Cravings!

My son is 9 and has been having trouble with these sugar cravings for years. He can't seem to sleep through one night without getting up and sneaking anything he can find that is sweet. I have other children that can control themselves so I do keep a few things in the house, but have to hide them in my bedroom closet! If I don't he will sit up and eat and eat until they are gone or he falls asleep. He is a very skinny child, has always been. He eats a healthy lunch and dinner daily then gets offered a snack after dinner to try and curb these cravings. Nothing seems to work! He will drink hershey syrup right out of the bottle or even get into the cookie decorating sugar! He even tries to sneak into my bedroom closet at night to get these things or into my purse to steal money to buy things at school. He is also on ADHD medication, but has had these cravings and inability to sleep through the night forever! This is effecting my whole family, not being able to sleep and not being able to trust him not to steal things! His blood sugar has been tested and all that is fine. WHAT CAN WE DO!!????


This discussion is related to 9 year-old's craving for sugar.

[RockRose]

Would there really be a problem with giving him a serving of dessert in the middle of the night?  I believe in true cravings - that there is something there that he is actually needing.  

I don't believe in emotional cravings,  or people who are very obese who keep eating.  But a skinny child who is clearly craving . . . why not give him a large piece of cake or other dessert item when he wants it in the middle of the night?

Sugar isn't a demon - humans actually need it for many body processes.  Sounds like he needs it.

Best wishes.

[mato4]

Hello I also have a son with ADHD, he goes through periods of wanting sugar, I do make special treats for him and will leave them in the bottom right drawer of the refridgerator, this stopped him getting into everything in the middle of the night, because he knows where to go for his snack.  Also my son used to have a really hard time falling asleep which would lead to crazy mornings.  I spoke to our medical doctor and they adjusted his meds and he now sleeps through the night.  Actually the first night we kept checking to make sure he was ok because it had been so long since he had slept that well.  My son does however also have OCD and Tourette's syndrome.  My best advice is talk to your doctor ours has been wonderful in explaining things and working with us.

[jazzy36]

Hello,

I too have a nine year old that is starting to crave sugar recently.  She drinks a lot of water and I have caught her either stealing sugar or adding spoonfulls into her water to drink.  This seems a bit odd.  She is not a big sweet eater ie..candies, cookies etc but will crave things like syrup, raw sugar, cookie dough and cake batter but won't eat the cookies and cake after it is baked.  She also was diagnosed with ADHD but is not on medication.

[Sandman2]

    The "drinks a lot of water," bothered me so I checked out juvenile diabetes.  It really doesn't list a craving for sweets, but I include the symptoms here just in case there are any others you didn't mention.
    
       Symptoms of Juvenile Diabetes
The symptoms of Type 1 diabetes (juvenile diabetes) may occur suddenly, and include:

    * Frequent urination

    * Increased thirst

    * Extreme hunger

    * Unexplained weight loss

    * Extreme weakness and fatigue

    * Urinating at night (nocturnal enuresis)

    * Blurred vision

    * Numbness or tingling in the hands or feet

    * Heavy or labored breathing

    * Drowsiness or lethargy

    * Fruity odor on the breath