# 14.5 month old won't stop eating!



## MamasBoys (Dec 29, 2005)

I'm assuming I shouldn't be worried about the amount of food my 14 1/2 month old is eating, and that anything is normal. But I am!

Sometimes his meals are larger than my OWN. I give him 3 meals a day and 2 snacks and still, whenever he sees someone else eating (even if he's JUST eaten) he starts grunting and pointing and "begging" for it.

For breakfast, he usually has oatmeal with yogurt and fruit. This morning he ate an adult sized bowl full.

For morning snack he has crackers and fruit.

For lunch usually pasta with veggies and a protein source.

Afternoon snack, more crackers and fruit.

Dinner is whatever we're having--meat, veggies, carb.

He nurses 3-4 times per day and also drinks a cup each of water, milk, and juice.

I have never once seen him actually get full. At meal time I could keep feeding him and feeding him and he will keep eating and eating! The only time he rejects food is when he doesn't like something, and he'll throw it off his tray. He's not big for his age--in the 50th percentile. I'm wondering if I'm perhaps I'm not feeding him correctly and he's getting empty calories. Perhaps I should feed him more protein? He doesn't like cheese but loves meat and will only tolerate beans/legumes occasionally.


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## operamommy (Nov 9, 2004)

I'm no food expert, but I think more protein might be a good idea. For what it's worth, my 14 month old eats a TON as well, plus for the last month has been nursing at least once an hour.







: And yes, even if he's just eaten if he sees someone else eating then he wants it. I said in another thread that dh claims the baby eats like a hobbit - he has breakfast, second breakfast, elevensies, lunch, tea, dinner, and supper!


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## thehappyhippo (Jan 1, 2007)

I'm sure he's fine but if you're concerned you should bring it up to his doctor. Go with your gut. There are instances/disorders where people don't understand that their full because the signal never makes it to their brain appropriately. This is very rare, but it does happen. Most likely, your son is just fine.


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## MamasBoys (Dec 29, 2005)

Unfortunately (?) we don't have a doctor anymore. I took him into a random pediatrician a few months back and talked to him about the appetite. The doctor wasn't worried at all, but was more concerned about the fact that he never has solid poops. He diagnosed him with "toddler's diarrhea" and wanted him back in this month. I didn't care for the doctor, so we won't be going back.

What is everyone else feeding their 1+ year old's? What's a typical daily menu?


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## babybell (Aug 23, 2005)

To Mamasboys
I would be concerned he is sensitive/allergic to wheat or dairy given he is never satisfied and has loose stool. People who have a food allergy are always hungry because they never get the appropriate nutrition. I would cut the wheat and dairy and juice and add more protien and nothing enriched and then see how he is and slowly try to add stuff back and see if it bothers him.
I have children who are sensitive to wheat and some to dairy. My oldest (almost 10) has a dairy issue but also would eat way more then my DH and still want more; we now give him more protien/good fats and much less carbs and he is satisfied and thriving.
I hope this helps








<>< T


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## lasciate (May 4, 2005)

More protein will help fill him up and keep him fuller longer. While fruit and crackers are common snacks, they digest rather quickly leaving the child hungrier sooner.

Add a bit of protein to each meal/snack and you should find that he isn't asking to eat as often. My daughter is a huge eater like that and the only thing that would really satisfy her was meats.


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## gret the great (Nov 26, 2001)

My DD1 went through a phase of being as we called her " the girl of the 5 breakfasts" stage between age 1 & 2. Seriuosly, she'd eat breakfast & then want more & then more & then more! She'd have oatmeal. Then some scrambled eggs. Then some yogurt & granola. Then a piece of fruiit. Then some cheese... all while nursing a whole bunch. She slowed down, but she grew A LOT that year- She was hungry!









If you are nervous about it, talk to a doctor, but when my kids seem like they are ravenous, it has passed. I agree with the others about adding protein.


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## kimberlychapman (Jul 26, 2006)

My 15-month-old has been eating like crazy since she was about 11 months old. She's extremely active and has continual growth spurts. Plus she has no teeth and only recently started dealing well with chunky foods, so mostly she eats stage 2 stuff, and those are small jars...she goes through about 2-4 Earth's Best Stage 2 jars per meal, about 4-8 meals a day. Plus she's still on the breast four times a day (at least).

So I think some kids just eat a lot. As long as yours is healthy and active, I wouldn't worry too much.


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## dflanag2 (Oct 4, 2005)

My son is now 28 months old and he has always been a heavy eater/nurser. He ate so much at age 1-1.5 that he was having three large BMs per day. He was eating high protein meals/snacks at least 5 times per day on top of nursing. There didn't seem to be a reason for it, just that he loved to eat!

What I eventually did is stop serving him meals until he initiated it, and make sure he had a lot of interesting things to do so that he wouldn't think about food unless he was actually hungry. Now we are down to one huge BM per day, and we don't eat lunch until 1:30 PM or so... time for lunch in fact. Now we monitor more on the side of "Is he eating enough???" because he is often too busy playing to stop and eat. Sometimes I have to literally show him the plate of food to get him to come to the table!

As for the loose stools, my son has those but that is because he is still BFing.

-dflanag2
mom to DS 28 months and DD 4 months


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## leewd (Aug 14, 2005)

This reminds me of my first DD whom we called the "bottomless pit."

When she started at her new daycare at 19 months old, I told her teacher that when I picked her up at 5pm, she was thirsty and by the time we got home she was freaking-out hungry. (If I didn't have left-overs that I could just toss on the table with no prep, I was screwed!) Her teacher just kept describing how much she would eat. She would always come to the table immediately and she would eat and eat and she would be the last one finished. I reasurred her that I believed they were feeding Alex as much as any of the other children, but that Alex was STILL hungry. We started sending extra food (yogurt to add to the normal 3pm snack) to supplement her diet. It worked. I could at least have a breather when I got home.

In the evenings and on weekends, we would sometimes just keep feeding her until she wouldn't eat anymore. It was kind of fun. This all lasted from about 17 months to 28 (?) months. She is now a normal picky toddler. Alex was also nurisng a little during this time, but she never had loose stools. Once solids were introduced at 6 months, she had very few loose stools.

There are some conditions (like celiac disease) where nutirents are not being absorbed, but these aren't very common. If I were you, I would include a good quality protein with all snacks/meals and wait and see. If no change, do a little research on the pediatricians available in your area and try to find one that is more natural parenting/ homeopathic friendly and see what he/she has to say. You might also want to kep a food diary. This will be especially helpful if you decide to talk to a pedi about your DS.

Good Luck! I hope he doesn't break your grocery budget!
--LEE


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## northwoods1995 (Nov 17, 2003)

My DD is 14 mos and we call her the bottomless pit too. She eats a lot and still nurses a few times a day and often at night...but I don't know if it seems like more than just a lot b/c our son hardly eats at all. She eats more than him and he is 3.5 --he is skinny for his age and she is average.

It just surprises us how much she eats now after dealing with DS and his non-eating...but I think she is probably normal.

I agree with the go with your gut statements...my kids are opposites but I genuinely, deep down feel that both of them are doing fine. If I was more worried I would talk about it with our family dr.

As far as what she eats...just about anything we eat. She is not really picky--she will eat just about anything...loves salad, veggies, anything!


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## dantesmama (May 14, 2006)

I wish my 15.5mo would eat like your dc! Lately he's had zero interest in eating food. All he wants to do is nurse. To keep up with his demand, *I* can't stop eating!







:


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## traceetrek (May 28, 2005)

My 17 month old ds is a huge eater too. Before he even opens his eyes in the morning he both signing and saying "eat, eat", and "more,more". These were his first words after mama, dada. He gets VERY enthusiastic anytime he sees food, even if he has just been fed, and often his meals are as large as mine. Sometimes I just stop feeding him and distract him with an activity, and then if he asks for food later I feed him again. I just don't want him to get overfull before he realizes he is no longer hungry. Often this works. He will eat anything except green beans and broccoli. He usually has three BM's a day, which I contribute to his high fiber vegetarian diet.


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## buffybutt (Apr 8, 2005)

My 15 month old is a hugh eater too and hes a big boy. I actually just put a call into our natropath about something else and will talk to her about his eating as well. But I would say as far as loose stools go, think about the whole spectrum, ds is teething right now and so he is haveing loose stools and I dont think its from the food, he cut two molars and now is working on his two bottom eye teeth







: Go with your gut mama.

Hugs
Angie


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## karre (Mar 22, 2006)

Does your child drink a lot of juice?? Are you with your child majority of the time so that you know how much juice your child is drinking? Toddler's diarrhea should only be diagnosed when a child is drinking large quantities of juice. If so, cut the juice out of your child's diet and see if the stools change.

I would be concerned by the fact that your child eats alot and has loose stools. This could indicate some sort of malabsorbtion issue.

best of luck.


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