Sneaking food

[MomEsq]

My daughter is 31 inches and 45 pounds -- overweight on the BMI scale.  We have been working with her since September 2003 to improve her diet (At that time she had high cholesterol, which has since resolved).  She has been consistently over-weight, even as a breast fed infant.  We have seen a great improvement, ie:  weight gain of 10+ pounds from age 2 to 3, versus about a 3 pound gain from age 3 to 4.

Lately (within the last month), she has begun "sneaking" food -- candy, pretzels, brown sugar, today it was raw oats!  We offer her 3 meals a day and she often eats more than her 2 1/2 year old sister and would eat as much as you would give her, I think.  She has had a CBC which is normal, which leads me to believe this is a behavioral issue?
She has snuck food (at one time 6+ Hostess cupcakes) in the past -- but it's been about 9 months ago.

I am a stay at home mom, my husband (my daughter's father) works 3 days a week.  She has an 8 year old brother and a 2 1/2 year old sister, neither exhibit these behaviors.

Thank you.

[MomEsq]

I actually mis-typed her height -- she is 41 inches tall.  Sorry.

[RockRose]

Mom,  your post is so confusing I went to your profile to try to figure out what's going on.  You state you've been working with her diet for over 5 years,  but she's only 4 - and you state that she eats as much as her 2 1/2 year old sister and would eat more if allowed.  I would think she would certainly eat more than her younger sister,  she's a tall healthy girl of 4 1/2.  

Gaining 3 pounds between 3 - 4 is on the low side,  especially considering her height and weight are normal for her age.  

A child her age needs more than 3 meals - she needs several snacks in between meals.  

It sounds like she's doing great - best wishes with her.

[Brooke050870]

It might be a good idea not to keep things like Hostess cupcakes in the house.  Your little girl is so young that at this age, she doesn't realize why she shouldn't eat foods like that in large quantities whenever she wants.  Even though your other two children don't have weight issues, it is probably better not to keep junk food in the house.  Have you talked to your little girl's pediatrician about an appropriate number of calories to feed her, based on her current height, weight and activity level?  She sounds tall for her age.  Do you allow her to have a healthy snack mid-morning and mid-afternoon, in addition to her three meals?  Best of luck to you.  

[socgirl]

I took the liberty of actually calculating your daughter's BMI..based on what you said..your daughter is 41 inches and 45 lbs.  Based on that, your daughter's BMI is 18.8.  The normal range for a BMI is 18.5 - 24.9!  Your daughter is actually almost underweight for her height.

Sorry to sound rude, but i agree with rockrose...your daughter needs snacks during the day.  That's probably why she's sneaking food.  She's a growing healthy girl.  Is it possible that you have your own issues with food and weight?  

[Brooke050870]

You know, I thought that 45 pounds at 41 inches sounded on the thin side too!  

[indigo39]

I agree with everyone else here on offering her snacks. My 4 year old son goes through periods where he will just about eat everything in sight, then eat very little for a few weeks. One of my friends suggested a 'snack shelf' in the fridge that has worked really well- things like apples, cheese sticks, low-fat yogurt, etc. He knows he can go get one if he's hungry.
If she's having to sneak food, then that could lead to issues with overeating later. Let her have healthy snacks during the day.

[MomEsq]

Thanks for all of your comments.  Sorry about the original post -- I was thinking that we started ensuring the whole family had a healthy diet when our daughter turned 3 -- so 2007 is the correct year, not 2003.

I have also calculated her BMI at 18.8.  It is in the over-weight/obese category for children.  BMI is interrepted differently for children than adults.  See this link for the BMI calculator I used.    http://pediatrics.about.com/cs/usefultools/l/bl_bmi_results.htm?test=1&gender=2&age=4&months=4&cwt=45&chf=3&chi=5

I have tried snacks at home, but it seems to make her more interested, rather than less interested in food throughout the day.  And, she does receive snacks at Sunday School (once a week), Pre-school (2 days a week), and at Bible Study (once a week).

Further, I agree with indigo -- and my other children are like that, especially our son -- they will go through times of eating a lot, and other times, not much at all.  Our daughter, on the other hand, never goes through "the not eating much at all" stage.

Also, we have talked with her doctor.  She is pleased that our daughter only gained 3 to 4 pounds this last year.  She is growing, and the goal is not to lose weight, but to slow the progression of weight gain.  

I was hoping to maybe connect with someone who has had a similar experience to see what worked for them.