From Holly, Child's Age 6 - 09/06/01 - IP#: 205.188.200.xxx Click here to reply
Oh, I am so embarrassed at how much space that took up!!! I'm sorry, I promise to keep my messages shorter from now on! :-)
Reply from Nicola, Child's Age 11 - 03/28/02 - IP#: 205.188.196.xxx Look who's talking! the person who takes up 1 million pages every time she has an idea don't worry Holly!
Reply from Sue, Child's Age 12 - 09/09/01 - IP#: 62.64.191.xxx Holly, A couple more points on re-reading your posting. I don't know if you know but peanut butter is really fattening. My daughter used to eat gallons of it - I am sure she was eating it out of the jar so I just stopped buying it. You said you are vegetarians. That gives you less choice but have you tried meat substitues like Quorn? I don't know if you have it in the US but it tastes like mince, is low fat and is really quite filling. Also, did you know that you can get low fat jelly at about 7 calories a portion? Again, I don't know if you can get that in the US but I am pretty certain you probaby can. It tastes the same as normally jelly. My daughter has a really sweet tooth and I didn't want her to stop eating the food that she really enjoys so I just tried to buy low calorie/low fat versions. You say you eat a lot of pasta. Again, you can buy low fat pasta but start measuring the portions. You say she likes cheese. Again, you can buy half-fat cheese. If you are really crafty about this you can have your daughter diet but not realise she is on a diet. Another idea may be to try and find out approximately how many calories a day she should be eating. This is very difficult information to find but your doctor will probably be able to advise you. Now if you do find out and then calculate her calorie intake just on one day as a sort of test, and realise she is eating twice as much as she should be eating then you know for sure that she is over-eating. Finally, you don't really have to sit her down to talk about her eating habits and your concerns but just talk generally about the whole family improving their eating habits together. You say she comfort eats. Well, maybe substitute food wtih other 'treats' like a special box maybe that contains special things. This shouldn't be too hard to fill for a six year old - colouring books, crafts etc - or maybe a few lollies thrown in. Again, on one of my sweetie hunts I found some very calorie lollies. Hope all this helps.
Reply from Sue, Child's Age 12 - 09/09/01 - IP#: 62.64.191.xxx Holly, In my case, my daughter started to get big at around 6 and stayed plump until we tackled her weight problem when she was nearly 12. I sort of left it alone for years because she wasn't that overweight although she did look bigger than her friends - who by the way seemed to eat more than her and were nearly all skinny. She obviously had a slow metabolism, like your daughter may have, and there is nothing I could do about that. If she is in situations where other children are eating fatty snacks, that is a tricky one because by telling them you will bring your own will just make her feel odd and self-conscious. Just encourage her to eat a bit less. She is old enough for you to explain to her that while she doesn't have a weight problem YET, it could develop into something so you are being careful now. Also, you can buy low fat snacks - half fat potato chips etc. You can also tell the other mums about them. They taste the same and cost the same. You say she goes to bed with a full stomach. Well, I would try and make her main meal a bit earlier in the evening if possible. I would normally suggest a walk after dinner but as you have other children that won't be practical. Exercise will play a huge part in helping to regulate her weight and also her general well-being. The summer is easy because the evenings are light but at winter everyone kind of hibernates inside. We had an old exercise bike that we brought up. This is boring activity so the only way I could get my daughter to use it was it put it in front of the TV. She chose how much she wanted to do - 10 minutes some days and longer other days. We also did all this extra exercise together so she didn't feel the odd one out. Does your daughter like dancing? You could get some dance exercise videos which would make exercising fun. From your posting, it sounds like you are already doing a lot to help her. I would keep an eye on it but avoid weighing her too often and making a big issue of it. Look at the fat and calorie content of the foods she is eating. If she gets hungry in the evening make sure she has low fat snacks like carrot and low fat dip even and fruit. There is a lot you can do to help her without her even realising it. Good luck.
