She won't stop EATING!!

[WindyCityMom]

My DD is 2 years and 10 months old- she'll be three in December.

For the past ...I'd say... two months, she's had extreme hunger and constantly wants to eat. She's been 30lbs for about a year, though she has grown in height a few inches. She is still 30lbs, despite her eating.

She will eat and eat and eat and eat. We don't offer junk food, and don't offer nutrient devoid foods- so it doesn't seem to be that her body is lacking in a specific nutrient. A few months ago she was anemic so we upped her meat and bean consumption and all is fine now.

She gets lots of protein also. She doesn't get many refined sugars.

Why is she eating so much? We're really tight on money and she's eating like a teenage boy... so please no flames! I'm looking for a solution to keep her full for a longer period of time, rather than asking for food at all times of the day.

we have a daily rhythm and it has always worked for us. we have set mealtimes. She just wants to constantly eat. She's begging me now and she just ate a huge dinner.

[LVale]

Sounds like a growth spurt!

[Minxie]

Originally Posted by LVale

Sounds like a growth spurt!

My 4.5 yr old son eats like a grown man when he's going through a growth spurt.

[WindyCityMom]

That's what I was thinking, but for two months?!

[carmel23]

Sounds like she needs the calories. Do you eat eggs? Those are nutrient dense and relatively inexpensive, even for the cage free ones. Beans are inexpensive--my kids love beans and rice in bowls and burritos. Home made bread--my DD love to make bread with me.

I hear you on the food budget, ours is tight be we don't eat crap. So we always have eggs and burritos around.

Also, make sure she is getting enough water. Sometimes hunger is just thirst, manifest.

[WindyCityMom]

We love eggs We have hard boiled eggs on hand always. We eat eggs and oatmeal for breakfast. We love beans here Kidney beans, pinto beans, lentils, etc., we have beans with dinner at least 5x out of the week. We go through a lot of brown rice as well. She drinks a LOT of water. I have a big stainless steel water bottle that I fill up many times a day for her.

I feel like I'm doing everything *right* as far as keeping her hunger at bay goes, but she still comes up to me constantly saying "Mama, I want something to eatt please!" I think I've started hearing that in my sleep

[WindyCityMom]

Example: We make tilapia once in a good while, because we really enjoy it. We do this about once a month. Yesterday she ate FOUR (yes 4!!) filets. She ate all of her vegetables, and all of her rice. "More please [big grin]". I had to give her a snack after dinner because everything I cooked was gone.

She eats a lot of fruits and vegatables. She eats 1-2 small apples per day, we have them where she can reach them and eat one if she wishes to do so.

She was at the doctor a few weeks ago and I brought up up and the doctor seemed pleased with the fact that she had a 'hearty appetite' because so many kids are picky eaters at this age. The only thing my DD will not eat are refried beans. Other than that, if it's there, so is she.

[dividedsky]

sounds like a growth spurt... don't worry about it, just feed the child!

[LCBMAX]

Double check that she's getting enough good fats?

[freestylemama]

With my kiddo, there just came a point where I realized that she was eating like a person and we had to account for that in our grocery spending. I agree with others that you should make sure she's getting enough good fats (maybe do things like cook her eggs with extra butter, offer cheese, stock up on avocados when they go on sale, etc.).

If money is an issue, have you applied for WIC or food stamps? You might be surprised about how much you get.

[crunchy_mommy]

I wish DS ate like that I rejoice if I can get him to eat 4 bites of food. And that takes a lot of effort.

I wonder if it's got something to do with being anemic... i.e. she was lacking some nutrients & now that she's 'recovered' she's playing catch-up a bit??? Sounds counter-intuitive (better nutrient balance = eating more) but our doctor seems to be big on that idea.

[WindyCityMom]

I'm not entirely sure, but I'm a bit worried right now. 

Last night, I was sleeping and my DH had just had it with her requests for more and more and MORE food while she was still in bed.  He decided that it was time for her to stop eating and go to sleep (it was around midnight and she goes to bed several hours before that.  He woke me up, let me know what he told her, and I went back to sleep.  It must have been a half hour later when I woke up- to the sound of someone sucking on something.  She was chewing and sucking on my PHONE CHARGER!!  I felt so bad!  I promptly gave her one more snack and curled up with her in her bed until she fell asleep.  She told me she was hungry  

Ahh...

[JMJ]

Protien and fat will satisfy for longer.  If you feed her crackers, cheerios, or fruit, she'll be back for more pretty quickly.  For snacks, do hard boiled eggs, full fat yogurt, buttered toast, peanut butter on crackers, cheese, avocados, apples with peanut butter, vegetables cooked in fat, etc.  Make sure that her last evening snack is heavy on fats.

[elmh23]

At that age, my daughter could eat an 8oz steak, whole baked potato and a LOT of broccoli, plus an 8oz glass of milk.  Growth spurt.  She's almost 6 and going through another one right now and eats way more than me and dh put together (and I'm a hungry nursing mother!)

That said, sucking on the phone charger is problematic and I would consider getting her checked out.  Does she eat other non-food items?

[crunchy_mommy]

Originally Posted by elmh23 
Does she eat other non-food items?

Wondering the same thing...Did you retest to make sure she's no longer anemic?

If she's not eating other non-food items thought, I'd be inclined to think it's just a growth spurt.

[ellemenope]

Hmm.  A symptom of anemia is lack of appetite.  I know this because DD is borderline (well was, but I do think she is much better now) anemic and this was a strong symptom.  Also, I was really anemic when pregnant and had no appetite at all.  But, I do think it varies depending on what the root cause of the anemia is.  B vitamins were crucial for me, but my iron was low, too.

Also, when DD was tested as anemic she was very whiny and had a palor.  Again, she did not want to eat at all. 

[WindyCityMom]

She was tested again and not anemic anymore.

[carmel23]

The only thing I can think of is worms?  

[Artichokie]

my dd is the same age as yours and weights 32 lbs.  She eats the same amount or more than dh and I.  We do not eat any junk food and everything she puts in her mouth is nutritious.  Still, she can easily out eat us.  For instance, last time we had tacos (black bean, tomatoes, grass fed beef, cheese, and avocado), she ate SIX full sized ones plus brown rice and broccoli on the side.  Last night was whole wheat spaghetti and green beans and she had two full sized plates worth.  We have totally had to readjust our food budget b/c we were not preparing enough food.

The only suggestion I have for you is to make sure your meals are long enough - we take 45 min to an hour for each meal and that gives her a chance to eat slowly and decide when she is full. If you all ate eating too quickly for her she may feel rush and when her meal settles she discovers she is still hungry.

I also liken it to feeding a teen aged boy.

[a-sorta-fairytale]

I would look into possibly sensory or vitamin deficiency issues.  Some kids just need different textures in their mouthes.  My ddd does not eat.  But, she always has stuff in her mouth.  She is 6 1/2 and if you were to ask me which of my 3 kids (her being the oldest) would have something in their mouth it is her.  She has a chewy thing at school because she was eating the pencil toppers, chewing her shirt, biting the books etc. 

I know when i was very low on vit D and on iodine i had been so ravenously hungry.  I felt like i could never eat enough.  Once i got tested and my doc found those things i started supplements and my hunger is much more normal now.

If you rule out the above or other medical issues then it might just be that she has a hearty appetite.  My ds (2 1/2) is slowing a bit now but for the last year he ate more then anyone at the table except dh (who is 6ft4 and 250lbs and does a ton of sports).  He would wolf down his breakfast, then finish his olders sisters food, then ask for a whole avocado etc.  I did notice for him to be satisfied longer he needed more fats on his food.  So i would add avocado slices to most meals, or olives, or more coconut oil to his veggies etc.