Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am absolutely fascinated by these parents saying to give a child a snack in the middle of the night.
If my kid were to wake me up with a "mom, I'm hungry" I can't imagine any response other than "go to bed. You'll have breakfast in the morning."

Yes!! Exactly. This is not a habit to indulge. Provide better options during waking hours. Also talk to your doctor.

+1

Anonymous wrote:I am absolutely fascinated by these parents saying to give a child a snack in the middle of the night.
If my kid were to wake me up with a "mom, I'm hungry" I can't imagine any response other than "go to bed. You'll have breakfast in the morning."

Yes!! Exactly. This is not a habit to indulge. Provide better options during waking hours. Also talk to your doctor.

Op here again. I checked his last visit he is actually 60.25 inches tall but has never been considered overweight at any visits. He has a peanut allergy so he does eat sun butter with jelly sandwiches as someone suggested. Yogurts, fruits, granola bars for snacks already and cereal. Thank you as these are all familiar options for us. He eats what I would consider average or slightly above. I have one child who is a nibbler so in comparison he eats more in one sitting. No issues with thirst or other problems with health. The men on both sides as mentioned are all fairly taller than average at 6’4-6’7 so he was always expected to be a taller child. He is very active, very physically active which raises a good point if I need to add that extra meal someone mentioned her son has.

Thank you all! even with varying opinions, it is all helpful to hear.

+1 to no on the middle-of-the-night snack, and I recommend cutting out the "right before bed" snack, too. Given you're feeding him simple carbs, I'm sure his body is digesting them quickly and having a sugar crash, which then triggers a craving for more carbs.

A 9 year old can get all the calories they need between the hours of 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., and the human body is designed to fast at night. Hunger is hormonal, as others have pointed out, i.e., our brain can feel "hungry" when there is no physical need for more food. Conversely, hunger may also be driven by a nutrient deficiency - is he eating a well rounded balanced diet, and do you have him on a multivitamin?

* good not food, lol.