My 17month old will not eat anything but bread

Kate - posted on 04/25/2010

I am there with you. I stressed about it for a while but my husband was not concerned. I bought a baby cookbook that has recipes for veggie purees. On particularly picky days, I put the veggie spread on crackers or bread. That way I at least know he is getting some nutrients. I also started to buy Plum Organics or Ella's Kitchens fruit puree pouches. They are not cheap (although diapers.com and Babies R Us frequently puts them on sale) but I buy them in bulk and consider it worth the investment to get him to eat fruits/veggies. He loves them and has one a day. Aside from that it's nuggets and pasta. Sneak things in where you can and you'll see that your baby is getting enough. Also, discuss a vitamin supplement with your doctor. Good luck!

Claire - posted on 04/21/2010

So glad I found this thread- my DD is driving me insane at the moment. Ever since she started solids she's gone through fussy phases, but this one is a corker. She was 17 months yesterday, and all she ate on that day was (no breakfast), four mini spinach quiches, a little yoghurt, some sultanas, and for dinner a handful of shredded cheese, three cherry tomatoes, a fragment of bread, and some tinned pineapple pieces (in juice, not syrup).

At the moment she's just getting the hang of using a fork/ spoon, and she absolutely will not have us feed her with a spoon. It's good for her, I guess, because she needs to learn somehow- but in the meantime, I'm starting to worry that she's not getting anywhere near enough food.

She has regular issues with constipation- we're always having to give her baby laxatives- and this seems to be a circular thing. She doesn't eat much because the constipation makes her uncomfortable, and because she doesn't eat much it all slows down more.

Oh, and she's still a boob addict, which I know is having an effect on how much she eats (but also, thankfully, giving her the nutrients she wouldn't be getting otherwise).

I'm planning on getting more creative with my finger food this week- I'll make up some little meatballs or fingers with chicken mince and veggies blended in. She's just not getting enough vegetables, though thank goodness she loves fruit so much. Very much looking forward to the end of this phase :)

SUZANNE - posted on 04/20/2010

i think it might be the age. my son does the same thing. eating a few bites and munching through the day. i tried not giving him so many snacks throughout the day so he would actually be hungry for a meal and it worked. i also keep him very active.

Rachel - posted on 04/20/2010

Hi. My son will be 17 mo in a few days. I am going thru the same thing. He was an excellent eater then a few months ago he ate a little less, now he eats no meat, almost no fruit or vegggie and has cut out some toast. I have tried sneaking fruits/veggies/meat in food, but nothing gets passed him. I think he is teething bc it has only ben about a week that it has been this bad-but I am concerned as well. Does your son like cheese, there is protein and calcium in cheese, french toast has protein bc its made w/egg. I still offer him everything we have for dinner and leave it on his plate hoping he will eat it again. Def try the french toast bc the egg will be good for him

Megan - posted on 04/19/2010

Bottom line, carbs turn into sugar in the blood steam, especially if it is white processed flour and it causes a sugar high, that's why kids love carbs and fruit. Their brains literally become addicted to it. The book Little Sugar Addicts is awesome, it helps you slowly get more protein and other good foods into your kids.
We, as a family, eat when we are hungry. We don't eat lunch simply b/c it is noon. Making your kids eat will only create food wars. Jennifer, awesome post!!!

Carolyn - posted on 04/19/2010

Sometimes it seems like my son barely eats any solids at all. I only offer him fruits, veggies, whole grains, etc. in addition to breast milk. I try very hard with my children not to get into the bread and crackers dilemma by just not giving them any to begin with. I know that they eat such tiny amounts of food every day that a few crackers would easily replace a meal.

Jaclyn - posted on 04/16/2010

Hi Jessica,
My 16mth old went through a phase of eating nothing but aroot biscuits..lol and you know what? He did eventually stop it doesn't kill them. And my boy will eat breakfast either toast or eggs and dippers which my 3 yr old think are fantastic. and lunch i'll toast some sandwiches or do up some noodles but he snacks on healthy stuff in between..like sultanas,bananas. He still loves his biscuits but i limit them now to 1 a day...if he's lucky ;). Trust me it will get easier.

Jessica - posted on 04/15/2010

Thank you all so much for the words of wisdom, they have been all so good. and its also nice to know im not the only one mum with this problem thanks again, i will take all of this advice and try to use it, if it doesn't work im not going to worry myself over it :)

Amberly - posted on 04/14/2010

my daughter is 17 months old and eats bread constantly! she eats some at breakfast, lunch and dinner, but we make sure to also give her bread and she almost always eats it first.. She does eat more, but like you its mainly bread.. If the doctors say he's healthy I would just go with it.. My daughter is within her weight for her age, so I let her eat at much as she wants.. I'm sure its only a phase :)

Deborah - posted on 04/14/2010

My nephew was just like that and now he is 5. He made it through the only bread eating stage and now eats much more as a 5 year old. I'm sure this will happen for you too :)

Tine - posted on 04/13/2010

Hey,if he's healthy it's probably all good! They go through phases, andthey really seem to know what they need evenif itseems weird to us. I think the worst thing to do is worry ortry toforce him,relax,offer lots of healthy alternatives (including healthy bread!) and let him work it out. The eating pattern you are describing is really normal for toddlers and is actually setting himup to avoid obesity if you go with it - read some stuff on 'baby led weaning' - it really works!!
:-)

Ashley - posted on 04/13/2010

Oh and I agree with Carolyn...maybe give him a toddler spoon or fork so he can eat with that..we've done that too when Camden isn't wanting to eat something and says all done..and he'll dive right in if we give him a spoon :)

Ashley - posted on 04/13/2010

My little guy has always been an excellent eater, and eats anything you put in front of him. Lately, since he learned to say all done, he'll have a couple bites and say all done. Sometimes I let him be done, and sometimes I just sit by him while I eat my food..and if I ignore him a little, he'll eat it on his own..without having the pressure of me repeatedly telling him to eat his food.

If you're wanting him to eat stuff other than bread, if it were me...I'd stop giving it to him for a while, and would start putting stuff in front of him that you're having for meals. If he doesn't eat it, it's fine..eventually he'll be hungry enough to eat it. And right now, he might be catching on to the fact that you're giving in and giving him the bread that he wants, if he doesn't eat the other stuff. (My 17th month old catches on to that stuff!) They're smarter than we think ; ) I've always heard from friends, family, and pediatricians that they'll eat when they're hungry..they're not going to starve. So if you cut the bread out, and just start offering him regular foods, and he doesn't eat it, I'm almost positive that after 1-2 days of not having anything will make him want to eat the stuff he usually didn't want to :) You can also try fruits with him..you may have already tried it, I don't know. But whenever my son doesn't want to eat anything, we always say "if all else fails, give him fruit..at least it's healthy"....he LOVES fruit, and would be happy with just that if that's all we gave him. But he eats anything we put in front of him most of the time.

Carolyn - posted on 04/13/2010

My son has turned into a carb junkie, too! Cracker is his favorite word. He loves to use his fork and spoon so we've started mixing bread pieces with healthier foods. Bread and veggies, bread and fish, etc. It's hit or miss, but he's eating more than just bread.

Clara - posted on 04/12/2010

Jennifer, that is the most fact based, clear advise I have seen in a long long time !!

I also believe in trusting my daughter and not trying to tame her !!

Jennifer - posted on 04/12/2010

There are so many varying components, so assuming it's nothing serious (texture issues do come up at this age), then maybe its as simple as trusting your baby to tell you when he/she is hungry. They're too young to "forget to eat", human beings don't need that many calories and our thinking has been skewed on the topic. If you are NOT "extremely active", 2000 calories is almost 700 too much for the average tv watching, computer using, sedintary person. The problem is that people dont get enough nutrition because they are eating the wrong foods that are high in calories and low in quantity (trust me, it takes a LOT of fruit and veggies to reach 1300 calories, yet a single poptart is 200, making those two in each foil wrapper 400!! That's nearly one third your daily intake! A poptart wouldnt satisfy me for a third of my day...) As far as children go, on average, they are definitely more active-- assuming your television is off while he's awake. When you get yourself a snack, it is important to remember to have something ready to give the child also, feeding a baby our over-sugared, over-salted "grown up" or "table" foods is going to interfere with his natural taste for fresher (blander) items (would you enjoy a bowl of bran flakes after a cinnamon roll?). Avoid feeding him boxed, prepared, sweetened, salted "table food" and stick to the baby items or fresh fruits and ground veggies. Use spices and seasoning to make it interesting for him without raising the sodium if he's really stubborn.

When a baby is hungry, he will eat. It's a good sign that his weight is not an issue, that tells you volumes about the fact that the "little amount" he is eating is just what he needs; but variety is important.

Please, don't enforce the "finish your plate"/ "3 meals a day" rule. He has an uninterrupted, unemotional attachment to food (that we're all born with until bad habits mess it up) and thats a good thing! Technically, everyone, (kids and adults) should be eating much smaller, more frequent "meals" per day. But the actual definition of "a meal" is where the industry screws up. A meal, if eaten more frequently, should be the size of the person who is eating's palm, roughly.

And remember his tummy is about the size of HIS fist, not yours...lol.

Tabatha - posted on 04/12/2010

read what to expect the toddler years, it goes through this. For this age, it's totally normal. Part of it is expressing their independence and another is texture. The book and lots of other more experienced mommy's I have talked to along with his doc tell me to just keep trying when he wont eat anything. My son loves his fruit and sometimes thats all i can get him to eat along with a little bread here and there. Just keep trying. If you child doesnt want to eat it then save it for later, eventually they will eat it. I had to do this exact thing earlier today and for once it actually worked. keep your chin up and just keep trying!

Stephanie - posted on 04/12/2010

My 17 month old is the exact same way he will take a bit and thats it but just kind of nibbles all day long. His doctor told me its nothing to worry about aslong as you offer it to him, if he doesnt eat it hes probably just not hungry if he was hungry he would eat

Maggie - posted on 04/12/2010

We are having a heck of a time with our Becky right now. If it is a carb she will eat it and she will eat bananas and apples (as long as they are in the "fruit sock" thing. She used to eat so well for us and now it is getting tough. She won't eat meat unless it is a chicken finger (lol). My doctor told me to just keep making the veggies and offering them and one day she will surprise me and eat it but I don't know about that.

We also had to switch back to Alsoy formula (stage 2) because she started to throw up when we gave her milk. Could be that we had to cut it 1/2 and 1/2 with 18*% cream (she has a weight gain issue due to a heart condition).

I am hoping that we get through this stage soon. As my mother keeps telling me "This too shall pass".

Clara - posted on 04/12/2010

My daughter loves her Mac & Cheese, vieannas, egg, bread, we alos struggle with veggies and fruit, but I use follow up formula so we are not too worried.

Corynn - posted on 04/10/2010

I don't have any advice on this but I struggle with the same thing. If its a carb with the exception of pasta he will eat it. My son also looks nice and healthy his dr. just says to not give up on trying other things. I can get him to eat nutri-grain bars for some fruit. I have also gotten V8 splash juice and give him that watered down for some fruit and veggies too.

Adena - posted on 04/08/2010

I have the same problem but my son will only eat bacon and bread....Now i have tried ravioli and spagetti O's at times he will eat and at other times he only wants his bacon...i know its not healthy so i give him turkey bacon

Cathy - posted on 04/08/2010

I sneak veggies in all sorts of things especially mac n cheese which I swear that is all my dauther would eat if I let her. Kids this age become very picky. We also give her a multivitamin in her morning cereal to help make sure she gets all of the nutrients she needs. We try not to fight over food as that makes it worse. We are slowly acquiring a list of things she likes and our doc said if that is what she wants give it to her. We are lucky as my daughter has zero sweet tooth so she doesn't really like cake, or cookies etc. We just keep trying new things and taking cues from her.

Moni - posted on 04/08/2010

I suggest trying some recipes from the book Deceptively Delicious. Every recipe has a veggie "hidden" in it, helps me get veggies in my kiddo! Mine would eat nothing but fruit if I let her :) Just keep offering different foods. Something will be appealing eventuallly!