Too Many Bananas - Plus need some advice

[Antheia]

Can a child have too many Bananas? Like, is it bad for them?

Lily keeps eating heaps because really she doesn't eat much else other than apples and bananas and the occassional cheese or jam sandwich. Other than that it is hard to get food into her as she is just so fussy. She will usualy only have 2 meals a day tops with maybe 1 snack but thats pushing it. But she will eat all the bananas i can possible give her but just wanted to know if it'll do her any harm?

Any ideas on how to get her to eat more or is this just the way she will be? She will choose fruit over junk any day which is absolutely great IMO but she doesnt eat much as i said and i'm worried she will become underweight or malnurished(sp?). She is a skinny girl as it is, i dont want to make it any worse but she's a stubborn one!

[{sarah}]

I think there can be an issue with too much potassium, but I'm not sure what it does though.

[Phteven]

DH thinks that they can give you constipation and he always gets stressed out if I give the boys more than 2 in a day but I'm not sure where he heard it.

[Antheia]

Hmm well no probs with constipation and she has like 3-4 a day!

[Pandora]

yeah we only have the constipation issue too, but it can also go the other way in some people.

[Indadhanu]

I wouldn't worry about her becoming malnourished, as bananas are a great source of vitamins and minerals (my dad made us eat at least one banana a day for that reason!). And unless your DD is eating over 10 bananas in a short period of time, theres no threat of hyperkalemia (excessive potassium) as the digestive system filters it out excess potassium before it becomes a problem.

I can't really help much with getting her to eat more! Though if you're worried about nutrients and her weight, maybe you could try her with a mango, banana and orange juice smoothie, which has lots of good energy and vitamins

[paradise lost]

My DD goes through periods of loving the nana too hun. I think it's when she's feeling especially "busy" with her play and learning and doesn't want to time out for food. I try not to worry. Kids KNOW how to fuel their bodies and if you offer good choices and let her feed the levels she chooses she will not hurt herself (unless there are allergy/endocrine problems - i know not all kids can self-fuel with success but MOST can) and will grow up knowing how to fuel without having to battle with her weight.

I tend to limit DD to 3/day unless she really isn't eating anything else. BUT i also use bananas to encourage her to eat when she isn't. THings i have some success with are:

banana mashed onto wholemeal toast, cut into soldiers
porridge with banana mashed into it
plain natural yogurt with mashed banana swirled in
banana crumble (mashed banana with digestive biscuit and toasted oats crumbled onto it)
creamed banana (banana with a little bit of single or double cream mashed into it - a great one for adding dairy and calories!)

I basically just try things out and see how we go. My best banana-based calorie-dense snack for her is a slice of homemade banana bread with real butter on it and a cup of milk (we only have real butter and whole milk).

If she seems well and is happy then try not to worry. If she was eating only fries, or only eggs i'd be more worried, but as others have said, bananas are actually pretty nutritionally dense.

Bx

[piggy]

I wouldn't worry about her becoming malnourished, as bananas are a great source of vitamins and minerals (my dad made us eat at least one banana a day for that reason!). And unless your DD is eating over 10 bananas in a short period of time, theres no threat of hyperkalemia (excessive potassium) as the digestive system filters it out excess potassium before it becomes a problem.

Is it fairly common for hyperkalemia to occur when excessive bananas are eaten?