Why Do/Did Your 11-yo Boy Overeat?

[Anonymous]

I know many will say because they're growing, and I'm not disputing that, but I'm still curious what some other reasons/issues there might be for this age. DS is in 6th Gr and always eats a ton and is always bigger. I know a big part of his overeating is a direct response to our (unsuccessful, of course) attempt to limit/control his food intake, but I've also read about many cases where kids eat due to other issues. I am hoping to find some clues if he is also using food/eating to deal with issues that we're not aware of. I am honestly not trying to slim him down (we're not skinny people ourselves), I just want to avoid/correct any unhealthy eating behavior before it gets worse. BTW we homecook 5/6 days a week breakfast and dinner, and he buys lunch at school. But when we eat out he shows this seemingly uncontrollable urge to eat a much bigger amout of food. He even once said to me at a restaurant when looking at the menu that he 'want to stuff my face', and no he wasn't joking.

[Anonymous]

I think you have issues with food and he may not.

[Anonymous]

Limiting food leads to obsession with it. Bottom line.

[Anonymous]

What is he eating? Lots of snacks or useless "food", like chips and crackers?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is he eating? Lots of snacks or useless "food", like chips and crackers?

and if eating out is an issue, then do it less.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is he eating? Lots of snacks or useless "food", like chips and crackers?

and if eating out is an issue, then do it less.

he eats what i make at home, or school lunch. yes he eats chips at mexican restaurants.

we eat out two to three meals a week, do not want to do it less for the whole family's sake.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Limiting food leads to obsession with it. Bottom line.

i understand that. my question is what else?

[Anonymous]

What are you cooking? What foods are in the house?

[Anonymous]

Also how active is he?

[Anonymous]

When my boy was 11 he routinely ate two hamburgers at a meal. I was shocked how he could put food away. It went on that way for about 18 months, then at his next doctor's appointment, I found he'd gained 3 pounds during the year, and grown 4 inches. He was right in the 85 percentile for height and weight, as he'd always been. A couple of years later, I was again shocked when I found he had gained 25 pounds in the year, and only grown another 2 inches. But, he remained in that 85 percentile for height and weight.

Teens take on calories so they can grow. Simple. But 15-year-old is now back down to one hamburger at a meal. I'm expecting another growth spurt soon.

[Anonymous]

ADHD can make you want sweets.

[Anonymous]

You said that you're not skinny people yourselves, so it seems like you're projecting your desire to not be skinny onto your son. You try to limit his food intake so he's not overweight like you are. Except it doesn't work like that because his environment is probably full of delicious, fattening foods and he's probably surrounded by others who get to eat those foods without restrictions.

I think it's awesome you want to help your son make better choices, but that's not just limiting the amount of food. Especially because he's coming up on the age of bottomless pit-ness.

We had a cookout on Saturday with some neighbors and my 14 yo DS ate 2 hamburgers and a hot dog along with the other traditional cookout foods. He routinely eats a small dinner when he gets home from school before soccer practice, then regular dinner after practice, and will eat a pretty substantial snack before bed. The key isn't so much limiting his amount, but the types of foods he eats. We keep very little junk in the house and have taught our kids to make wise food decisions.

My suggestion would be for the entire family to get some help. You can't force one person to be healthy when the others aren't. You don't even have to limit eating out to be healthy.

[Anonymous]

i cook pretty routine stuff - chicken, fish, beef, brocoli, cauliflower, carrots, rice, noodles, pasta, tortilla bread, etc. we don't keep sweets, sugary drinks or 'junk' in the house. we do have cookies, crackers, chips, cheese, nuts as snacks.

@14:42 - just because we're not skinny doesn't mean we're overweight or surrounded by fattening foods.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Also how active is he?

not sure how this is relevant. he's not hnugry from doing a ton of exercise, if that's what you're implying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also how active is he?

not sure how this is relevant. he's not hnugry from doing a ton of exercise, if that's what you're implying.

what do you mean it's not relevant? And why are you so defensive? You have issues with food and you are projecting it as a 'treat,' which is why he is gorging.