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Angel
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| Posted: Oct 25 2006 at 10:14pm | IP Logged
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I'm not exactly sure where to put this, but I guess I'll put it here for now.
My oldest had his yearly physical today. (He's 10). In the last year he grew over two inches... and gained *20* pounds. He's in almost the 90th percentile for height, but his weight puts him in the 93 percentile. The doctor said that was too much weight gain and a cause for concern. The mystery to me is that a)he's not eating junk for the most part; b)I can't believe that he's less active than he would be if he went to school; c)we really do limit TV and computer time; and d)the kids drink no soda, kool-aid, or any other sugary drinks when we're home, although they are allowed to have soda when we go out.
It's a mystery to me why he suddenly gained weight like that.
Anyway, with all his special needs (ADHD, Tourette Syndrome, sensory integration difficulties, etc.) and then this, I am looking at revamping our diet. What I am wondering is:
1. If you have made a big change in your family's eating habits and in your cooking habits -- for instance, moving away from packaged foods to whole foods and cooked from scratch foods -- how did you do it? What I'm looking for here is some advice on how to make things work with picky eaters and how to do from-scratch cooking when you have two 1 yos attached to both your legs trying to burn themselves on the bottom of the oven door while you cook.
2. Examples of menus -- breakfast, dinner, lunch.
3. Tips on how to be organized with this, especially how to keep up when you are pregnant. (I don't think I am pregnant right now and at this moment, but of course this is subject to change.)
Thanks!
--Angel(a)
Mom to 3+2 
Three Plus Two
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ElisabethGrace
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Angela,
Did the doctor show you your son's growth charts? My DH is a family practitioner & at his office they show you your child's growth chart on a laptop in the exam room so that you can see the range of growth. I guess what I am trying to say is, is your son following his own growth curve or was this weight gain a huge jump off of his growth curve chart?
I wish I could be of help. 
Angela
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St. Ann
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Angela,
I have not made any sudden drastic changes in our diet, because I just couldn't handle any possible revolt and then throwing out good food at the end of the day.
But, I have made changes.
I began cooking only whole grain pasta and rice. My kids love pasta (whose don't?) and they continue to love pasta. They did notice a difference at first and were not thrilled (I think they were too al dente), but still ate them. After adapting (and I cooked them longer) they really like them. Dh too. And with whole grain products, one tends to eat less, because they are filling.
I have also begun to bake whole wheat bread. Something I really love to do.
I had never really bought already finished foods before, except for a tomatoe sauce or instant soup for those dire moments of need.
I found out with time that to make a tomatoe sauce from scratch doesn't take much longer than running to the cellar to get the glass of pre made sauce and heating that up. Of course a fancy sauce with lots of fine ingredients takes longer, but isn't necessary for everyday in our home.
None of my dc are overweight, I just wanted us all to eat healthier.
I don't know what will be the next step for us. Breakfast cereals are a big problem here, they just love that sugar! I need courage!
A question. Does your son drink a lot of milk? Some kids gain weight because they drink too much milk.
Stephanie
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Erin
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St. Ann wrote:
Breakfast cereals are a big problem here, they just love that sugar! I need courage!
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Stephanie,
Maybe we could support each other. Dh was pointing out to me last night (after shopping) that we spend $30 a day on food (for 9 people) and $10 fo it goes on breakfast!! Obviously too high.
Angela,
Rather than change everything drastically pick certain areas, otherwise it will be too hard for you and the family will revolt. For example, do you have any processed foods? If so what can you change there?
Regards the little ones, can you do some cooking while they sleep, perhaps call ds to come and hold them while you open the oven. Some people can barricade their doorways off with little ones.
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Erin
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Becky Parker
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I just wanted to chime in here. I don't have a lot of answers but I love the question. It asks exactly what I want to know! My kids aren't overweight but I am  . Our problem is that I look at what we eat and see way too much junk food. The book "Whole Foods for The Whole Family" was recently recommended and I can't wait to get my hands on it. I'm hoping it will offer lots of help. One thing I have done for my ds who LOVES white bread is try to get into the routine of baking wheat bread. He will eat it if it is home-made. I just know that if I don't make it part of our routine, I'll never get to it. And, with 3 hungry boys and one girl (who also seems to be eating alot lately) we can go through a whole loaf in one day! One other thing we are trying to do is re-vamp our lunch routine. At dinner, we actually do quite well health wise (lots of soups this time of year  ). Breakfast is "iffy" but lunch is definitely TERRIBLE!  This is because I got into the habit of fixing really quick things and most of them are packaged (which also means expensive). Our lunch menu has been: Macaroni and cheese, Mini pizzas, hot dogs, chicken strips (breaded) or grilled cheese sandwiches. I told my kids we needed to replace some of these things with healthy foods. We are starting next week and they are going to pick which thing they want to replace. So, for example, if they choose Macaroni and Cheese, then on Monday we will not eat the usual Mac and Cheese but a healthy alternative (which I have yet to think of!). Any ideas?
One final thing - I read once that when you go to the grocery store, you should stick to the outside aisles which usually means dairy products, meats/fish, bread/baked goods and produce. Most of the packaged stuff in between isn't worth buying. Wow, that is hard! We're definitely not there, but hopefully getting a little closer.
Becky
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Angel
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| Posted: Oct 26 2006 at 7:37am | IP Logged
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ElisabethGrace wrote:
| I guess what I am trying to say is, is your son following his own growth curve or was this weight gain a huge jump off of his growth curve chart? |
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They did show me the growth charts. He's *always* been in the top quarter in both height and weight. Last year both started going up wards. So, he'd always been 75th percentile in both height and weight, then last year it was 80th percentile in height and 85th percentile in weight, and this year, height is between 85th and 90th percentile, and weight is 93rd percentile. Honestly, he doesn't *look* overweight; he looks like he's 12 or 13 instead of 10.
His appetite just took off this year. He's not the kind of kid who eats mindlessly. He eats because he's hungry and stops when he's not. But his appetite took an enormous jump this year from prior years when it seemed like he lived on air  . I kind of thought it was just his age, and because he's a boy.
I think the doctor just looked at the 20 lb weight gain. From living with my son, I do think that first he gained weight and now he's gaining height. But, of course, now I am worried.
--Angel(a)
Mom to 3+2
Three Plus Two
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marihalojen
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With Dd I always had a policy of fruit and veggies for between meal snacks, as much as she wanted but no chips/crackers/junk stuff. Can something simple like that be implemented - bowl of apples and pears on the table?
(Just so you know, this idea went to pot once dh came home between these jobs. The bags of chips must be breeding in the bilges and we eat our sandwiches on rolls and whole loaves of french bread now instead of in wraps with veggies. How can a policy that has existed for 11 years be changed in 3 months???)
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Mother to Mariannna, age 13
The Mari Hal-O-Jen
SSR = Sailing, Snorkling, Reading
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Mary G
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Angel,
I wouldn't worry --but I would keep an eye on it. Sounds like he's in the midst of a growth spurt -- my boys (and brothers) ALWAYS gained weight and then the height caught up! It sounds like you're doing all the right things.
It sounds as if ds has always been on the upper part of the curve in all stats anyway. That said, I am very wary of those charts. They're an "average" and I'm not even sure how often they're updated. My kids are always in the "above 85" group (except my String Bean  ), but can THAT many kids actually be smaller than mine? I don't think so!
Just keep an eye on intake and don't worry over much.
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MaryG
3 boys (22, 12, 8)2 girls (20, 11)
my website that combines my schooling, hand-knits work, writing and everything else in one spot!
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Elizabeth
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| Posted: Oct 26 2006 at 8:02am | IP Logged
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Angela,
How active is he? Diet is only one component; activity is equally important.
__________________
Elizabeth Foss is no longer a member of this forum. Discussions now reflect the current management & are not necessarily expressions of her book, *Real Learning*, her current work, or her philosophy. (posted by E. Foss, Jan 2011)
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Patty LeVasseur
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Angela,
Dr. William Sears and his son wrote a book called L.E.A.N. kids that I have found very useful for my children. It even helped me to figure out what to change about my diet.
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Patty
mom to four blessings
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Elizabeth
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Patty LeVasseur wrote:
Angela,
Dr. William Sears and his son wrote a book called L.E.A.N. kids that I have found very useful for my children. It even helped me to figure out what to change about my diet. |
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Patty,
Can you briefly summarize what he suggests?
__________________
Elizabeth Foss is no longer a member of this forum. Discussions now reflect the current management & are not necessarily expressions of her book, *Real Learning*, her current work, or her philosophy. (posted by E. Foss, Jan 2011)
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teachingmyown
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It is true that a lot of boys his age chunk up some efore they take off through puberty and all that growing. My son was almost pudgy at 10 &11, and now he is 15 working on his "six-pack"(body-building lingo, there!).
Not saying that you shouldn't pay close attention, just hoping to ease some worry.
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In Christ,
Molly
wife to Court & mom to ds '91, dd '96, ds '97, dds '99, '01, '03, '06, and dss '07 and 01/20/11
Remembering Today
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Erin
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Becky Parker wrote:
| I just wanted to chime in here. I don't have a lot of answers but I love the question. It asks exactly what I want to know! My kids aren't overweight but I am . Our problem is that I look at what we eat and see way too much junk food. |
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Becky
My weight is what has recently inspired me to get back on track. I know I have a newish baby etc but I was feeling very frumpy with my weight. Some little things have already made a difference. No more wine with my meals  nor do I have shop biscuits and I have cut our meat meals to every second night. Already I look so much better, and I feel better about myself. I still need to tighten the stomach muscles still just a few managable things and without exercising
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Bridget
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I think no matter what you do, some kids just put on extra weight before they have a growth spurt in height.
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God Bless,
Bridget, happily married to Kevin, mom to 8 on earth and a small army in heaven
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Becky Parker
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I had a conversation with the kids and we came up with some healthier acceptable alternatives to our very unhealthy lunch menu rotation. These things were suggested by the kids so I know they'll eat them and I was surprised that nobody suggested anything pre-packaged. Granted, it might be a little extra work on my part and I haven't figured out if it will be more expensive this way yet, but I'm ready to make a few sacrifices for healthier kids and a healthier me!
Here's what we came up with. (My kids really like raw veggies and fruit so these will be side items at each meal.)
Instead of hotdogs - hamburgers (I know they probably aren't that healthy but at least we'll be getting rid of some of the salt and other additives found in hotdogs)
Instead of breaded chicken strips (frozen) - whole roast chicken (I'll put it in the oven in the morning. We'll have leftovers for the next day or a casserole for dinner.)
Instead of grilled cheese (white bread and american cheese!) - bean and cheese burritos
Instead of Macaroni and cheese - Pasta and cheese cubes (I can use whole wheat or spelt pasta and the kids really like co-jack cheese which HAS to be a little better than that powdered stuff in the Kraft box.)
They didn't want to give up pizza. I guess if we make the changes above, pizza isn't such a bad thing. Obviously we have no problem with dairy. If that became a problem we'd have to re-do everything again.
Becky
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Patty LeVasseur
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Elizabeth wrote:
Patty LeVasseur wrote:
Angela,
Dr. William Sears and his son wrote a book called L.E.A.N. kids that I have found very useful for my children. It even helped me to figure out what to change about my diet. |
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Patty,
Can you briefly summarize what he suggests? |
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Elizabeth,
Having typed out my response, I see that no I can't do it breifly , but here it is.
He really stresses getting both corn syrup and hydrogenated oils out of you diet. So I started there. He also preaches using complex carbs, protein and healthy fats. The golden rule: The closer a food is to its original form and the less packaged it is, the better it is for your child. He also talks about using organic foods and wild Alaskan salmon and grass fed meats.
He lists the ten habits of a lean lifestyle:
1. Grazing on nutritious foods throughout the day.
2. Making supermarket shopping a lesson in lean living.
3. Starting the day with a brainy breakfast.
4. Doing thrty to sixty minutes of physical activity daily.
5. Liking your body type.
6. Eliminating toxic or negatice thoughts.
7. Spending more of the day on play time (moving) then on screen time (sitting).
8. Thinking of both eating and moving as forms of preventive medicine.
9. Getting restful sleep each night.
10. Enjoying "happy meals" with the family at least five days a week.
He says to make changes slowly and even then you can see a big difference because children use about 25% of their caleries just to grow.
He then has chapters on exercise (complete with many examples), attitude, and nutrition (he has a long list of "green light, yellow light, and red light foods", hints on how to get your chidren to eat their veggies, a ranking of the different types of proteins, linking carbs with fiber fats and proteins, getting "smart fats" into your child's diet, and the importance of drinking water.
So far a lot of this is info that you could probably find somewhere else, but I still like the way that it is presented here.
He then has a chapter about how to eat I will list the subtitles:
Children don't need to count calories
Looking at portion size
Big and Small eaters (don't try to change how much they eat, but what they eat)
Enjoy free foods (these are all fruits and veggies, lean meat and fish, eggs, legumes, soy foods, whole grains, and of course green leafy veggies.)
Begin the day with a brainy breakfast (he then lists 10 suggestions, including a smoothie that he has the recipie for)
Habits-downsize servings, take small bites, chew well, eat slowly, stop when full, make meal times enjoyable.
Other habits-eat mindfully (not in front of TV), avoid boredom eating, don't go hungry, encourage good grazing, monitor snacks (he has a list of good snacks)
DON'T NAG!
He does say that a child that is in the 95th percentile for weight is not always overweight and in fact the child could just be big and muscular. So he says to look at the BMI (Body mass index).
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Patty
mom to four blessings
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BrendaPeter
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St. Ann wrote:
I began cooking only whole grain pasta and rice. My kids love pasta (whose don't?) and they continue to love pasta. They did notice a difference at first and were not thrilled (I think they were too al dente), but still ate them. After adapting (and I cooked them longer) they really like them. Dh too. And with whole grain products, one tends to eat less, because they are filling.
I have also begun to bake whole wheat bread. Something I really love to do.
Stephanie
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We eat very similarly to Stephanie's family. I started baking homemade whole wheat bread recently with fresh-ground whole wheat flour from Great Harvest. We're blessed to have one so close by. So now breakfasts consist of a slice of bread with natural peanut butter & a smoothie. Lunch is usually grilled cheese, hummus sandwiches or eggs & toast. We try to eat meat just 4X/week & will often have honey whole wheat rolls with dinner. Like Stephanie wrote, the whole wheat bread is filling so we are much less inclined to snack. If a snack is necessary, there are cheese sticks, baby carrots, celery, apples or roasted nuts. Our simple menu makes for easier shopping, easier cooking and a less-harried mommy!
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Blessings,
Brenda (mom to 6)
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4Real Forums : Tea and Conversation
Topic: Families eating healthier
