Anyone dealing with a toddler who USED to eat well and now isn't?

Stacey - posted on 08/08/2009

ya my son has recently been doing that too sometimes hell ask for something that healthy and then he wont eat it at all when i make it...its weird its been getting better over the days so i have no idea whats been going on.

Krista - posted on 08/08/2009

I definitely still offer him everything that I make. He'll stick a few bites in and then stop eating. I do attribute it to his teeth, however. Like I said, those molars are coming in. If I'm worried, I know that there ARE things he'll eat. Bagels with cream cheese for one. He ate SOME of his food last night, but I had to hide his pork chops in his mashed potatoes. He gets a wide variety of food on his plate as well. I try to put at least one of each food group on there. I know that one day it'll stick and it's actually only been the last couple of weeks that he's been doing this. Now that I think of it, he did the exact same thing when his first molars came in.

Sharon - posted on 08/08/2009

I think all toddlers go through this. I'm not sure why.



Are they testing their boundaries?



Have we been giving them to many snacks?



Have they truely discovered their sense of "sweet" and only want fruit and junk food"?



When my kids went through it, they got cereal. Vitamin fortified cereal. Honeynut cheerios was the usual one, I tossed on a handful of Total cereal and called it good. But that is all they got.



Eventually they came around to wanting what was on our plates. They wanted to "try" something, and they could have a bite but if they wanted to eat a meal then they had to sit down like the rest of the family and eat off a plate. Or they could go to bed.

Joy - posted on 08/08/2009

My son will be 2 in October and we're going through the same exact thing! He was always a super eater, would eat anything and everything I put on his tray. And now I'm having to find ways to sneak meat into his mouth. He's pretty much still eating his fruits and veggies so I'm starting to wonder if maybe the texture of meat is hurting him because he's teething so bad? Is your little one teething badly too? My husband and I were just talking about this the other night, trying once again to figure out why he's on a "meat strike" lol The teething thing is all we could come up with. It's so funny to hear you describe what your son WILL eat....sounds like my house exactly. Grapes, strawberries, Cheerios and we ALWAYS have Goldfish crackers......and he's still drinking a lot of milk and juice so at least that's something. I think he'll be ok, like I said, probably just the teething or maybe it's a phase? But I've been keeping my eye on his weight and if he loses any I'm definitely gonna get him in to see the doc. Good luck with your little guy!

Sarah - posted on 08/08/2009

Hi Krista.
Both my daughters are picky but in different ways......my eldest was REALLY picky when she was younger (she's 5 now) and she would just refuse to eat 'proper' meals, but she was always really good with fruit and sandwiches and things. Now she's older she will at least try things and has come on leaps and bounds with the 'proper' meals.
A lot of that was down to seeing other kids eat them (like her cousin) and she wanted to have the same etc.
My youngest is the opposite way around, she doesn't like fruit and won't eat bread unless it's toasted but she loves hot meals!
I find that as long as there's a lot of options on the plate then they do quite well, sometimes they'll leave one thing and sometimes they'll leave something else.
I keep offering different foods and fruit to my youngest, sometimes she will try, other times she refuses.
We went round to someones house to play and when she saw the other kids eating some fruit, she tried some (spat it out lol! but at least she tried!)
I think most kids go through phases of being 'difficult' with food, you just have to keep trying. :)

Angie - posted on 08/07/2009

I know there are vita drops for babies, but ask your doctor before buying them...they might have a preference or have a problem with them. Kaya loves the Gummie bears. Kaya went through a period where she gagged herself, I also thought she was getting her molars, but it ended up being an attention getter. I hope he starts eating for you...

Krista - posted on 08/07/2009

Well, we're at the point now where my son won't eat breakfast, lunch OR dinner. He snacks, but not a lot, although he used to snack a ton. He's refusing even his favourite things and I don't know why. For a while I assumed it was his teeth, but I'm not so sure now. Although, I know he IS getting his molars because his hand is generally shoved so far down his throat he gags. I think I WILL try to get him vitamins, but I don't generally know how those will work because my son doesn't enjoy sweets so I don't see the gummies going over very well. I may have to get him a liquid vitamin and mix it with his drink.

Angie - posted on 08/07/2009

Hi Krista,

My daughter is starting to get picky! She got to the point she wouldn't eat dinner...

Thinking how I could change it, I realized she would eat more snacks in between meals...So I simply stopped giving her a lot of snacks. She still does the "yuck" noise, but if she is hungry enough she will eat it. I am also concerned about the variety of foods, also, we started giving her vitamins. She also loves fruits, so we have to give the main meal to her before she gets the good stuff! :) We also can't give her milk until she is eating a good portion of the meal.

I hope this work...I'm not sure if this 100% proven, but we are also learning...be creative!!! She'll also eat what her daddy eats.