My 15mo old is barely eating all of a sudden

Tash - posted on 04/12/2010

My daughter is doing the same, she got sick with bronchialitis a week before easter and now refuses to even try most foods. She was eating weetbix every morning for ages and now won't even try it. Food she loves like yoghurt and lasagna etc she won't even try, if i eventually get some in her mouth she might take a couple of small spoonfuls but thats it! She has always been a great eater but now even though she isn' sick anymore she still won't eat anything i give to her. I think its a power struggle thing now cause she will sometimes eat when someone else feeds her but the only thing she has eaten off me in the past 3-4 weeks has been a yoghurt yesterday! I am not trying to force her cause i don't want to turn mealtimes into a battle but man this is SOOOOO frustrating!!!

Beccie - posted on 04/11/2010

My L/O has been through a similar thing lately. He refused to eat for about 6 weeks. Hes been eating our meals since he was about 6 months old, and has always eaten like a human dustbin, polishing everything off that was put infront of him. Then suddenly about 2 months ago he just turned his nose up at everything, and was only eating his breakfast each day, and sometimes half of his lunch. I believe in not giving in to them, this is them testing you. I would give him his meal, and he had 5 or 10 min to start eating, if he didnt make any effort to eat it then it was taken away, and he wasnt given anything else. He would then wait until his next meal (which he also sometimes refused !) I spoe to his health visitor after a few weks as I was getting quite concerned, but she said to stick with it as I was doing the right thing. She also weighed him and amazingly he was still gaining weight ! It took about 6 weeks of a lot of frustration, but he is now almost back to normal, and will eat his full meals again and is willing to try things before he refuses them. Hope this helps x

Ashley - posted on 04/08/2010

My daughter is very petite too, some of the clothes she wears are still 6-9 months some days! But when she IS hungry, she can pack it away!! I think with her too she just is trying to make the adjustment from liquidy baby foods to real table food. I mean she'll eat cheerios and crackers and snacks like no tomorrow, and shes definitely got the teeth for them, but she just hates to try new things, no matter how many times I offer it to her, if she doesnt want it, it ends up on the floor or she is trying to copletely flip around in her chair to escape its presence lol. I guess when shes ready for new things she just will be..? :o)

Kimberly - posted on 04/07/2010

I always feel like people think babies are supposed to be "fat." Don't get me wrong, I love a good, chubby baby...but the fact that my daughter is really petite b/c she doesn't eat much--I think it's ok--and she's of course adorable! She's never been sick, so her finicky diet doesn't seem to be affecting her. They eat that they need--why try to force food on them? (Now, if my daughter was 15, and not eating b/c she thought she was fat-that would be another story!)

Stacey - posted on 04/07/2010

There is a product at the pharmacy called incremin it increases appetite and it really woorked for my baby.

Pooneh - posted on 04/07/2010

my son is 16months and has been going through the same thing..but he loves the fruit and sweets so I have modififed my meal plans to give him foods he likes like bread, eggs, waffles, he also loves crackers dipped in his mushed food so he will eat it with crackers but not from a spoon.

Jessica - posted on 04/06/2010

Ok, I am going to have the fat kid of the group. My daughter eats 3 full meals each day and still has room for milk, juice and 3-4 snacks. I know she out eats my 4 year old at each meal. However, I understand your frustration, because my 4 year old would never eat if not made to. He has been this way since he was 1 and continues to be a very picky eater. Keep offering, they won't starve.

Kimberly - posted on 04/06/2010

This is my daughter..I'm thinking it's because she's teething--I think she's getting her eye teeth?? She is also 15 mo. and I think they might be painful teeth to get. It must not feel good to chew certain things right now. Anyway, I'm just making sure she's drinking plenty, and thinking it will pass! She won't starve :)

Ashley - posted on 04/06/2010

My daugher is 16 months today, and she is doing just about the exact same thing! She was doing really well with baby food, and we started trying to give her regular food, but she wouldnt even really try it..and then she decided that she didnt want her baby food anymore either, so currently her diet is cheerios and crackers and cookies, sweet things pretty much, oh and french fries..anything else she just wont eat..but people say that its normal, its just like a phase i guess. it could be her teeth partly too, she has 12 already and all of her molars are coming in right now at the same time too. But I agree with you, it seems like she would be staaarrving! And as it is, she only weighs just under 20 pounds, so she can't stand to not eat for THAT long I hope!! At first I was freaking out about it, but like other people have said, she will eat when she wants :o)

Anita - posted on 04/06/2010

My Mia has always had a bad eating habbit and now she is getting teeth she refususes more than usual though she loves her breakfast and the sweet things. I also find she goes through a rough patch when she is growing. Maybe your little one is going through a growth spurt too.

Aneke - posted on 04/06/2010

my son is the same at the moment, just not interested in cooked dinners not sure whether it is teeth or what, doesnt knock back yoghurt or fruit or the sweet stuff.. cheeky little munckin. I think it is just a phase that all bubs go through

Amber - posted on 04/05/2010

My 15 month old baby is doing the same.. Her dr says its normal.. just get her to eat as much as she will.. water during meals & at nap time..

Brook - posted on 04/05/2010

My girlie is doing the same thing. It really worries me too cause she doesnt even weigh 20 lbs yet. I dont know what to do either. Im taking her to the Dr. on Thursday so hopefully I will have some advice soon=0)

Carrie - posted on 04/05/2010

I have this same problem with my son...but my ped. says that they will gain five pounds a year ages from one to five so they are what is known as a binge eater they may go a whole week having nothing but crackers and milk while next week they eat everything that they can get. they go through grotwth spurts so this is very much normal and really nothing you can do about it. other than just offer it to them and if they take it fine if not then just offer crackers or something.

Charissa - posted on 04/02/2010

When he does eat, try feeding him sweet, healthy, calorie filled things. My daughter does this but she LOVES avocados even more, pico guacamole. If she insists on puffs (mine did that for a week) try whole grain baked puffs. Also, you might ask your doctor about Pediasure? I mean, either way it's definitely something to talk to her docotor about. Since my daughter loves her milk, she doesn't mind the Peidasure and it gets her all the nutrients she needs while we're on this little strike. Good luck! :D

Tammi - posted on 04/02/2010

My daughter just turned 16 months old and eats very little. She just wants to drink. She will eat yogurt and sometimes pudding, but that is it. Every once in a while she will nibble on a chicken nugget. We give her toddler formula, Pediasure, smoothies and fruit juice. She loves all of those things. She also eats Cheerios, crackers and other "snacks". We always give her a little of what we are eating, but she just looks at it. Her pediatrician says as long as she is active and growing not to worry about it, she will eventually start eating more.

Alison - posted on 04/02/2010

My older child who is now 3 yrs did not eat from the begining. Up until last christmas he only ate very small amounts and only certain foods. He would cry if things were on his plate he didn 't want. He has meet all his milestones and has always been very lively. And since christmas we have turned the corner and he is eating much more and trying new foods and tolerancing food he doesnt want on his plate. Just hang in there and things will get better, she will not starve herself. We didn't give in and give him just what he wanted. I just made sure one meal a day was something he really liked and the other two would be what ever we were eating. My 15mth old is going through a fussy stage at the moment. He would eat anything and everything and hugh portions and over the last month he is being fussier over what he eats and has cut his portions down by half but i not worried as he lively and growing well.

Ukiah - posted on 04/01/2010

I asked about this at our 15 month check up appt and our Doc said that it's very common and dieticians say that it can take 30-40 times trying a new food before they'll actually accept it...so just keep trying and offering and eventually it will pay off! Also, you need to look at what they've eaten over a 3-4 day period rather than day to day to really judge if they're getting what they need..

Katie - posted on 04/01/2010

We are going through the same with our 15 months old she used to eat a ton and try everything, but now it's chicken nuggets, grilled cheese, bread, and sweet things. I was getting so worried she wasnt getting any nutrition! When I asked my doctor, he just replied, "In all my years, I have yet to find a way to make a baby eat what they don't want!" which made me feel better. He also explained that most foods now are so enriched with vitamins and minerals, that in countries like the US, malnourishment diseases are practically non-existent. He said it's just a stage, and until they are old enough to reason with (2-3 years old or so), just do what you can. One bite of carrot or broccoli or steak is better than none at all. Also their stomach is only the size of their fist, so it doesn't take much to fill them up. They eat so much as babies in the 1st year because they are growing more rapidly than any other part of their life. He suggested a multi vitamin drop if I was concerned. I also baked 6 containers of mixed baby vegetables (about 15 servings) into a spice muffin mix, and made mini-vegetable muffins that my daughter loves. 4-5 of these is a veggie serving. While they have some extra sugar, I just try to watch what she eats and limit more.

Tarina - posted on 03/31/2010

Chase is 15 months and a week, and the last week he has been doing the same thing. He drinks milk all day, wont take water or juice, and will barely eat anything (this being a HUGE change from his normal eat everything in sight mode). We took him to the dr, she says just keep offering and monitor for fever. She checked his throat to be sure it wasnt swollen (he has a condition called Lymphangioma where his lymphnodes swell into his throat and dont go down until drained) but he was fine. Let your baby sleep if she wants, and trust her to let you know when she's ready to eat :)

Dalya - posted on 03/31/2010

you should try giving my daughter food! she's also 15.5 months old and since she started weaning off milk and eating solids (6 months old), her weight has just dropped-we're currently seeing a childrens dietitian but nothing is helping. she has never eaten much re solids. for breakfast she'll eat about 10 cheerios and for lunch maybe 2 bites of chicken and 3 teaspoons of rice and then for dinner maybe 2 bites of scrambled egg or 1/2 slice of bread with peanut butter-she's always been like that so i dont worry coz i know thats how much she eats but my in-laws go crazy that she doesn't eat as do all the pediatritians etc. shes mostly happy and smiling all day so i recon she's ok-ppl are just jealous that she's thin :)
good luck and let me know and tricks you discover!

Desiree - posted on 03/26/2010

My son is 15mo and JUST starting to eat solids. He is breastfed and loves it. He's a big healthy boy.
Maybe she senses your frustration and it's putting her off eating even more. As long as she's growing don't worry about it. If she is eating 1/4 to 1/2 her meals she's doing much better then my kids ever did. I feel like mine would live on breastmilk until he was 5 if I let him.

Mindy - posted on 03/26/2010

Peanut butter my mom use to give me, to replace the meat cause i too hated to eat, and still now barely eat... She mite b going thre a faze like every1 is saying, try entertaining her while eating play the aeroplane etc... possibly change her foods?? she looks little in the pic she just mite have enough food to keep her content, alot of babies tend to drink alot of milk which is no good cause there full and dont wanna eat solids...
maybe cut down on her drinking??
All kids are stubborn but its us who let them get away wit it :P because we love them lol

Mindy - posted on 03/26/2010

Thanks for all the advice everyone. Its good to know shes not the only one eating like this, makes me feel better about it, especually since shes never really been a good eater, and now has gotten even worse with it. and Mindy, no fever or what not, shes been like this over 2 weeks now. Did I forget to mention shes the most stubborn thing ever, which makes the eating process even harder lol

Andreea - posted on 03/25/2010

good to know it's normal

Holly - posted on 03/25/2010

yep! my son used to eat everything (even if just a little bit of alot of things). he was never a huge eater though. he's only 19lbs but healthy. he was also BF so that accounts for the lower weight. my Ped and all books I've read say look at the weeks intake. somedays he eats all fruit, some all milk/dairy, some days I swear all he wants is bread! his new kick is yogurt with granola and bread with sunbutter and raisins on it. he seems to like things that look visually appealing. so get ot those squirt bottles and decorate his plate! I drew a smiley face with ketchup just to make him eat tater tots!

Lauren - posted on 03/25/2010

nerve wracking isn't it!! Julia is barely 20 lbs and tall, and eats like a little mouse.

Melly - posted on 03/25/2010

Hi, my son is showing the same behaviour. What helps me help him is to feed him the foods he likes; cherry tomatoes, oranges, toast with peanut butter, frozen berries. Sometimes he will eat like this for a couple of days. I try to give him his meals first; a tablespoon at a time and only 2 things at a time. If successful, he may want more or move onto something else. If unsuccessful, i will offer him one thing i know he will eat alongside the others and then make it fun so he will atleast eat 1-2 morsels of the others. I am not sure if this would help with your daughter. It sure is the time to get creative in strategy though...good luck!

Adrianne - posted on 03/25/2010

My son is the same way! He started out as a very good eater. He would eat anything that was put in front of him. Now he won't eat anything but sweet stuff. I have been giving him smoothies for nutrition purposes. He also eats yogurt, bananas, and blueberries (cut in half). I am at my wit's end. We are going to see his pediatrician this afternoon and hopefully, I can bring back some suggestions for you and for me :-)

Mindy - posted on 03/25/2010

could it b her teeth??? a stomach flu??? check if she has a fever, babies will eat when there hungry she wont starve so my ped says good luck

Jordan - posted on 03/24/2010

My daughter does the same thing! She just drinks milk all day!

Nicole - posted on 03/24/2010

My son is also going on a "hunger strike". Apparently it's very common at this age. All my son wants is Chef Boyardee. And of course cookies, puffs, fruit, sweet stuff like that. He used to be a really good eater until a few weeks ago. They're not growing as fast anymore so they don't need as much food as when they were babies. Try to pay attention to what she eats over a week, you might notice she eats a lot one day and none the next. Kids know when they're hungry and when they've had enough. If you try to force them to eat you'll just set them up for eating problems later on. So my advice is just feed her whatever she'll eat, but keep offering her other foods. I know it's frustrating to keep making food they don't eat and having to throw it away, but it's just a phase they'll eventually (hopefully!) grow out of.

Jackie - posted on 03/24/2010

See the "has anyones baby stopped eating dinner" thread from a couple days ago. It has like 40 replies or something on this topic...and short answer is yes its very common for many of us =)