my 18 month old WONT eat meat help

Nikki - posted on 09/18/2010

have you tried putting it in a food processor and then mixing it with fruit?

Aniesha - posted on 09/14/2010

Hi, I'm actually a vegan & raising my son as one, so I can help you with that. The most important things in meat are iron & vitamin B12. Iron can mostly be gotten from green leafy veges (spinach, broccoli, parsley, etc), and also strawberries. B12 is harder to come by. Mushrooms are the only vegetables that contain it, but I also get my son rice milk enriched with B12. I think as long as you make sure you're substituting the meat with other stuff she'll be fine! My brother never ate meat as a baby either, didn't start til quite late. I actually read in a book somewhere that humans were never meant to eat meat, and that can be why some babies reject it because it's the first natural body response. Of course, this book was promoting vegetarianism, but it was an interesting read nonetheless. Best of luck:)

Natasha - posted on 07/14/2010

cut chicken fillets innto strips and marinate in 1tbs of honey, soy sauce and ollive oil. Grill or lightly fry and serve with organic tomatoe ketchup.

I had the same problem found this recipe from Annabel Karmel but couldnt be bothered to make the home made ketchup at the time so I used my own and like magic my son ate the chicken.

I have used the same marinade on Salmon and he loves it.....Good Luck x

Jenna - posted on 07/04/2010

There are other ways to find protein and vitamins. My Pediatrician said that they are old enough for multi vitamins like the gummy ones or chewable flinstones. Tuna is very good for them and has a different texture and taste. With my daughter I just had to start putting the meat into other things. but, I see that you said that she won't eat anything with meat in it...one thing that my doctor suggested was to puree the meat and mix it in with apple sauce, pear sauce, or any other pureed food that she does like. I know it sounds gross but it worked with the meats that weren't over powering. It didn't work with hamburger or ham. My daughter will now eat meat as long as she has some kind of sauce for it, ketchup, ranch, gravy, spag sauce, etc!

Ashley - posted on 07/04/2010

I just overcame this obstacle. My 19month son would not touch meat and would pick it even out of spaghetti. For the mean time I made sure he ate eggs one way or another, peanut butter, cheese that way he was getting protein. That is pretty much all he is missing from meat. As long as your child isn't losing weight it isn't that big of a deal. I just made sure to always no matter what offer him some, even if I knew he wouldn't eat it, you have to be persistent. I looked up a lot of vegetarian meals and vegan meals because I knew he would eat those being they didnt have meat. We found he wouldn't eat meat because he didn't have the proper teeth to do so. Once my son got his 4 molars in the back of his mouth it was on! He ate all meat almost instantly. I hope this helps!!!!

Joanne - posted on 07/03/2010

it seems as though this is quite a common issue I think I'll stop being so worried, she is a nice chubby baby so must be doing ok, she got stung by nettles today gosh poor thing she cried for ages thanks ladies xxx

Teesia - posted on 07/03/2010

My son for the longest time wouldn't eat. Just simply would not put anything but a snippy in his mouth. So we took him to the dr. He was under weight. For breakfast I would give him a sippy of milk with carnation instant breakfast. I've been doing this from 7 months. Since he wasn't getting fruits and veggies I gave him v8 fusion juice, which is 100% fruit and veggie juice. Milk shakes with ice cream, peanut butter the carnation instant breakfast powder milk and ice. Sometimes thin out yogurt and put it in a sippy for him.

Dipti - posted on 07/03/2010

meat only has fat n proteins n iron which she can get from lots of other veg foods like dairy products, green leafy veg, pulses n soya. i dont think u shd worry she's not missing out...so many kids r veg these days!

Heather - posted on 07/02/2010

My son whos also that age for quite a few months or longer was the same way. would pretty much eat everything else but meat and i figured when he decided t oeata it he would and now hes doin much better.he will eat almost any meat now. did take a lil at a time tho for him to try ham or turkey or any meat slowly again and that worried me and my fiancee also that he wouldnt as we know how important meat is to children at this age with nutrients and everything. im glad to know we arent the only one who has a child that didnt. good luck with it and i truly hope she will eat meat slowly for you even if it takes time.

Nancy - posted on 07/02/2010

That you daughter won't at meat isn't a problem. My daughter is vegetarian and she is fine. I give her tofu, nut butters and beans/legumes for protein. She also doesn't like eggs very much, so I sneak them nto the French toast that I make her. She also loves mozzarella cheese on some high protein bread. Asa snack I give ger premium fortified vanilla soy milk that has good protein and more calcium than cow's milk. I went to see a registered dietician and she said that often times vegetarian kids are healthier than omnivore kids. Good luck!

Michelle - posted on 07/02/2010

My son would not touch any meat for the longest time! But he is now 2 and a half and he LOVES it and even asks for more most of the time. Maybe if you just give her time, she'll start to like it.

Mary - posted on 07/02/2010

I have the same problem. My daughter is the pickiest eater ever! She wont eat anything really. I get worried, too, that shes not getting all the nutrients she needs.

Stacy - posted on 07/01/2010

My 2 older childern didn't like meat until they were close to 6. We gave them other protien alternatives - beans and rice and dairy. we also gave them beets for iron. they loved the canned ones (not pickled).

Avi - posted on 07/01/2010

My 19 month boy won't eat meat either. He just spits it out. I've written a post about 'Picky eater'.

I am just starting to not worry too much about it. He eats what he wants. He's still got a bit of fat and big tummy to go. He drinks milk, yoghurt and all sorts of fruit. I do worry about him not having enough iron, and I mince meat and mix it into stuff to give it to him.

Good luck.

Joanne - posted on 07/01/2010

Oh yes she loves cakes but not custard! She does quite well in all other areas and eats lots of veg so really im quite lucky thanks for all the responces

Joy - posted on 06/30/2010

Joanne, in your fist post, you also said that your bub wont eat eggs either, my Nan told me for protien foods_ Vegies, sweets, soup, sauces, sayvory meats.
So just cause a kid won't eat whole eggs, don't mean they won't have them as part of cakes "n" custards.

Joanne - posted on 06/30/2010

Thanks Ill try that, but she is super clever, she even cried when she can smell it being cooked its almost a strange fixation that she wont have it, even as a baby jar with meat were a no no, I gave her pasta with it in the middle and she ate round it, ha ha maybe she was born a vegitarian! thanks for you help

Heather - posted on 06/29/2010

My daughter eats everything! All types of meats! But my sister who is 9 months older than my daughter wont eat any meat at all. What I started to do was cutting up the chicken super fine and mashing it into her potatoes. It was only then she started to eat meat. I moved up to ham or beef into her beans, and started to move up to bigger portions. Eventually she became comfortable with meat and hasn't had a problem since. Hope my advice was helpful. Good luck ladies!

Carri - posted on 06/29/2010

My little man will only eat sausage rolls - I also try and make sure he has peanut butter, cheese etc. i also try baked beans but he seems to have gone off them. I've also kept him on formula rather than cows milk so he gets extra iron that way. I just keep offering and hope for the best - he took 2 bites of fish yesterday!
Good luck, let me know if you find anything that works.

Lyndsey - posted on 06/29/2010

I have the same problem with my 18 month old son. He's really weird about meat... the texture, the taste, who knows what it is... I just try to get protein in other ways like milk, cheese, and peanut butter. I wouldn't get too upset about it at this age unless your daughter is losing weight. Keep trying meat though, hopefully our kids will come around sooner or later :)