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I am a dad to twins (just turned six) and one of them has absolutely no appetite for most of the time. She isn't fussy, eats a good range of food (including fruit and veg) but she is so slow and just isn't that interested - once her initial appetite has been sated she can then take forever to finish her food (we can't threaten to take it away as she doesn't mind – she doesn't want any more!)
For example, this morning they both came down for breakfast and her twin ate hers quickly (well, as you'd expect) but ten minutes later she is still sat there with a bowl still half full of mush (formally Weetabix). And it is like this all the time - she simply eats a bit, doesn't feel hungry and loses interest.
Occasionally she will wolf stuff down (like yesterday when we took them for a curry where she demolished two platefuls) but this is very much the exception.
What's her weight like compared to her twin? If it's in the normal range, she may well be getting enough.
Are they identical or just siblings?
I have a 5 year old who doesn't eat that much, she is healthy and full of energy, she eats a balanced diet. So whilst it appears to me she doesn't eat enough, she is obviously getting all the nutrition she needs. I guess everyone has their own individual requirements, and as long as they aren't too over or underweight, they must be ok.
How old are they, out of interest?
I'd guess they are just turned six.
What, both twins?
Good point.
I've always been like this and my daughter is the same, we just get bored of eating but every now and then we'll wolf down a shed load of food (probably when the body feels like it needs it). My brothers are the opposite and can eat anything all day. As such I'm a skinny ****er (healthy though, (maybe!) race XC/road)) whereas my youngest brother is a big fat nacker, other is a big powerhouse, 14-16 stone compared to my 9.5-10, and the other works too hard/gets starved by his Mrs but that's another story and she's mental...ahem...
Seriously, as above if she's in the healthy range don't worry, she'll eat when she's hungry. My lass is a skinny malinky compared to the boy but they're both healthy and runnin around like kids should.
What, both twins?
Yes they're both twins.
don't worry about it - sometimes had to sit for 30 mins with our then 5 year old and had to negotiate just about every mouthful.
The dude will now (almost 7) eat like a champ - and only rarely do we have to come to an agreement as to how much more he has to eat before he can get down from the table.
As has been said - if they're not seriously underweight just stick with it. Don't let them get down from the table until the agreed amount has been consumed (make sure they have a say in it though, as otherwise they might just flat out refuse and that can lead to more eating issues).
What's her weight like compared to her twin? If it's in the normal range, she may well be getting enough.Are they identical or just siblings?
Non-identical and she weighs (I think) about 16 or 17kg - her sister about 20kg. She really is as light as a feather - slightly small for her age but not concerningly small (I am slightly below average height) but she is very slim. (Ie, age-sized clothes fit her for height but for fit (ie waist) she can fit into 3-4s!)
Don't let them get down from the table until the agreed amount has been consumed (make sure they have a say in it though, as otherwise they might just flat out refuse and that can lead to more eating issues).
This is pretty well much what we do and yes, I have considered that there may be an impact on future eating issues which is one of the reasons I am asking this now actually!
If her twin sister wasn't sat next to her wolfing it down, would you be at all concerned about her weight or appetite? The problem here may be that you have a direct comparator always on hand, but it's not always the most useful comparison to make, as appetite, metabolism and weight regulation varies widely between different children.
As the father of twins, I know exactly where you're coming from.
I am concerned at her apparent lack of interest in food / mealtimes. She would happily snack all day long but school days obviously don't allow grazing.
Does she have school dinners?
If you've got any concerns about whether school schedule is the problem, you can always dig out the red book with her charts in it and plot her weight/growth curve to see if she is at the expected level.
Yes she has school dinners and as I said in the OP, she is generally not that fussy eitther, just won't eat much.
Good idea regarding the red books though 🙂
My underlying suspicion would be that she is eating more at lunchtime than previously. Kids are usually remarkably good at regulating food intake as long as they're not being plied with sugary stuff left right and centre.
I've a 6 year old who is the same, takes forever to eat anything, will never finish his plate, but again he eats healthy and is happy.. The Mrs brought it up with the doctors but they were happy enough.. His 2yr old brother is the opp, eats plenty always wants more etc,we get the occasional day where he gets a hunger burst and devours everything but mostly just picks..we've given up worrying now, he's active and happy so have stop forcing the issue..
Thanks for the replies all - I shall suggest to my wife that we take a step back and put less pressure on her then 🙂
Eating races! Winner gets an ipad to break at the end of the week..
splice her genes with my kids... it will triple your food bill
My boy is like this. Right from the start he was a rubbish eater, he's just not that bothered about food. He gets bored by eating, and it also doesn't help that he's a right chatterbox, so his mouth is usually flapping rather than chewing. He's slim but not short or underweight, and he fidgets and runs around like a flipping lunatic all the time, so we've never been that bothered by it. If he says he's hungry after not finishing a meal, though, then it's tough ****. 😉
As long as they are not filling up on junk, and are getting nutrients, still growing etc - then I wouldn't push it.
Our son never used to eat much, sister ate loads - they are twins so it's easier to compare, but she would eat his food and he would give it away. He would take ages to eat anything. As a result at the age of 10 she looked about 3 years older than him.
But now, he will eat everything and never stop eating. His body just wasn't asking for the nutrients. Now they are both more active than ever before, so just eat and eat, but he has combined his appetite with eating all types off food and before it would only be bland things, whereas she is fussier and only wants to eat veg and beige food.
If anything like my kids "it will pass" seems to be the overriding message.
Daughter was not much different to yours, additional pressure from us merely prolonged the agony of dinner times, and made us all upset. We decided pretty much that we'd just ignore it. As long as she wasn't fainting every-time she stood up we let her eat as much or as little as she felt.
she seemed to be able to run around the playground as much as her peers, and even had a note back from the school nurse suggesting that her BMI was spot on average.
I suppose I just worry that she doesn't eat enough as it also effects her mood – she is visibly brighter once she has eaten so things like breakfast (that I seem to be in charge of) feel very important – we'd hate her to be going to school and not feeling like joining in / emotional etc.
But it is a fine balance as stated above - too much pressure isn't good for any of us either.
I do notice sometimes that if I say 'no problem then - you've eaten enough you can get down' that she usually then decides to eat some more.
Perhaps it is just one of those mind games she is playing on us?....
If what they do eat is good, I don't worry about it. Seems to go in cycles with ours, sometimes ravenous sometimes barely touch stuff. Our eldest errs on the side of eating very little but it doesn't slow him down any.
Do you give her a choice of good for breakfast? Some people can't stand cereal/sweet stuff for breakfast.......toast and marmite? Cheese on toast? Eggs? Both my daughters were very different eating growing up, one would only eat processed meat, and potatoes of any description......vegetables were a real difficulty.....as for breakfast, no chance unless it was a full English! The other daughter ate me out house and home 😆
She has options for breakfast (she seems to like variety). If it's not cereal (always getting different stuff that I end up eating) she will have brioche, toast, boiled eggs, homemade pancakes, waffles.,,
Your child has never been properly starving, that's great. When I have been, I would eat an ISIS fighters flipflop. Work back from that
Since she's been able to communicate (about 2 1/2 ) Miss Taxi has been incredibly fussy. To my mind food phobic. She's seen all sorts of paediatricians and dieticians and all they were concerned about was she getting enough calories !! To this day green is still poison the only vegetable's she'll eat are carrots and sweetcorn. Guess what she's a stunning healthy 18yr old. Don't sweat it unless she's very much underweight let her eat what she wants when she wants to.
My 4year old eats absolutely bugger all. She is healthy weight, full of energy, happy and fit as a butchers dog. I reckon kids like that must use photosynthesis or something.
John, I was like that as a child and it certainly stressed my mum out when I was young. Nowadays I have a reputation for eating everything and usually finishing off everyone else's! My 2.5 year old daughter is a completely random eater - my latest trick when she's not eating is to say I'll finish it and can she feed me - and half the time she sticks the spoonful in her mouth rather than mine. They do get bored and easily distracted don't they?
She can literally sniff chocolate out and will cross the length of our house quicker than Usain Bolt if the word "cake" (or anything that sounds like "cake") is uttered!
Ours are the same, one twin +10% heavier! it's a worry, but she is in the healthy range and we insist in the 5 a day, aside from that we do not pressure, but often she will eat like there is no tomorrow and then nothing for ages. No Dr or school have ever shown concern so we are less worried these days.
she has school dinners
Maybe her sister doesn't like school dinners, so is hungrier at home?
Hey, maybe her sister doesn't like school dinners so she eats it for her?
My twins are still like that at 14. As others have said don't worry as long as she is healthy. We have set mealtimes, simple rules like no pudding if you don't clear the plate (awaits STW flaming), you eat what you get or go without and mealtimes don't drag on - so if you are playing with the food rather than eating it gets taken away.
Both mine are healthy, and very different, not just in food tastes.
You need to start smoking. Smokers all seem to have fat kids.
Twin identical girls here also johndoh.
They're thirteen now and and have always been fairly slow/picky eaters - one more so than the other. When they were at primary school we had a letter from the some local area health bods stating that the girls had a body fat level of about 3% and warning us of the associated dangers.
We paid no attention as we knew they were perfectly healthy.
They're now about 5'5" (grew 3.5" in the last year), very slim, obsessed with sport (especially athletics which they do at district/county level) and can still be slow eaters - unless its biscuits.
Don't worry about it. If you feel your kids are healthy then it's fine. they'll eat when they're hungry, just give them food they like.
The smaller one will catch up with the bigger one - even identical twins grow at different times.
edit:
(Ie, age-sized clothes fit her for height but for fit (ie waist) she can fit into 3-4s!)
Same here.
What, both twins?Yes they're both twins.
Wow! what are the odds of that!
I was the same when I was young, ate very little but was otherwise reasonably healthy. I just never had an appetite or felt hungry, still don't actually!!
The docs found out it was due to my body not producing enough of the chemicals that tells your brain it needs food. There's some floating around in me but it takes a long time for me to need to eat. I've just had to get used to having food at certain times of the day (breakfast when I get up, evening meal about an hour before bed), otherwise I can go for days without eating and not notice!! When I moved out of the family home to my first flat I filled the fridge and freezer then forgot to eat any of it. Realised when I hadn't been shopping for a fortnight and went to check what I needed, it was all still there!
I just have a routine of checking what I have eaten throughout the day, easier when the day has structure (work or days out) but hard when going from day to night shifts for example. Out on the bike I have to make a conscious effort to eat a flapjack every hour or so, I take my Garmin with me on every ride with the elapsed time showing for this exact reason.
As others have said it could be normal for her but you're obviously worried so it would be worth a chat with a doctor just to put your mind at rest if anything.