Help with the eating habits of a 5 year old girl?

Question

I have a 5 yr old litte girl who is tall for her age.She has always been healthy @ checkups. She has a very big appetite though. She weighs 53-55 pounds and is 46 inches tall. I am just worried about her getting too heavy. She seems like she is always hungry and wants to eat all the time. I am now trying to get her on a better menu. Good breakfast. Then lunch. And a healthy snack. Then dinner. And a snack before bed. She just can't stick to that. She wants to eat all afternoon. She isn't big on any veggies or fruits. Can anyone give me any advice on a good menu for my daughter???

Answer 1

Quit buying the unhealthy snack items like cookies and such. Have only healthy food and snacks in the house. She will learn to eat what is available. You are the mom and can say "no" if she wants more snacks than you want her to have. Sometimes you have to be firm and stick to the rules. For breakfast=cereal with milk and fruit or oatmeal and juice. on Sunday a special breakfast of waffles or pancakes
lunch =most kids love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. put some baby carrots and sliced apple on the plate with it. Another lunch idea cheese sandwich or crackers and cheese with soup and fresh fruit or yogurt
dinner= whatever you are preparing for the whole family desserts=yogurt, applesauce,
snacks= fresh raw fruit or veggies, fruit and cereal or granola bars, or popcorn during a movie.
some flexibility for special treats or special occasions.
Be sure she gets an adequate amount of milk daily for good bones and teeth.

Answer 2

I have a daughter with a healthy appetite as well. She's in the 95 percentile for height and about 75th for weight, but she's all lean. What's good is that she loves fruits and eats just about any veggie I put in front of her. (nothing like brussel sprouts or okra though). You have to be the example and not let her gorge on junk. My daughter is allowed to snack pretty much as often as she wishes, but I control both the quality and quantity of the snack. So, if she' s hungry, she can have a handful of strawberries...not the whole container. Although it's fruit,she still needs to understand portion control. And she's learned that it's not necessary to snack all day, so her amount of snacking is well within the norm.

So, give her kid friendly fruits. Dress them up, so instead of plain apples, why not apples and a little peanut butter. Not just carrots, but carrots and a little dip. What about baked pita triangles and salsa?

Keep creative snacks available and teach portion control.

Answer 3

First, has she been to her dr. lately? What does her dr. have to say about height/weight porportions? She could be hitting a growth spurt. She is busy growing, and is she in school yet? Does she play, very physically active? If so, that could make her more on the hungry side too. How about allowing a mid morning snack? For snack ideas, peanut butter on toast, cheese and crackers, a bowl of her favorite cereal with maybe a banana cut up on it? Please, don't be worried about her weight. A child should not ever be put on a "diet" to lose weight. That can cause weight issues later on in life. Please, take her to her dr., get her height/weight, and find out according to the growth chart at the dr.'s office what her percentile on growth is. Her tummy is smaller than yours, and she is probably doing just fine. Take care.

Answer 4

first of all dont ever tell your five year old she needs to be put on a diet. this causes issues later on in life. so far her weight and hight look right on target as far as her age goes. if youo already have her eating healthy but she cant keep to it i would put my foot down as a parent and force her to stick to it. rather than telling her she needs to eat like this because she weighs too much i would use something creative like the dentist says foods with sugar in them are bad for your teeth. also you are a team so if she cant keep with the meal plan you have her on you have to encourage her and make sure you keep too it yourself. a few snacks here and there is ok. also keep her occupied. give her things to do so she wont be thinking about eating all day and if she does give her more healthy snacks all afternoon. she seems fine to me as far as weight and height go and it looks like you are doing just fine. if she's still hungry give her healthy snacks. if she gains weight too rapidly and the pediatrician thinks her weight is an issue but you know she doesnt have sweets. i would have them find another reason to her being always hungry.

Answer 5

You are the one who should be sticking to her diet, she's 5 if you don't control her she will become overweight and obiese.
5 meals a day is good, start her out with non sugar foods for breakfast and let the only snacks she eats be like fruits and cheese sticks. If she pitches a fit let her scream, you only contribute to her bad habits if you let her win. Don't let her eat after dinner, weight gain is put on due to no exercise while sleeping. If you eat dinner at 7pm and she goes to bed at 8-9ish don't give her anything. Make her eat veggies, if she refuses make her go to bed without food. This is not starving your child, if she asks for food anytime after she was sent to bed for not eating only give her the food you first offered. This will teach her that she must eat what you decide not her and she will learn to like it.
Some might think this is harsh but my sister had to do this with my niece when she started getting picky about what she wanted.

Answer 6

my son is also a little picky so trying to be healthy can be tricky here are some of the things I did to ensure a better diet
swithed from white bread to whole wheat
I offer him the fruits and veggies he does like frequantly
I hide veggies in spaghetti sauces and soups
and i offer him different foods all the time I was just surprised to find out he likes rice cakes

Answer 7

i imagine that's in undemanding words your turning out to be era that could reason your body to achieve weights. you should devour gradual and adequate no longer truly finished. you should devour little yet a lot of circumstances is superb. you would possibly want to play some activities or carry out on the mall with acquaintances is superb no longer a lot of massive deal. you should lead away from quick foodstuff and severe in energy foodstuff yet a touch is superb

Answer 8

I have to agree that she sounds bored. I don't agree with putting her in day care. I have too many issues with Day care. Anyway, she needs a interest of some type. How about enrolling her in a child's program at you local YMCA. They have some great ones around here. Even have a special class for young girls, based on health and self esteem...

Answer 9

She sounds bored to me. People who have nothing to do will fill their time with food. Why don't you put her into a day care where she can mingle, play and learn to socialize with children her own age? Both my daughters were born at the end of Sept. and in order to be considered for kindergarten they had to have turned age 5 by Sept. 1st. They both had to stay home that extra year. I found a day care center for children in our situation and it made a world of difference.

Answer 10

Talk to your daughter if you have concerns about her weight.