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| When my son (who is now 17!) was young, he was very small for his age, too. When he started kindergarten he wore a size 4T. I worried myself sick about him. My mother-in-law even forced him to eat (he promtly threw it up, btw) and accused me of not feeding him. I kept offering him healthy foods and refusing to make special things for him. He sat at the table and if he ate, he ate and if he didn't, he didn't. You know, he eventually filled out. By the time he was in 8th grade he began gaining weight and is now a perfectly normal size. I think it is more important to help them make healthy choices than to try to force them to eat. As my dr. told me, if he's hungry, he'll eat. That proved true. I now have a very picky 3 year old. I'm doing the same thing with him, too. Good luck! And try not to worry! (I know, easier said than done!)
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PENELOPE_K
2/16/06 11:49 A
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| thanks for all the replies. I thought about it, and I have decided that you guys are right. I'm just going to make healthy snacks and meals and let them eat according to their hunger and no more "finish your plates". I realized I've turned my dinner table into a battle zone. So no more forcing!!
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PURPLEAMULI
2/16/06 4:39 A
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I used to be a very thin child and my parents forced food on me and I always had to finish what was on my plate. Now I am 40 pounds overweight and still feel the urge to clean my plate no matter how much food is on it.
Maybe if my parents would have left me alone I wouldn't have this constant struggle now that my metabolism isnt what it used to be.
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I wouldn't fuss so much over their weight. I was a small child (I weighed my grade times 10, i.e in second grade I only weighed 20lbs, and in 7th I weighed 70.) Everyone made a huge deal about it, that being skinny became an enormous part of my identity. When some things were out of my control I became anorexic to regain the one part of my identity I could control..being skinny.
Also remember that kids get all they need in a week, not a day. I bet you would be surprised how much they actually eat if it was tracked over the course of a couple of weeks!
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| As the parent it's your job to offer them appropriate food. As child it's their job to decide how much, and if they are going to eat. Trust them to know their appetite. Remember some days you have more of an appetite than others. kids do too. You might checkout Ellyn Satters "How To Get Your Child To Eat But Not Too Much". She has several books on feeding children. All of them are good.
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| Just keep offering the right kind of foods. Our rule is no treats if you don't eat, but you don't have to finish everything. They do get credit for trying.
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SPITFYRE75
2/10/06 9:57 A
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| PLEASE don't force foods on them or force them to "clean their plates.". It could result in issues when they get older. Just keep offering them healthy, calorie dense foods and snacks. They will eat when they are hungry. Don't feel bad about them being so small either. My DS is 3.5yrs old and only weighs 27.6 pounds. He's really tiny for his age. Only around the 4th (or was it 14th?) percentile for his weight.
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PENELOPE_K
2/10/06 9:17 A
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Well I have 2 kids, 6 and 8 who are both at the low end of their weight spectrum. So I try to give them calorie dense snacks (nuts, dried fruit, peanut butter) and push them quite a bit to eat, finish whats on your plate etc. My youngest especially is just not much of an eater. But now that I see all the overweight kids and adults everywhere, I'm wondering if I should just back off and let them eat as they please (within reason obviously. we don't eat junk food or drink sodas etc).
Maybe if I let them be skinny kids, they will grow into regular, healthy thin adults. If I force them to eat eat eat and finish thier plates all the time maybe it might be good for them now but turn into a bad habit later in life. Any opinions on this? And yes I have talked with their pediatrition who really has no opinion. My 8 yr old is 52 lbs and my 6 year is 39 lbs.
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