OT: my 4 year old is constantly begging for snack

Have you tried increasing her portion sizes during regular meals? She may be getting ready to hit a growth spurt, and her body needs extra calories. Something to think about...

How about a snack drawer(s) just for her? You could use a kitchen drawer and a refridgerator drawer. Fill them with healthy things you don't mind her digging into. Raisins, fruit, some crackers, veggies. Perhaps she's hit a growth phase and needs the extra calories. And don't stock the house with any food you don't want her asking for. It simply won't be an option because it's not there. The real junk food could be a special treat other places.If she insists on following you and whining, then tell her you will talk more about it with her..during her favorite show. LOL!Good luck!!

My son is allowed to go into the fridge and take yogurt or fruit or into the freezer and get juice pops or small ice cream cups pretty much at will. Cracker and raisons are within reach as well. Only the true "junk" foods, ie chips, candy and cookies are out of reach. He gets those only once or twice a day after lunch and dinner. He's a big eater, but not overweight and very active so I think his body is telling him he needs more food at different times during the day. I believe a four year old is perfectly capable of beginning to make these choices for themselves and it's important they be allowed to. I think the idea of making her a snack drawer where she can choose what she wants (excluding total junk food) is a good idea. Trying to exercise too much control over food is risking creating an eating disorder down the road.

My kids are 3/3.5 and I am trying to transition to more choice for the girls. I try to serve meals semi-buffet style so they can choose to take certain items in the quantities they desire (up to a point). For meals other than dinner (which the kids can pretty much serve themselves), I offer a choice between 2 or 3 items that I am OK with. If my skinny kid is still hungry after a meal (she doesn't have a steady appetite) then I will offer her a serving of apple/berry sauce, which she usually appreciates. I definitely have concerns about the girls having an unhealthy sense of what's desireable to eat. I am very picky and I have good reasons to be, but I am aware that it could be counter-productive after a point. Some people I live with have unhealthy habits (and are too indulgent) so it's not as easy as "just don't stock junk food." In addition, the kids go to school and around the neighborhood, where the prevalence of candy can't be hidden. I used to be a food nazi, but now I just try to explain why I prefer certain things and only allow certain things for a "special treat." I assume a lot of it goes in one ear and out the other. But today I was pleasantly surprised. My food-loving daughter noticed I was making the lunch sandwiches with white(r) bread and said, "but mom, that's not healthy." (We had run out of the brown bread I normally use.) If your daughter is a little obsessed with candy, maybe consider buying something sweet that you can offer in very small amounts. Like one m&m/smartie or even mini m&ms. (I started doing this with my kids after Halloween, and they actually got bored with it after a while; they haven't asked me for candy in ages, even though they know they have a little stash.) Another idea is to let her have a sweet-tasting lip gloss. Or yummy gummy vitamins. Just some innocent indulgence so she isn't constantly feeling like there's a desire that is never satisfied.

I have always been free w/ food w/ my son, however, he doesn't even like candy,chips, junk. I make fruit, go-gerts & cheese blocks sound like the greatest thing on earth. He's always eaten dinner ect. I never wanted control issues w/ food -you never know what that may create down the road - I know I plumped up when I got to high school-freedom to pick what I wanted for lunch & I picked everything withheld from me; before than it was boxed lunch. Also, if she can tell it bothers you it may never stop until she can find another trigger - kids love doing that.I am the parent & example - food was never a reward for good behavior, potty training ect - it's what we need to live & they won't crave junk if it's not in the house or used as praise. If your daughter is still hungry after meals maybe she needs bigger portions or after meals make it a habit to go on a walk or specific thing to do-it may keep her mind off food. I don't like such rigid/structured food schedules. In reality kids have to have the tools to decide for themselves at age 5 when they hit kindergarten & get hot lunch.

eli has been like this as long as he could talk. he can polish off his meal, and half his brother's meal who isn't a big eater, leave the table and then demand to know why i haven't fed him lunch yet. when i remind him he just ate lunch, he will say, "oh...dinner then." lol. if i let him....he would eat himself sick. he can even be "full" at a meal...and a few minutes later cry for a snack like i have never fed him. i attribute it to boredom. he gets enough food. if i honestly feel he may still be hungry i offer him a handful of almonds, a cup of applesauce, maybe a handful of blueberries....but tell him when he is done he has to go play. i have had friends have much success with the bottomless fruit bowl- where kids can have however much they want from that bowl at any time....and i think i would go to that if i felt it was necessary...but as it is....he eats like this:8 breakfast9:30 snack11:00 lunch1:00 snack3:00 snack5:00 dinnersnacks are mainly things like fruit, veggies, peanut butter crackers, almonds. no junk at all....just because we typically don't have any in the house. he eats a good amount of food at each meal...and i typically offer a fruit as a dessert if he is still hungry. i figure if he is saying he is hungry in the whole 2 hours since his last feeding...he is probably just bored and needs something else to do. sure. but you could also create food issues for her by giving in and letting her have whatever she wants. that is how i got fat as a kid. lol. and i've been fat my whole life. my mom never taught me about an appropriate relationship with food. i didn't understand health or nutrition, just what tasted good. i have a poor body image, and i am addicted to crap. honestly....i wish my mom would have been more balanced. i agree with joepeg that it is about balance really- that you can't limit everything....bc your kid will freak out in the real world when you are not there....but at the same time...you are the parent and it is OK to put limits on things like unhealthy snacks. my middle kids are 4 and 6. they are beginning to understand nutrition...and what is good for you and what is not good for you. they know how to pick out a healthy snack, and will ask for healthy snacks.....but they can also tell you how to get to the nearest krispy kreme. ;) lol. you have gotten a lot of really good advice...i think everyone has had some great ideas....but in the end...only you know your kid. don't be afraid to try a few different things to see if they work for your family. good luck!

Bug has a snack basket, much like the other poster- he is allow any snack from there whenever he says he is hungry, so long as it is not 30 minutes prior to a meal. he has yogurt, cheese, fruit and applesauce in the frig that he can have after meals for snacks (within 30 minutes of getting up from the table) and he has really junky snacks- pringles, candy canes, smarties, etc that he can have once a day. And I have apples on the coffee table that he can have any time. He does go through periods where he wants more of the snacks that he can see - like the junky ones or the helathy snack basket- but he will go through entire weeks of jsut wanted yogurt or fruit for snack. Saturday he ate 5 apples in 2 hours becuase he wanted them (small sized apples). he is a fairly picky eater and he also has a tendancy to fill up on milk or dirnks at meal time, so I don't make an issue out of it unless I think he is avioding meals and just grazing all day. I hope this helps,

Here's what I'd suggest to try... Only keep snack foods in the house that are ok for her to snack on whenver she wants (cheese cubes or cheese sticks, whole wheat crackers (Goldfish makes a whole wheat variety that is great), whole grain cereals, yogurt (check the brands and choose one that is low in sugar - for instance Dannon yogurt is very high in sugar, as much as a candy bar!), fresh whole fruit like apples or strawberries, raw veggies like baby carrots & dip, older kids can have nuts. Another thought, eating a meal that is largely made up of carbohydrates (noodles/pasta, bread, fruit) can make a kid feel hungry very soon after they are done eating. Try adding more protein and fiber foods to all her meals. My kids get their share of junk food offered to them at school with classmates bringing in birthday treats, holiday parties and such... and they can have that stuff, it's not forbidden, but they don't have it at home. Also, if something doesn't seem right with your daughter's health or behavior - asking your pediatrician for advice is always a good idea. Sara [url=http://www.families-n-friends.blogspot.com/]Families & Friends/Familias y Amigos[/url]

Like others mentioned, DD has a snack shelf in the pantry and snack drawer in the frig. There are certian foods she knows she can have anytime of day! ( apple, fruit / cheese stick etc.). However after holidays there is normally candy in the house ! ( Christmas, halloween, valentines, easter... etc) so way too often we have stuff that doesn't qualify as healthy snacks). I do discreetly get rid of the candy I know creates behavior issues for us ( red dye items) and then she is allowed 1 or 2 pc's of the candy / day depending on size. She is really good about the limit. Because she "overdid" the candy one day and got a bad stomache ache. So she realizes that too much can make her sick!

Most children and adults do well on a diet that includes three meals and three healthy snacks daily. As an example, suppose that a child eats a breakfast consisting of a tangerine, a frozen waffle served with syrup, and a glass of 2 percent milk. It might be a good idea to give a mid-morning snack of cut up veggies with a dip. At lunch, the child eats a tuna salad sandwich and some leftover vegetable soup, plus banana pudding. Mid-afternoon, you give a snack of oatmeal cookies and milk. At dinner, the child eats a homemade

I keep it pretty simple - yogurt, apples, bananas, apple sauce, wheat crackers, cheese - those are all for the taking, so to speak. It may sound weird but since I don't like chips, candy or junk food I don't have it in the home. Does DS eat candy - sure at Halloween or if someone has a birthday but generally there is no candy/ junk in the house. And he doesn't ask for it. Hmm - he does like ice cream! We do have that occassionally. His favorite snack is cheese and crackers!

I also wanted to add that Bug will say he is hungry and wants a snack when he is not drinking enough. He does not recognize that being thristy is different from being hungry. So you might want to see the amount of fluids she is getting.

I gave one of the refrigerator drawers to Spiderman as a "snack drawer' when he turned three. It is always filled with healthy snacks -- fruit cups, applesauce, yogurt, cheese cubes, cut-up fresh fruit in zip-lock bags, etc. The only "rule" is that he must eat in the kitchen or dinng room -- he cannot take food back to his room.Now that he is older, he gets to help pick his snacks -- he prefers gogurt to cups of yogurt, and cheese cubes to string cheese. He picks out the fresh fruit and helps me wash it, cut it and bag it. He knows what "sugar" is and that it "makes him a wild and crazy guy" so he can only eat sugar after something healthy, like dinner. There is so much junk offered to kids all the time -- lollipops at the bank, candy jars at school, etc. that it is never too early to give children the right choices, even if they do "pig out" on yogurt for a few weeks. Let them learn to control their environment so it will not control them.

i know that i'm in the minority but i personally don't think kids need junk, even if it is the norm, and even if other kids are eating it. we give our son snacks that are whole foods only. cut raw or cooked veggies, whole grain toast with peanut butter, whole grain crackers, fruit, rolled up turkey meat, etc. he doesn't eat dairy but if he did i'd add organic cheese or organic plain unsweetened yogurt to the options. he can eat whenever he wants except for when we know he's using food as a delay tactic at bedtime. some days this is all day long, and some days it's just 3 meals and a few small snacks. really if it's healthy there it's very hard to get too much food. imho it sounds like your child is looking for treats, not snacks. if it were me i would put aside a bowl and drawer for her to get snacks whenever she wants (other than right before meals) but limit them to seriously, only healthy snacks. of course i do understand that when he's 10 he'll be at the neighbor's house eating captain crunch but in our home it's healthy food for all of us. ps there is a kind of candy you can get at the health food store that is sweetened with xylitol. they are tiny little candies and they are actually good for your teeth. our dentist told us about them and we use them after lunch.

ok, my suggestion may not be popular with dentists, but I keep our house STOCKED w/sugar free gum. When they ask for a treat, they usually ask for gum. It's their "special treat". They see it as a form of desert. They often ask for it before dinner, after lunch, etc. My two kids (7 and 3 1/2) have always been cavity free and both are a healthy weight.