Is my six year old too obsessed with food?

Question

My daughter is 6 and for the last 6 months or so she has had an unusual concern about food. She will ask some off the wall questions sometimes and it's starting to worry me. Today when I picked her up from school the first thing she asked was if she could have a snack when we got home. And then she wanted to know what was for dinner. Then if she could have a snack before bed.... She acts like I don't allow her to eat! It's like she worries herself sick about when and what she will eat next! She is perfectly healthy and has a good weight. She has a good breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday, plus 3 or 4 snacks between meals. She eats very healthy, loves fresh fruit and veggies... It's just weird to me that she is all of the sudden so concerned about it. Like when I fixed her dinner plate tonight I took it to the table and set it down and before she even took a bite she asked if she could have more if she ate all of that. I've NEVER told her she can't have something to eat! What's up??

Answer 1

Maybe she's going through a growth spurt and feels hungry more often.

Just ask her why she is asking (I know at age 6 she might not even know that answer), but ask her how she would feel if the answer was yes and how she would feel if the answer was no (like when she asked if she could have more food before she had even started eating her dinner).

Answer 2

Younger children tend to obess over things that they are curious about. It is a natural curiosity but if you are concerned talk to a professional to get some advice. It may help you feel better about the situtaion.

Answer 3

tell him  to stop eating so much because he is going to get fat.

Answer 4

Maybe she's just going through a growth spurt and is really feeling hungry all the time? Or maybe some kids at school are saying something. My cousin was only about nine when girls in her class started "dieting". Kids are freaking out about weight these days. Maybe if she's healthy and thin, someone keeps saying something like "oh your so skinny" or "you skinny little thing". My family always said that kind of stuff to me and it made me feel like a baby. She could be trying to counteract comments like that. She's young, she doesn't understand that it's not bad to get those comments at that age. Just talk to her about it if you think she won't get upset. As long as she's eating healthy, not getting chubby, and being active, I don't think its too big of a deal. Just make sure she doesn't start binging or starving herself or anything.

You seem very on top of the issue, just keep watching and I'm sure things will be fine. Kids can be weird sometimes (not that your daughter is) They just tend to pick up alot of different mannerisms and combine them all into an eclectic personality for a few years.

Answer 5

Maybe she just wants to eat more food. I think its ok but you could ask her why she is asking these questions. I hope this helped!

-Tara

Answer 6

I think is pretty normal. School age kids learn at her/his age about proper health and other programs taught in school. My son was going through the same thing when they were studying the Food Pyramid; he was even counting calories and reading labels. He would asked me how much fat were in certain foods. It's over now. He eats whatever he wants but healthy choices though.

If she continues with this behavior after the summer then you should bring it up to her pediatrician's attention.

Answer 7

My kids are the same,. i think it is normal, the first question I get is what's for tea? or can I have a .....? whatever!

I think you have done the right thing getting her checked out.

My son is nearly 12, and weighs almost 5 stones, he is tall for his age too, and never seems to put on weight! although he sounds like your daughter. I too got him checked over for intolerance's etc, he came back fine.

Answer 8

Try talking to her about other things. My son's latest thing is to talk constantly about what some kid at school did (he's been out of school for a week now!). I hear about this other kid every 10 minutes or so! I find if I start talking to him about something else, he gets just as interested! Sometimes kids just want to talk to their parents, and can't think of any other topics.

Answer 9

Maybe have a basket with healthy treats in it that she could grab anytime that she wanted? Some kids are grazers (snacking throughout the day), especially through growth spurts and need a little extra here and there. But ask her if there is reason behind her questioning.

Answer 10

have you asked her why she is so concerned. If she was asking about tomorrow tell her that you will talk to her tomorrow about it. It may be a case of refusing to talk about it to make it stop.

Answer 11

Most likely, yes. I was a fat child in my younger years.

Answer 12

I am in the same boat, but with a different fixation.  My 7 yr old is extremely preoccupied with what time it is.  He woke me up at 12:40 a.m. to tell me the time.  Whenever he asks what time it is and I tell him, he always has to find  an event in the future to tell me exactly how long it is until that event happens.  Kids are strange.  I've asked him why he cares so much about it, but he doesn't know.  I attribute it to math being his best subject.  

Your problem has the potential to be a bit more serious.  But you are doing the right things.  I would talk to her about it and find out if other people are making comments to her about her weight or food.

My son also went through a faze where he thought he needed to lose weight, because his father talked about losing weight all the time.  My son has had abs since he was walking.  Little things like that can stick in a childs mind.

Good luck.

Answer 13

Well I think you are dealing with an eating disorder. I think they call it compulsive eating disorder. My cousin is 5 years old and he has the same problem but he doesnt eat healthy, he just wants to eat whatever he can get. They have diagnosed him with Compulsive Eating. Hope that helps

Answer 14

LOL, it's OK. my girls, 4 and 18 mos, are just the same. as soon as their eyes open they ask for food. even if they just ate they will come to my plate and try to eat some more. some kids just love to eat. as long as she's healthy and eats a good diet you shouldn't worry about it.

Answer 15

HI!

She is a growing kid. and some kids like to eat more than others. 1 Thing you can look at is the people and kids she is around at school and what she is watching on TV. And what your eating habits are like as well. Sometimes kids pick up what they  see and hear. For example (Say she is watching television and one of those commercials comes on about the starving kids in other countries she may get nervous about that and want to make sure she eats enough. Or even something simple like a Favorite cartoon where a character LOVES food. Were in America lol Everone loves food.

You say she is a healthy weight and that she eats healthy as well. They say that it is better to eat like 5 small meals a day or a lot of little snacks rather then 3 big meals. As long as your not feeding her fried chicken and pizza which it doesnt sound like you are.

If you really do become very concerned about this your best bet really is probably to ask your pediatrician. Keep an eye on her weight and if she seems like she is becoming over what a 6 year old girl should be. then you will definitely want to contact your doctor and try to make her portions smaller. But if i were in your position i would call the doctor. Because who knows there could be something physical and not environmental that is making her so hungry. Don't worry yourself silly about it. She could just be going through a growth spurt.

Good luck and take care

Malimay.

Answer 16

wow thats kinda weird. maybe its a growth spurt

Answer 17

My five year old is doing the same I think she is just growing dont worry like you said everything she is eating is healthy, shes not overweight ,  with a growth spurt theres just no filling them up you will find by next month her appitite will decrease

Answer 18

maybe at school she doesn't get enough to eat, or they won't let her have seconds. i am 22 have a very high metabolism and eat many snacks every day because i get painfully hungry if i don't. my doctor says i am healthy (i work out and am athletic) and i am even a little underwieght on the chart. (5'2" 102 lbs.) i hate being in other people's homes because i don't want to ask for food but other people just don't seem to get as hungry as i do or eat as often as i do. so while everyone else is fine, i am starving. i remember my mom sending me to a camp where they didn't do snacks and finally on day 5 i begged for a snack after a day on the lake. they gave it to me because they could tell i obviously ws not a fat kid that just wanted food for the heck of it. maybe people give her too small of portions often or she goes part of the day being hungry at school or something. i would ask her if she feels hungry often.

Answer 19

I used to do that all the time, my mom just answered me " You haven't starved yet have you?" and if I continued she would said "just worry about now, we will figure later out when it gets here." I learned to stop worrying so much about when and what i was going to eat.

Answer 20

um that is odd no offence my what i think is that she has a very very good matabalism and it can burn the food so fast and use up the energy fast because 6 year olds are very active so mabey it makes it so she is hungry because her matabalism is very active too. hope this helps you

Answer 21

Awe, maybe it's just a stage she's going through. My daughter is 3 and acts very similar, but she is healthy and at a good weight just like your daughter. I wouldn't worry about it. Maybe she is learning about food at school or something, and it just has her interested. Speaking of school, does she eat good there, too? Maybe if for any reason wasn't eating well there this would make her more hungry when she got home. Check into it. Do you pack her a lunch or does she eat there? Maybe she doesn't care much for the school food, or if you pack it for her, make sure she is eating all of it and not giving it away or anything. I remember when I was a kid, I was so shy and I tried not to eat much at school becuase the other kids were looking at me. Sounds silly but it's true. Talk to her about it .Take her to the doctor if you need to. Of course though, she is just a kid. And kids can have quite the appetite. As long as she is doing healthy, maintains a good weight, I'd say she is fine.