Food and Eating.

I have an 8 year old son that eats as fast as he can at the dinner table. I have since started to make him take smaller bites and put his fork/food down in between bites since he would take another bite before he was even done with the food in his mouth. This in itself has slowed down his eating and it also lets the stomach rest and the get the signal that they are fuller before to much food has been consumed. If this does not work then I would have him drink a big glass of water before eating because this also makes them feel fuller faster.

S.-

Hey there! How are you doing? It sounds to me that he has a high metabilism. I had this and still do. It is harder since I have had kids. I need to eat right when I wake up and before I go to sleep. Make sure you get him into a physical activity and he eats right and make sure he gets a daily vitamin. My son loves those Spiderman ones! :) If he is more active then, he is less likely to eat as much and if he still eats that much than he is burning it off when he is active. Hope this helps! Let me know how it works out. Good luck!

C.

Hi, I don't think this will help you any, other than to know your child is not the only fast eater. My son turns 7 years old this month, and my oh my... he is always hungry and when it's time to eat he's the first one done asking for seconds, then thirds, and sometimes fourths. He has been like this since about 6 months old, as soon as we fed him table food he was all about FOOD! To this day he just doesn't stop. It's rather embarrasing when he gets invited over to his friends house for dinner, and I have to remind him to eat slow, eventhough that bit of advice goes in one ear and out the other. Everyone in our family eats much slower than he does. I, too, hope this will not be a problem for him as he gets older. Good luck with this!!

Hi your son could have a high matabalizum, and that may be why he is eatting so much.
I think that you should make him eat slower or when he asks for seconds than have him wait five or ten minutes before letting him have it. This will help him feel full better and is better for his body.
He is a boy and they do eat more than girls.
If he's skinny than he probaly just has a high matabalizum so just try things to get him too eat slower. than you might beable to see what this is all about. Hope any of this helps.
Best wishes to you.

If you are concerned, of course talk to your doctor for reassurance. However, he sounds like a typical boy. With that said, mine is the world's slowest eater, but the boys I grew up with ate like it was going out of style. My family can finish a meal in 10 mins or less, my parents and siblings that is. I am overweight, but my brother never was. My mom always said he ate only one meal a day, it started when he woke up and ended when he went to bed. If you are worried about his weight, then do make sure he has plenty of healthy choices and that eating out is a fun occasion. Personally, as long as he is skinny I wouldnt worry. Yeah when he gets old, some weight may happen to him, it did with my brother, but he will figure out how to take care of it. Good Luck!

As long as he's being active and burning up the calories boys will eat a lot. My husband friend was and is like that and the joke was "well, he's just filling up the other leg now." He's over 6' tall.

However, the speed is something he should work on. one it's bad manners to wolf down your food. two, you have to give you brain time to process your stomach capacity, meaning you have to get the food there then it sends the signal on. If he's finishing a sandwich is 4 bites, then he's not taking time to chew or he's just taking too big a bite. No one wants to sit with someone (@ school/elsewhere) who looks bad when eating. Our mouths are only so big and putting too much in our mouths truly makes us have to overwork and look un-gentlemanly (or un-ladylike).

Did he start this because he's not having enough time at lunch in school so he's in a hurry. If so, try to determine if it's to school not providing adequate time or him not utilizing that time (Playing instead of eating).

Manners now will gain him more points later in life than just going for quick quantity. He can still eat what he needs, just eat it slower.

My son is 8 and he is similar. He likes to eat alot and is healthy, he is about 62 lbs. He goes in spurts. One week he can eat alot and the other week it is very little. The difference is, is that he is a very slow eater unless he is busy and wants to get back to it. He eats adult portions. He eats about the same as I used to. I am trying to lose weight now. His dad when he was younger had very high metabolism and didn't start gaining weight until he was 30. Now he has a gut. I would just watch his metabolism too.

S.,
Busy lifestyles lead to scarfing for all of us, right? A couple things that may help, eat at least one meal a day as a family, encourage conversation, so your son has to stop and take a breath :) It's funny by brother-in-law was this way as a boy, just slow him down, engage him by asking him questions about his day, so he has to use his mouth, not stuff it. He's a growing boy so the quantity is probably not the problem, but the speed he's eating. And if you are interested, I too am overweight right now, and am using some great weight loss products, excercise, and personal encouragement, as I have learned we eat emotionally, not usually because we are hungry, ya know 'comfort foods' I'd love to partner with you and we can both lose weight and get healthy!
Bless ya,
M. Malkin
____@____.com

I wouldn't be as concerned about how much he is eating, but what he is eating. Keep healthy snacks around the house and try to have fast food only once in a while. At his age, he is active and growing. I can remember that stage in my life as well. Just make sure he eats fruits and vegatables and carbohydrates like whole wheat pasta and bread. Peanutbutter sandwiches are good because peanutbutter is very filling and sticks with you a little longer. Just make sure what he is eating is healthy, and let him eat all he wants! I would remind him to slow down everytime you are eating with him and eventually he will. If you are really concerned, talk to his doctor.

Have you ever checked his metabloism? If he has a high metabolism then he will always be hungry because he needs to refuel his energy. Next time you are at the doctor ask questions and just let the dr know that you want your son to have a healthy life starting early!

It sounds like you have a little boy at your table, and I hope you're reassured by the responses you've already gotten. The only other suggestion I have for you is to start putting smaller portions on his plate. If he finishes the smaller portions on his plate, and still feels hungry and asks for seconds, taking the time to serve up another, small portion will give his brain some time to register the food in his stomach.

My 7 year old seems to do the same thing. When she eats, she wolfs down her food (sometimes to the point where we have to remind her of her table manners) and then is hungry again. She suprises me when she asks for second helpings at lunch and dinner despite getting an after school snack. At dinner, she wants to eat adult sized portions which seem massive compared to the meager amount that our 5 year old eats. I don't let her eat junk food often and try to give her healthy meals.

She used to have a pattern of eating a ton right before a growth spurt, but lately instead of growing out of her clothes her waist is growing too big for them. She's starting to look a bit chunky for her height and I too worry if I should montior her eating so she doesn't over indulge herself with food.

Her father's side of her family has problems with obesity and bad eating habits like eating when they are bored. I worry that she will develop unhealthy eating like her father's side of her family. They also have poor attitudes towards exercise and would rather watch tv instead of go outside.

I have a 13 year old stepson and all he wants to do is eat. He almost always gets seconds during a meal. He is pretty thin but I am surprised about it. But he is very active and we have good and healthy meals at home. Maybe your son has started puberty and is just going through a growth spurt. I would say to keep eating healthy and to keep him active.