While it's great to have a child with a healthy appetite, what should you do if your daughter won't stop eating! Raisingkids.co.uk's nutrition expert, Vardit Kohn advises one father on tackling a four-year-old who is constantly hungry.

Raisingkids member's problem
I have a very tall daughter of four and a half. She is 118cm tall and weighs 25 kilos, which I guess looks in proportion. The problem is that she is endlessly hungry! I give her healthy foods (she likes fruit and veg etc) but I wonder at what point to say 'no' to a snack? She eats heartily indeed, and some days more than me! Sometimes I wonder if she is asking for a snack for a little attention, or as a routine. Is this possible? I am reluctant to make any issue at all about food, so I don’t want to start making her wait. She was a healthy 9lb baby and hasn’t stopped eating since...

Nutrition expert's advice
You did not mention parental height and weight, which may account for your daughter’s measurements. Judging by the standard BMI (Body Mass Index) formula, which the government uses to measure weight trends in the population, your daughter’s BMI value is admittedly high. This means she falls at a high percentile, with 90% of the girls of her age weighing less. However, it is important to remember that height and weight are only two out of many indicators of health, and that statistics can be misleading. You can have your daughter checked by the GP for more reassurance on this subject.

Could it be boredom that drives her to ask for food? When she asks for a snack, try suggesting alternatives like playing outdoors, reading a book together, doing a puzzle or helping you with house chores, whatever distracts her. Encouraging her to take some physical activity or run outside in the park on a regular basis would have the double advantage of keeping her away from food, and having her exercise at the same time.

As far as food is concerned, try to offer her filling foods that provide long term energy (i.e they are more slowly digested than other foods). Whole grains are a good example – wholewheat, brown rice, rye, oats, barley, millet and spelt are just some options. Root vegetables and tubers are another example – potatoes and sweet potatoes, parsnips, turnips, swede, celeriac and the like. Almonds, nuts and seeds (ground if you are worried about choking) are also very filling, and you can combine them with fruit for a very satisfying snack. Fruit on its own may be too rapidly digested by a system with a fast metabolic rate.

If you know your daughter had a nutritious, filling meal a short while before, it’s all right to use your judgement as a parent and say ‘no’ politely yet decisively. Our digestive system needs a bit of break between meals, and learning good eating habits (of which constant snacking isn’t one) from a young age is important.

In the meantime, and so long as your daughter eats healthily at every meal and snack, count your blessings. It’s far, far more frustrating having a picky eater who makes a fuss of every meal!