My 2 1/2 year old son is really doing my head in, I cant get him to eat at all. He was never a gud eater but hes got to da stage of eating nothing jst drinking all da time. any suggestions plz?

Amber - posted on 03/12/2009

and another reply lol we also tried putting our son at the table with us and didn't fix him a plate, we just started eating ours and he would ask for food...just a few tips on what we did with our two year old...good luck...it's a challenge and very worrisome when your child wont eat nutritious food that he needs...it stressed me out to no end

Amber - posted on 03/12/2009

Quoting Carolyn:

I'll tell you what my mother and a doctor told me "Kids will not starve themselve they just go through phases where they don't want to eat". My son does it all the time eat barely anything for awhile then eats like pig for days. Just don't give him anything to drink for one hour before a meal so he is hungry. Juice, water or milk will fill up his stomach so he does not want to eat cause his brain signals that he is full and if he still does not eat after being offered food for aleast 1/2 hour then give him something to drink (toddler formual if your worried about nutrition). Unless he is sick (diarea, vomitting, the shakes or fever) I wouldn't worry about it to much children just like messing with their mothers mind lot and the bigger deal you make of it to them the more they do it.

i also agree with this...our pediatrician also told us that kids don't eat much in their second year of life and that it is completely normal

Amber - posted on 03/12/2009

i had the same problem with my son, and i stopped giving him juice when he asked for...i only gave it to him every 2 1/2 to 3 hours, and no liquids at dinner (especially milk because it's filling) until he finished his dinner

Trish - posted on 03/12/2009

well I'd try limiting his drinks to only what is neccesary and only give him extra drinks if he eats some food as well

Camilla - posted on 03/12/2009

Quoting Camilla:

hi rachel.
it's hard to help you since i never mett your son.
but i can tell you about my son (3 years).
he is not a great eater at all. but i have talked to his daycare and healthsenter...
he eat ok at one of the tree meals there. and the healtsenter sayd he is getting what he needs during a week or so( so it's "ok" he don't eat good every day).
since my son still follow his birth curve (is it what it's called in english?), that have always been under the "NORMAL", it's ok.
so if you son havent droped down from his curve it's should be ok..
but if you are consern like i was i would take him to the healthsenter too see...

 and i make sure he gets enough to drink and we have fruits that are cut up after dinner and he gets some in a bowl when he waches tv.      in norway we have barne-tv(child tv)  a half hour to 45 minutes per day.

he gets unsalted nutts(but before giving ur son make sure he isnt alergic) and some vegies in his lunch box next to his bread.

Camilla - posted on 03/12/2009

hi rachel.

it's hard to help you since i never mett your son.

but i can tell you about my son (3 years).

he is not a great eater at all. but i have talked to his daycare and healthsenter...

he eat ok at one of the tree meals there. and the healtsenter sayd he is getting what he needs during a week or so( so it's "ok" he don't eat good every day).

since my son still follow his birth curve (is it what it's called in english?), that have always been under the "NORMAL", it's ok.

so if you son havent droped down from his curve it's should be ok..

but if you are consern like i was i would take him to the healthsenter too see...

Gemma - posted on 03/12/2009

Hi im Gem, my son is 3 and goes off his food sometimes so dont worry your not alone. I took him to the doctors and was told to just ride it out hel eat when hes hungry if thats any help. I found the best way to get him to eat was to not stress about it coz kids pick up on it apparently and try to make meal times fun.Also I give Lewis vitamins to make up for part of what hes missin in his food xx

Rachel - posted on 03/12/2009

Hi there, I have had two children....one who was a fussy eater and the other who wasn't. With my fussy eater, we also had a period around 2yrs where he would stop eating. I got worried, but I was told not to worry, just so long as he was getting the right nutrients for his body,. We cut out all snacks, and only offered him choices of good food which he could choose from. otherwise he would go without. Everytime he asked for food, I would again offer a choice. Eventually he would choose. Also, I started to give multi vitamin tablets throughout this period so i didn't worry too much about his lack of nutrient. I knew he was getting what he needed. Juice and milk???Well, I would offer his favourite juice if he ate his fruit, or vege or whatever. I never madde him eat huge amounts, but rather praised even his smallest attempts of eating it and over a period of time he started to eat better

Missy - posted on 03/12/2009

Just before turning 2, my daughter got really picky with food and doesn't eat much.  She typically will eat good at lunch or dinner, but rarely both.  Some days I think the only caleries she gets are from cookies for going potty in her potty chair, milk, and juice.  Usually, if she has a day where she doesn't eat much, she eats more the next day.  I brought it up to my doctor, and she said that this is a normal phase for a 2 year old, and it it isn't changing behavior, it's probably ok.  Liana brings a good point - if your son is lacking energy, then I definately think it's more than just a stage.  If he seems like himself, try not to worry too much, and maybe try to get a monthly weight on him to make sure he isn't losing too much.  My daughter went through her picky stage for 2 months, and still weighed in the 99% - so even though she didn't gain much, she didn't lose much either.  Good luck - I know its frustrating.  Does he have a favorite food other than candy?  My standbys are grapes and hard salami - my daughter almost always eats them.

Liana - posted on 03/12/2009

Though I do agree kids do like to mess with their mothers heads and go through phases I don't agree with people saying kids wont starve themselves. I did as a child and so does my son if he doesn't get what he wants. My son starved himself for 3 days once and had so little energy he could barely move off the sette, it depends on the child all kids are different and some are just plain stubborn.

Carolyn - posted on 03/12/2009

I'll tell you what my mother and a doctor told me "Kids will not starve themselve they just go through phases where they don't want to eat". My son does it all the time eat barely anything for awhile then eats like pig for days. Just don't give him anything to drink for one hour before a meal so he is hungry. Juice, water or milk will fill up his stomach so he does not want to eat cause his brain signals that he is full and if he still does not eat after being offered food for aleast 1/2 hour then give him something to drink (toddler formual if your worried about nutrition). Unless he is sick (diarea, vomitting, the shakes or fever) I wouldn't worry about it to much children just like messing with their mothers mind lot and the bigger deal you make of it to them the more they do it.

Liana - posted on 03/11/2009

Hi take him to the Dr sounds like he needs a food therapist.  My son developed food phobias at 18 months after a bad case of gastro enteritus getting him to eat anything was a trial and at the time I had no idea food therapists existed or I'd have taken him to one. 

He's 5 and a half now and though he's a fussy eater he does eat but it is limited.  My stratergy has been to let him have what it is he wants and not fuss occaisionally adding a new thing for him try it can take a month or 2 of just seeing a food before it makes it's way to his mouth.  I've had to be patient and try to ignore it if he doesn't eat.  Making a big deal out of it is a sure fire way to make them dig their heals in.

However if your child is having no food at all he wll need some food supplements just to get the vitamins and minerals his body needs.  Don't take away his milk because he needs the protein and in his case the sugars in the juice may be whats keeping him going.  You can't force these things but you do need medical help as your sons case sounds quite extreme.

One ofthe other things we tried was a reward chart so my son would get a sticker if he ate something for breakfast another if he ate something at lunch and another ifhe ate something at dinner.  We also included things like tidyingup toys and making His bed in the morning as it hid our true agenda :)

Also in my research I found out that food is a control issue with kids how much they eat or don't eat is one of the few things they feel they can control so if they feel they aren't getting enough control in their lives they over eat or under eat. 

Try involving him in making meals asking what he would like to try give him 3 or 4 options if he can't think of anything.  Praise every mouthful and ignore any un touched food.  Try to give him a little more responsibilities to make him feel useful even if it is just wiping the table.  Kids like to feel grown up it makes them feel more relaxed and happy kids are more open to trying new things.  Just give him lots of praise for helping and tell him what a big boy he is.

I know this has been long but I hope some of this works for you it has for me and a lot of thing are trial and error all kids are different. 

I found the old fashioned ways of not letting them leave the table till they'd eaten and refusing snacks or shouting made things so much worse.  My parents were dead set against my way of doing things but even they will admit I've made a lot of progress with him more than they ever made with my sister who had similar problems and even as an adult she wont try new things or eat fruit or veg or even most dairy products I don't know how she survives.  I can get my son to have a balanced diet even if it is not a varried one. 

Rachel - posted on 03/11/2009

Quoting MrandMrs:

HOW OLD IS HE

He is 2 years nd 6 months...

MrandMrs - posted on 03/10/2009

HOW OLD IS HE

Rachel - posted on 03/10/2009

I've tried the water wit him and when he gets it he stops drinking aswell nd I cant let him do dat. He can eat its just dat he wont he'll tell me I dont want it or I dont need it...

MrandMrs - posted on 03/10/2009

HI RACHEL! JUST STOPPED BY TO SEE IF YOUR SON WAS EATING RIGHT YET. MY SUGGESTION IF HE'S NOT ~ I WOULD ONLY GIVE HIM WATER TO DRINK, RATHER THAN JUICE OR MILK.