Toddler 3-4 hrs btw meals?

[Guest guest]

Hi,

My name is and I'm wondering if children should only eat 2-3 meals with

that 3-4 hours or more apart like adults?

I have a 2 year old & have been wondering about the notorious " snack time " that

most youngsters have incorporated into their day.

Thanks! Cheers! -

[Guest guest]

>

> Hi,

>

> My name is and I'm wondering if children should only eat 2-3 meals with

that 3-4 hours or more apart like adults?

>

> I have a 2 year old & have been wondering about the notorious " snack time "

that most youngsters have incorporated into their day.

>

+++Hi ,

Children should not have snacks between meals either. If children eat enough

nutritious foods at every meal they will not be hungry for a snack.

Unfortunately snacking has become a bad habit for children and adults alike,

which can be difficult to break. That is because of its emotional and mental

connections, and not because of hunger or any physical need for them.

All the best, Bee

[Guest guest]

Bee,

OKAY! Thank you!

And what do you think of toddlers sleeping near to meals - like lunch then 1/2

hour later 2 hour nap. Would other timing be better for digestion?

Also, my son often gets quite a large belly after big meals.

Sorry to ask such seemingly timeless questions that sound silly.

I appreciate you! -

> >

> +++Hi ,

>

> Children should not have snacks between meals either. If children eat enough

nutritious foods at every meal they will not be hungry for a snack.

Unfortunately snacking has become a bad habit for children and adults alike,

which can be difficult to break. That is because of its emotional and mental

connections, and not because of hunger or any physical need for them.

>

> All the best, Bee

>

[Guest guest]

>

> Bee,

>

> OKAY! Thank you!

>

> And what do you think of toddlers sleeping near to meals - like lunch then 1/2

hour later 2 hour nap. Would other timing be better for digestion?

>

> Also, my son often gets quite a large belly after big meals.

+++Hi . It is okay to lay down, nap, or sleep after meals. Digestion is

not affected by sleep, however digesting foods can interfere with sleep. If

your toddlers sleep okay, do not be concerned.

A large belly means he is getting bloated due to gas, so ensure he is only given

carbs (all plant foods) that are well-cooked as explained in this article:

http://www.healingnaturallybybee.com/articles/veg3.php

If you have him on this program his body will also " retrace " any past episodes

he had with bloating even if you currently feed him only well-cooked carbs - see

this article:

http://www.healingnaturallybybee.com/articles/heal10.php

All the best, Bee

[Guest guest]

Pardon my question on this, but I have concerns.

I would be interested in your research on this, Bee, as it, obviously, counters

everything I've learned about childhood nutrition and growth in my many years of

study, as a concerned mom.

From my understanding, small children have a higher metabolism than adults, and

thus have a need to eat more often. Just as they need more sleep than adults.

As they grow, their metabolism and sleep needs change. They start, as a newborn

baby, eating every 2 hours, give or take, and gradually, over time, spaces out

to less frequent feedings. Part of this spacing out includes the toddler and

pre-school years. I'm having a difficult time with the statement that they

don't need to eat more often than adults, so please educate me.

Thanks

> >

> > Hi,

> >

> > My name is and I'm wondering if children should only eat 2-3 meals with

that 3-4 hours or more apart like adults?

> >

> > I have a 2 year old & have been wondering about the notorious " snack time "

that most youngsters have incorporated into their day.

> >

> +++Hi ,

>

> Children should not have snacks between meals either. If children eat enough

nutritious foods at every meal they will not be hungry for a snack.

Unfortunately snacking has become a bad habit for children and adults alike,

which can be difficult to break. That is because of its emotional and mental

connections, and not because of hunger or any physical need for them.

>

> All the best, Bee

>

[Guest guest]

>

> Pardon my question on this, but I have concerns.

>

> I would be interested in your research on this, Bee, as it, obviously,

counters everything I've learned about childhood nutrition and growth in my many

years of study, as a concerned mom.

>

> From my understanding, small children have a higher metabolism than adults,

and thus have a need to eat more often. Just as they need more sleep than

adults. As they grow, their metabolism and sleep needs change. They start, as

a newborn baby, eating every 2 hours, give or take, and gradually, over time,

spaces out to less frequent feedings. Part of this spacing out includes the

toddler and pre-school years. I'm having a difficult time with the statement

that they don't need to eat more often than adults, so please educate me.

+++Hi ,

If you learned that in your many years of study then unfortunately you relied on

the wrong information, since that thinking is contrary to what our ancestors

have done for eons. They didn't have the horrible epidemics we have today, i.e.

cancer, heart disease, arthritis, obesity, diabetes, asthma, etc. which are also

happening to babies and children these days. In fact cancer and heart disease

rarely existed prior to industrialization in the 1800s.

Some adults also have higher metabolism than others but that doesn't mean they

must eat more often to support it. Our bodies are smart enough to sort out all

nutrient intake in one day, so eating more often doesn't change that.

Eating more often also doesn't mean they are getting any more or better

nutrition. Our bodies do not require constant feeding like herbivores, i.e.

cows, who must eat all of the time, unless of course you are vegan, which we

know causes serious health issues.

I am 69 years old and we never ate more than 3 meals per day. In fact we were

not allowed to snack between meals.

It still takes children and adults with higher metabolism the same time to

digest foods and eating more often doesn't change that either.

Bee

[Guest guest]

> Children should not have snacks between meals either. If children eat enough

nutritious foods at every meal they will not be hungry for a snack.

*** I have found this to be true in my house, but my girls are 14 & 10 so I,

too, thought age had something to do with it.

Nice to know it is because they are eating better...

[Guest guest]

>

> +++Hi ,

>

> If you learned that in your many years of study [that toddlers need to be more

frequently than adults], then unfortunately you relied on the wrong information,

since that thinking is contrary to what our ancestors have done for eons. They

didn't have the horrible epidemics we have today, i.e. cancer, heart disease,

arthritis, obesity, diabetes, asthma, etc. which are also happening to babies

and children these days. In fact cancer and heart disease rarely existed prior

to industrialization in the 1800s.

>

> Some adults also have higher metabolism than others but that doesn't mean they

must eat more often to support it. Our bodies are smart enough to sort out all

nutrient intake in one day, so eating more often doesn't change that.

>[snip]

> It still takes children and adults with higher metabolism the same time to

digest foods and eating more often doesn't change that either.

>

> Bee

>

*** Bee - I still question why an infant would nurse every 2-3 hrs and at what

point are three meals/day adequate?

where can we find such research? This info is new to me, too, and I'd like to

read more on it.

[Guest guest]

I would think that when a child is totally transitioned to food and not relying

on milk for their nutrition, they should be able to go longer.  My 2yo is fed

every 2-3 hours at daycare, but it is totally unnecessary (now that she is on

this diet).  On the weekends or days that I have her she doesn't snack, and is

perfectly fine. 

in VA

________________________________

From: kllaurvick <laurvick@...>

Sent: Thu, May 19, 2011 3:05:48 PM

Subject: [ ] Re: Toddler 3-4 hrs btw meals?

 

>

> +++Hi ,

>

> If you learned that in your many years of study [that toddlers need to be more

>frequently than adults], then unfortunately you relied on the wrong

information,

>since that thinking is contrary to what our ancestors have done for eons. They

>didn't have the horrible epidemics we have today, i.e. cancer, heart disease,

>arthritis, obesity, diabetes, asthma, etc. which are also happening to babies

>and children these days. In fact cancer and heart disease rarely existed prior

>to industrialization in the 1800s.

>

> Some adults also have higher metabolism than others but that doesn't mean they

>must eat more often to support it. Our bodies are smart enough to sort out all

>nutrient intake in one day, so eating more often doesn't change that.

>[snip]

> It still takes children and adults with higher metabolism the same time to

>digest foods and eating more often doesn't change that either.

>

> Bee

>

*** Bee - I still question why an infant would nurse every 2-3 hrs and at what

point are three meals/day adequate?

where can we find such research? This info is new to me, too, and I'd like to

read more on it.

[Guest guest]

It still takes children and adults with higher metabolism the same

time to digest foods and eating more often doesn't change that either.

> *** Bee - I still question why an infant would nurse every 2-3 hrs and at what

point are three meals/day adequate?

>

> where can we find such research? This info is new to me, too, and I'd like to

read more on it.

+++Hi ,

A newborn's stomach is very small. Some references say it is about the size of

an unshelled walnut, or the baby's own fist tightly clenched, so they can only

intake a certain amount of milk at a time:

http://www.ezzo.info/Aney/perinataleducation.pdf

I don't know if that is true, but also the stomach stretches when it is filled.

But an infants capacity is much smaller than it is as they grow older, since

their stomach also grows in size.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stomach

" In adult humans, the stomach has a relaxed, near empty volume of about 45 ml.

Because it is a distensible organ, it normally expands to hold about 1 litre of

food, but can hold as much as 2-3 litres. The stomach of a newborn human baby

will only be able to retain about 30ml. " <<<<NOTE: That is about 1 ounce.

Milk is also rapidly and easily digested so the baby's stomach empties. This is

especially true because the baby is growing very quickly compared to any other

time in life. Some references state that breast milk empties out of the stomach

in 1.5 hours.

The fact is that all infants, human and animal, feed more frequently which is

mostly due to having a small stomach.

Sometimes babies need to eat more frequently because the milk is not as

nutritious. That is similar to us when we consume mostly carbs that do not

provided the nutrients we need, so we eat more and more of them in an effort to

get proper nutrition. Hunger is driven more by lack of nutrition more than

anything else.

The stomach can be empty for some time before a person gets hungry again of they

are getting proper nutrition.

Also when food is traveling through the first part of the small intestines it

also shuts down and/or slows production of hydrochloric acid in the stomach so

eating too soon does not help digestion.

As an infant grows their stomach grows larger too so they are able to consume

more food at one time.

I weaned both of my daughters from breast milk at 6 months old. Not that I

wanted to since I was forced in both situations. However, they did very well

taking milk from a cup (of course cow's milk back then was more healthy than it

is now). I only fed them 3 times a day with the family, along with some milk in

between. But neither of them required any extra milk between meals after a year

old.

That was also the practice of my grandmothers and mother and other women back

then. We either mashed up table foods with a fork, or made baby foods by

blending them. Since no one had such a phobia about germs then, many mothers

chewed up foods and then fed them to their babies like birds and other animals

in the wild.

If it were true that humans need to feed more often than 3 meals per day then

many of our ancestors would have been in big trouble, since they often had to go

a few days without food because of having to hunt for it.

However, when they did eat it was very nutritious and could sustain them for a

few days so their bodies did not have to rob protein and fat from their muscles

and tissues in order to ensure vital organs functioned well.

The best in health, Bee