[~Quse~]

My nearly 2 dd is addicted to chocolate. She calls for it first thing in the morning, often before she even opens her eyes. If she knows it's around, she won't rest until she gets her fill. Sometimes she takes for ever to go to sleep because she is crying for it. Sometimes I give in, sometimes I don't. I try not to keep much around the house and I think I've done alright so far at limiting her intake. However, I don't want to start any food issues by constantly denying her what she wants to eat.

I always offer her everything else I can think of when she's asking for chocolate and I try to distract her, but she is determined. I've even thought of giving her a whole bag of chocolate chips and letting her eat until she gets sick but have not because this seems mean. Does anyone have any experience, thoughts, or advice?

 

[gigglesgalore]

I certainly can relate. My dd (25 mo) LOVES chocolate, too. If there is any in the house, she just *knows* it's there and demands it. It surprises me because I've always limited her sugar intake, etc. I've tried to keep chocolate to a minimum in the house, but like you, I don't want to deny it completely. I believe in moderation.

If dd wants chocolate, she needs to eat/finish eating whatever healthy we're eating and then I let her have a few hershey's mini kisses. Yesterday she chowed a PB&J sandwich and then called out, "I'm done! Chocolate!"

I've tried carob chips, but eaten plain, she knows they're not chocolate. In cookies, she's ok.

 

[meowee]

I am very laid back with my kids when it comes to food, I believe in letting them eat what they want when they want, and it is my job to make sure that the food available is as healthy as possible.

The thing about chocolate though is that it isn't really "food," at least not IMO. It is a drug contained in sugary wax. Cocoa does have some health benefits but the wax and refined sugars, and artifical flavoring (almost all chocolate except baking chips and bars contains artificial flavorings, even "high end" chocolate like Lindt) in the candy bars are not good for the body.

Personally, I would try to focus her attention on the cocoa, to see if that is what she is craving. I would allow her to have as many homemade, honey-sweetened brownies as she wanted. If she is still out of control for the chocolate bars, though, she is probably craving the comforting sensation of the smoothness and "meltiness." I would not deprive her of such a comfort if she needs it this badly but I would use baking chocolate (or another chocolate with no artificial flavorings), and, this is one of those things I would not give unless she has eaten some "real food" first (typically I do not believe in making a child eat one thing before another thing, but as I do not consider the chocolate bars/ chips to be food, I would expect "food" to be eaten before the "non food").

You could also try baking things with a limited amount of chips in them, unless she just picks out the chips and eats them and not the food. I make chocolate chip bars frequently, with olive oil as a fat and honey as a sweetener, but I use half as many chips as are usually put in such a recipe. They do eat the whole thing and not just the chips.

Finally, chocolate addiction can indicate a magnesium deficiency.

Be gentle with her.

 

[MamaFern]

i know for that me, when im craving chocolate it usually means that im getting iron deficient..elwynn loves chocolate too, but i dont let him have much or have it very often..his dad is 100% against him having anything sugary or chocolatey or bad..but i think once in a while is okay. i bake my own cookies and always put lots of sunflower and pumpkin seeds and hemp hearts and molasses as well as chocolate chips..so i feel like its an okay balance. plus elwynn loves a scoop of molasses on a spoon.. he thinks its chocolate and its very high in iron..maybe try that when she is craving chocolate!

good luck.

 

[monkeysmommy]

My dd loves chocolate too, or any candy for that matter. I am like meowee, in that I let my dd eat whatever food she wants, but i agree that chocolate is not food. When she asks for a piece of chocolate too soon after she has already had one, or if she has not eaten anything healthy, I say something like, "Eating too much chocolate isn't good for our bodies or our teeth, so we can only eat a little at a time. After you eat a healthy dinner, you may have a small piece for dessert." Or, "You've already had a lot of sugar today. I don't want you to get boo-boos on your teeth. Let's wait until tomorrow, okay?"

Since she is asking for it in the morning, I wonder if it's the caffeine she's addicted to? There is a little boy in one of my dance classes who has been suffering from headaches and for the longest time his mom couldn't figure out why. They finally figured out that the headaches were only occurring when he didn't have a glass of chocolate milk after school. So he is off chocolate for a while.

Another thing I just thought of is that I once heard that when you are craving sugar, you may need protein. Maybe try adding more protein, as well as more iron, to her diet, and maybe she will crave the chocolate less.

 

[xenomama]

We really have chocolate craving issues in our home, too. The foods y'all are speaking of sound really yummy. Would anyone like to post some recipes or links to places with good, healthy recipes for chocolate goodies?

 

[nancy926]

DD loves chocolate too...like momma like daughter, I guess.

Baking chocolate is nasty, btw. if she doesn't go for carob there's no way she'd go for baking chocolate.

I think the healthy sweets idea sounds great. How do I make honey-sweetened brownies?

Nancy

 

[Rainbowbird]

Interesting thread. I love chocolate but oddly enough don't crave it much when I am pregnant!! Maybe b/c I am getting lots of iron from my vitamins and paying more attention to my diet?

I have only given DS 22 mos. a bite of chocolate once or twice. He's not familiar enough with it to ask for it. Maybe I should keep it that way! After reading these posts I'm not sure I want him to develop a liking for it!

I wonder if you could slowly reduce her cravings but lessening the amounts you give her over time, until eventually she is only eating it every other day, then every few days, etc.? Maybe bring other interesting foods into the house like special fruits that maybe you wouldn't buy out of season normally, etc. and try having those for dessert when you aren't having the chocolate?

Just an idea, maybe a lame one at that. I know I have a hard enough time gettng DS to eat fruits and veggies (he's kind of a cheese junkie) without bringing candy into the picture. Good luck!

 

[amy373]

My daughter is the same way. She LOVES chocolate (so does her dad.) She knows if she asks for it she can have a small piece (like one or two M&Ms) and that there is to be no more until she eats something healthy.

The M&Ms help her chocolate cravings--sometimes just having it, even a small bit cuts the 'need'--and I can dole out a small bag over a week or more.

Good luck! I try not to make food an issue (dessert foods or otherwise) because it was such an issue for me as a child.

 

[steffanie3]

meowee and MamaFern

I would love recipes too, please

 

[boatbaby]

mee too.
addicted to chocolate I mean.
not my ds
me. me. me.

mmmmmmmm.... chocolate.

 

[Rainbowbird]

OK you guys have got me craving a blonde brownie! I found this site with healthy recipes. Look under Cookies and bars for blonde brownies. They call for sucanet, not honey though. Great selection of all kinds of recipes! I am going to my Co-op today to get carob chips. I am paranoid of turning DS into a chocoholic! LOL

http://naturesfare.com/recipies.cfm

 

[gardenmom]

Dd also loves chocolate, and I don't look at it as a healthy food, but do feel that everything in moderation is a fair attitude--I would not eat it in front of her without offering, in the same way that I ask her to try a taste of everything else one time before refusing it. We stash it where she knows it's there but can't reach it, and normally we have our treat after she has gone to bed. I only buy semi sweet or dark chocolate that has no artificial flavors or hydrogenated oils in it--Trader Joes brand is good for bars and chocolate chips. Bakers brand chocolate chunks (getting harder to find) also has real vanilla extract and natural cocoa butter.

So in normal (non Grandma-spoiling-her-holidays) times dd might get a small piece of chocolate or a glass of organic chocolate silk or organic milk with organic chocolate syrup, maybe every other day. Overall, she probably gets a treat of some sort daily, but it's not always chocolate. Don't get me wrong, dd would eat as much as I let her, but we limit it, and she seems to be fine with that as long as dh doesn't walk over and take a huge chunk and eat it right in her face (I'm training him NOT to do this again--btdt!).

I suggest that as a limiting factor or deterrent, you might buy a high-cocoa bar, but not unsweetened, like a 70% cocoa chocolate bar, which is bitter but still has some--but less--sugar. The recipe alternatives with carob or honey is a great idea, too.

Anybody have a link for the amount of caffeine in chocolates? This interests me...tia.

 

[xenomama]

Mariah101 - I can't get the recipes to open on that site.

 

[Rainbowbird]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tomsgirl Mariah101 - I can't get the recipes to open on that site.

They are PDF files so you have to click on them, then open them up on your desktop after they download. They won't open up as a window on the website like recipe sites normally do. HTH!