My 3 Year Old Please Help

Hi N.---You've gotten some good ideas. I'd like to also recommend cutting out dairy altogether and make sure that animal protein does not exceed 10% of daily calories. That means you will have to be intentional and work at getting your daughter (and family) to eat more fruits and veggies.

First, I'd like to share why. I am taking a series of wellness classes taught by a Naturopath who has her PhD in Nutrition. I also have the honor of working with Drs. William and Jim Sears (ABC show The Doctors). I have a degree in Home Economics.

Dr. Sears teaches that it can take around 10 or so tries for a child to accept a new food. Keep trying different foods in different rotations, prepared in different healthy ways. He also recommends a grazing tray, keeping a variety of fruits and veggies out so that your kids can munch when they'd like. Have some dressing for dipping. It's ok as the fat in there helps the body to absorb the fat soluble nutrients. Be sure that ranch does NOT have msg in it. Most do. I use a powder from Penzy's spices that does not contain lots of chemicals in it. You can learn more about Dr. Sears tips for picky eaters...and cholesterol, at www.askDrSears.com. I have a really cool DVD that he recorded called 9 Simple Steps to a Healthy Family Diet. I am happy to share this, along with references to any of the concepts I'm sharing with you now. Just let me know.

Cholesterol is an important part of every cell in the body. We need it. It helps to heal the body when it is damaged...and that's why it collects in the arteries...to heal the damage caused by smoking, lack of plant foods and exercise. After we reduce the amount of animal proteins that we eat, we need to protect what is in the body from free radicals and oxidative stress by eating adequate fruits and veggies. It's mostly a problem when we consume too much via animal protein. Cows milk is designed to make baby cows grow up VERY quickly. Humans are the only species that drinks the milk of another animal. Some websites to explore about animal protein and milk, www.pcrm.org, www.strongbones.org and www.thechinastudy.com.

Eating enough plant based foods means that we will get enough fiber. Fiber both absorbs circulating cholesterol from the blood stream and also prevents it from being reabsorbed in the intestines. One great way to get added fiber is to put ground flax into smoothies, cereal (the flax floats in milk in cold cereal so hot might be better until you are used to it), pancakes, muffins and sprinkled onto salads. Flax is a super food, offering protein, vitamins and minerals as well as cancer fighting compounds.

I've also learned that isolated vitamins are not the answer. They do not offer the full spectrum of nutrients that whole food does. It is best to NOT supplement unless you have been specifically diagnosed with a deficiency, or else the nutrient with become a PROoxidant and cause damage in the body. If you'd like, I can share ways to increase the amount of fruits and veg that your daughter/family eats, and she won't even know it. Here is just one article talking about the vitamin myth, http://www.rd.com/living-healthy/5-vitamin-truths-and-lie...

I have great recipes and other ideas to share and would be happy to do so. If you think it appropriate, feel free to contact me and I can send handouts and links in order to learn more. My passion is to help others learn how to optimize their family's health in order to prevent chronic disease (and have fewer colds, allergies, asthma...everything is impacted by our diet). Hope this helps and please feel free to ask me any other questions. Be well. D.

Well, if you are truly doing all that you can to make sure that your daughter is leading a healthy lifestyle, then I suggest you either have a serious one-on-one conversation with her doctor, or see what you can do to find another doctor that you are more comfortable working with to figure out what is going on with your little girl. I'd maybe drop her down to 1%, the leanest hamburger possible, tons more fruit (low in fat), if you give her juice make sure it is 'No Sugar Added', even have her drink more water. If your family has a love of fatty foods (mine totally does :) then maybe everybody should revamp their food choices.
And your body creates cholestorol because it is vital for basic functions. There may be something going on where her body produces too much. If you are concerned, call to speak to the doctor, or find a new one if you have a feeling that he/she may not understand where you are coming from.

Is high C hereditary? Maybe that's an underlying factor rather then the food she eats.

I'd go for a second opinion. It doesn't sound like you really got any answers just a 'wait and see'. If you're not ok with that approach I'd def see another doctor. I find that younger peds, (late 30's-early 50's), are more proactive then the older "old school' peds. So if yours is older-go for a younger one or maybe also consult a nutritionist to get their take as well.

One thing I would try is to completely take her off regular milk. You could change her to soy milk. My now 18 year old step daughter, who lives with us, use to have all kinds of problems with weight and asthma and allergies. I had read an article online about how bad milk is for you and told her to try to stop drinking it and change to soy. I am happy to report that she has not had an asthma attack in about a year, does not even need her inhaler and has lost all of her extra weight. she loves the soy milk and can not stand the taste of regular milk. She had been drinking a gallon of 2% about every 3 or 4 days. My other 2 children are not huge milk drinkers either. There are other ways to put calcium in their diets. At 3 years old it should be easy to change your daughter to soy milk. It does taste a little different at first but she will get used to it.

Your body makes cholesterol so genetics can cause your problem. However, regarding food sources, cholesterol comes in the forms of Animal sources. So the nuts you mentioned may have a lot of fat (the good fats, actually) but they don't have cholesterol. Try switching to non-fat milk, watch your other animal fats as well...you mentioned she only really eats chicken...are you giving her lean servings? For example,broiled chicken breasts vs breaded and fried chicken? If she does not like red meat anyway, skip it completely. Watch cheese (go for low fat) and yogurt (low fat). Good luck.

i would go for another opinion, but that def sounds high, especially for a kid. it could be heredity also, but high is high. unless the test was wrong, i had to re-do one. meanwhile, i would switch to skim milk and try to add more whole grains, especially whole wheat bread and pasta if she is a big carb eater

My husband who is a physician said (while reading over my shoulder) to tell you not to worry about it at this age.

I'd advise you to cut out any of the cholesterol laden foods from her diet and see if that helps. Our bodies do produce cholesterol so we don't need it from food, and sometimes when we're stressed we can produce too much. Meat, dairy, and eggs all contain cholesterol. Try switching to soy, rice or almond milk. You can get soy meats in your freezer section (see boca, morningstar farms, and light life - produce section near tofu). Be sure she's getting plenty of fiber from fruits and vegetables. If you use eggs, just use the whites, it is cholesterol free, or get egg beaters.

I know three year olds are stubborn about eating, I have one too, but you're the mom and she should not decide what she wants to eat, YOU should. You know what's good for her and you can train her to eat healthy stuff now, because it only gets harder as she gets older. Stay strong, and don't budge on fruits and veggies, she has to eat them. Don't give her something less healthy instead, and be careful about pouring dressing on stuff to get her to eat it, even if its low calorie, it still has lots of salt and preservatives in it that are not good for her. Also juice may contain the vitamins from vegetables, but it lacks the fiber. Fiber add ins are not the same as eating the real thing. Fiber is key to keeping cholesterol down.

I'd suggest putting the food out for her, give her the normal meal time to eat it and then put it away if she refuses. Nothing but water until the next meal. You can try offering the same thing again, or something new that is also healthy, but she won't starve herself, she'll eat it after a few times.

Best wishes! Don't freak out about it! :)

Try giving her raw baby carrots, broccoli and cauliflower cut down to finger size with some ranch dressing - the dressing isn't the best thing, but the veggies will be great and she might just eat them that way! My dgd's was not that high at that age, but I thought 173 was on the high side for a small one! It was down to 156 this spring when she got her checkup before school!