Should a 9 year old be allowed to take food without asking? Where do we draw the line?

Question

Some Saturdays we like to sleep until 8:00 or 8:30am. Our darling 9 year old takes full advantage every time, helping herself to any sweet and tasty food item she can find. We've eliminated the items she eats in excess, i.e. having 4 ice cream sandwiches before we even open our eyes, but I'm still not so sure how Trix Yogurt, chewy fruit snacks or a handful of cookies factor into the breakfast pyramid.

I would like to hear how other folks treat this. Should she be able to eat whenever the mood strikes her? Should we lock the cabinets? Should she be punished? Do anyone else's kids hide food wrappers anywhere they think you won't find them, only to cause some real messes later on?

Answer 1

When I was little,I would always ask my mom or dad for a snack. Now that Im older, I could get a snack whenever.

         Anyway, mabey she isnt getting enough to eat. Are you feeding her Breakfast,Lunch,and Dinner? Make sure shes eating meals instead of snacks. Also, make it a routine for her to have 2 healthy snacks each day at certain times i.e fruit  cocktail,smoothies ect.

Answer 2

Overeating and eating because of boredom starts at a very young age.   Stop this now and let her know why. She has an increased risk of becoming obese.  

Maybe you could ration out some portions of whole grains and yogurt for her to snack on.  She gets a weekly ration and if she eats it all too quick, no snacks for later in the week.  

No she should not be able to eat whenever she wants like that.    Hiding wrappers is also a bad sign......

Answer 3

no offense, this sounds like the start of and eating disorder. if i were you i would  get more healthy foods around the house. if she sees you eating them she will probably fallow. also talk to her, this my be nerves eating( at 9 teasing from boys or even girls can be hard to deal with). if it gets any worse i would seek professional help. when i was nine i would sneak maybe a fruit roll up or two but not that much

  best of luck

Answer 4

Stop buying that stuff..it's your choice.  Buy healthy snacks instead.

Answer 5

stop buying junk food period then u wont have that problem. and yogurt isnt bad trix kind or otherwise

Answer 6

You need to set limits.  I think it is okay if you tell him what foods and when he can't eat them and then it's probably fine

Answer 7

dont growl at the kid for an hour for crying out loud. thats probably why she eats the stuff in private so you wont yell at her. my advice is dont have it around for her to eat. but dont lock every thing up like fort knoxx either that would embarrass her and make her feel guilty. i did the same thing when i was younger and it was because mom never got me the good treats and only bought them for her. so i would sneak them.

Answer 8

Your poor daughter is begging for your attention.  Easy solution?  Get up when she does.  Jezzzz.  This is how kids get eating disorders.

Answer 9

If she's eating ice cream sandwiches, Trix yogurt, chewy fruti snacks or cookies she isn't eating "healthy" snacks.  Those things listed have very little nutrtional value and are mostly sugar which is far from healthy.  I have rules in my home.  No snacks until decent meals are eaten.  My children are disciplined and when rules are broken privlieges are not handed out.  Privlieges in my home have to be EARNED.  Television, videos, video games, computer time, telephone usage are privlieges and if my kids don't behave they don't get any of their privlieges and they are limited to the time they watch television, play video games and spend on the computer.  

My advice is to stop purchasing the snack foods.  If they're not brought into the home they they're not a temptation.  Obviously YOU created the problem my allowing her to have them in the first place.

Answer 10

I am having the same issue with my four year old who is not allowed to help herself, but does so anyways. I don't know what to do about it, but for a nine year old, maybe you could pick out her snacks for the next day the night before and put them in a special place. That way she won't feel guilty about getting a snack and you will be able to monitor what she is eating. If she doesn't comply with this then she should be punished.

Answer 11

You said it takes you an hour to get her to admit it, even though she isn't in trouble....well she should be in trouble...FOR LYING!  You need to make a hard and fast rule that she is not allowed to get food out without asking, and every time she does, she is punished...losing her dessert for a day or two would be appropriate.  If she lies, you should come down hard on her.  She must learn that regardless of what happens she MUST always tell the truth.  She is much too old for you to have to hide things or put things out of her reach.  She is old enough to make herself a bowl of cereal or a peanut butter sandwich if she is hungry.  Don't allow this kind of behavior.

Answer 12

i had the same problem with my son who is almost 5years old.  we had to put a flip lock on top of our pantry door.  my husband is deployed right now and sometimes the only sleep i get (after being up half the night with our baby daughter) is when she takes her nap from about 8-9am.  and yes at his age he has already hid food wrappers from me.  ive learned to stock the fridge with foods he is allowed to eat (not occasional treats like sugary cereal and yogurts, "fruit"

snacks, chips, etc) and let him know which shelf in the fridge is safe for him to choose from.  the shelf with string cheese, his cup with milk in it, healthy yogurts, apples and grapes etc.

on an entirely different note, do not feel guilty for sleeping a little later. in this country we are all over worked, over stressed and arent getting enough sleep.  it isnt going to hurt this child for her parents to sleep in every once in a while on saturday.  in my case, if i didnt catch up on sleep i think i'd be a worse parent than one running around trying to do things half awake.

Answer 13

Try having a lot of healthy snack around e.g fruits and veges. Then she can eat all she wants. She is probably hungry. I wouldn't stop her especially if its a healthy snack.

Answer 14

Binge eating is an eating disorder. Often children feel guilty or secretive about it, (hide food wrappers, containers etc). If she's binge eating, it honestly doesn't matter what you have in your house, you can eliminate everything unhealthy in your house but their still going to find something. By what you said, it sounds like she is in the same boat as my nephew.We stopped buying junk food but our nephew will binge out on waffle, sandwiches. She could even have childhood depression. Because of her age, you would need to talk to a doctor about treatment. It will only get worst & could lead up to other eating disorders later on.

Answer 15

Our kids (now 9 and 5) have always been able to help themselves to whatever food they see.   When I was a kid, we were always able to help ourselves to whatever food/drinks there were.   We have some junk foods (cookies; poptarts; pudding cups), candy but also fresh fruit, juice boxes, etc, in our house.      My kids don't really eat the snacks---ususally their friends do when they visit--because they are highly restricted at home.        I firmly believe that our kids don't eat the junk in excess because they know it's available, I don't questions them about eating it or discipline them for it and I don't "hide" it.      Maybe your daughter does this because it's there and she wants to make sure she gets to eat it, so she goes to the extreme.    

As for breakfast on weekends, let her know that she needs to eat breakfast--no junk.     Sit the bowl, cereal on the table and  tell her she needs to eat the cereal for breakfast before any snacks.    How about frozen waffles she can cook in the toaster.    Let her know what you expect.    

If your daughter is lying, she should be punished.

Answer 16

stop buying junk food maybe that would help :)

Answer 17

I think it is important to find out WHY she is binging.  That's unusual behavior in a kid who is getting plenty of food.  My parents never locked up food, but we didn't have treats hanging around either (mostly because money was tight with 6 kids). Under normal conditions, heck, a 6 year old can feed themselves one day a week, but I think you have a bigger issue here.

Answer 18

Don't buy so much junk Get up with your Daughter and Yes I think kids should be able to help themselves to food in their own home!!!!!  I bet when your friends come over you say "make yourself at home eat whatever you want!"  C'mon  now  - a child should feel comfortable in their own home.