks, etc.

Also look into increasing his activity. You could enroll him in seasonal sports such as pee wee soccer, football, or tee ball. Or other activities that can be year round like karate or indoor swimming. If there is a local My Gym or something similar would be good too.

Overall consult your doctor about your concerns and ask for a nutritional referral. Best of luck!

Answer 6

You set an example for your child, so eliminate most of the junk food in your house. Make healthy snacks readily available, like fruits, whole wheat crackers, vegetables, and low-fat yogurt. He can have all the veggies he likes so you don't have to feel bad about feeding them to him when he says he's hungry. Make sure that you're eating those foods in front of him and make sure that he understands that junk food is meant for a treat, not for every day. Also, set an example by going out together and doing things like bike rides, walks, and playing at the playground. He may hate you at first, but he is young enough to change his lifestyle habits, and he will thank you when he is older!

Answer 7

You can buy low fat or fat free junk, for example, KC Masterpiece BB fatfree chips are better than regular chips, I think. Anymore you can buy just about anything in lighter version. Try to cut out some of the fatty stuff from his diet, like cheese, mayo, unnecessary butter (if your cooking use light butter or I Can't Believe its not Butter spray (its good!)). give him crystal light or sugar free country time lemonade to drink, it tastes like regular koolaid. I don't know exactly how much he should eat, but it shouldn't be adult sized. If nothing else go by the food pyramid, it's accurate and is what dieticians use. He should be drinking at least 4 milk servings a day (1% is tolerable). wieght watchers works good for anyone, it's healthy and reasonable way to lose wieght, it's set up so you can use it for life, $11 week

Answer 8

It will be hard to reprogram his eating habits, but he is still young. Try introducing him to more fruits and vegetables. If he drinks cokes and juices, limit or cut these out. Encourage water and lots of it. Don't completely cut junk food out, but limit it to a small amount a few times a week. My girls love salads, grapes, & apples. Try making small changes, so he is not so overwelmed.
Try to get him moving more. Sign him up for a sport at the local YMCA or through your city programs. Take walks together, go outside and throw a ball around, go to the park, etc Good luck and remember this is all for the health of your son.

Answer 9

Check and see how many calories he should be consuming to maintain/lose weight.

By giving him what he wants you are creating an unrealistic view of the world for him. He will expect to always get what he wants and he won't. Life isn't like that. He will be unable to deal with the disappointments and it will have a huge negative impact on him.

The sooner you begin the better.You can succeed. Know that by denying him food you are not being cruel it is by giving in to him that you are doing the most harm. Have faith in yourself :) It will be hard at first but will get easier.

Answer 10

I know it may sound crazy but let him eat 3 times a day and have two snacks. But dont over do it. Give him healthy food i lost 10 pounds in a week eating that way. Give him food that would be more filling. Also tell him to take his time eating because it takes the brain 15-20 min. to realise the stomach is full. So take 15-30 min to eat one plate of food.

Answer 11

I think the best answer is start working out with him, so on hikes walks, bicycle rides TOGETHER.. Eat healthy TOGETHER as a family. Support eachother. You can not expect him to eat healthy and excercise if you do not show him how to eat right. If you eat the junk easy stuff then he will too. Work together and you both might be happier with you weight and health.