Sudden dramatic appetite change in 21 mo old - no signs of being sick

[naturalmummy]

I am getting really stressed here, going on night #4 where DS is refusing to eat ANY dinner. He is a normally excellent eater with a strong appetite almost all the time. As an eg, for breakfast he regularly eats 2 bowls of oatmeal, almond butter and some fruit plus sometimes a smoothie, or 3-5 eggs with toast and fruit. For dinner if I put a piece of salmon, some veggies and grains in front of him, he would dive right in and sometimes ask for more.

For the past 4 days he hasn't been finishing breakfast, will barely eat lunch and won't touch dinner. Last night he did eat a banana and a little oatmeal, but that's all he would eat. I am so worried something could be wrong, but he really has no other signs of being sick...no fever, cold and is otherwise acting normal!

He isn't nursing anymore since my milk dried up about 5 months ago (I'm 30 weeks pg). So I am even more stressed that he's not getting enough nutrients. I know it's only been 4 days, but it's clearly a pattern. DH and I are going away this weekend and leaving him for the longest we ever have with grandparents and I am super stressed that he won't eat enough.

Is this normal? I have friends with kids who don't eat well but they have generally been like that all along. Most of them are still normal size. My DS is average to above ave size (90% in height, 60 in weight)...but what if he starts losing weight. I am always so concious about making sure he eats enough very healthy food, but I am feeling helpless. I've also let him lead most everything other than when i really want him to try something new that I know he'll like, i tend to coax more, but he ends up enjoying.

Any advice or thoughts on what else could be going on???

THANKS

[treeoflife3]

Has any major change occurred in his life?  My 2 year old refused to eat hardly anything for a couple of months when daddy deployed.  She would eat for other people if I wasn't around (for instance, a huge for her breakfast when my grandma visited and let me sleep in) but if I was around, especially if I was the only one around... she just wouldn't eat.  We just took a two month trip up with family at stayed at my mom's house and since then she's finally started eating again.  Not much, but more normal for her age... no more going to bed with her tummy growling!

[naturalmummy]

All I can think of is that I have been telling him that mommy & daddy are going to the beach for the weekend and he will be with Nana, etc...trying to prepare him. Plus he "knows" he has a little sister coming along, but he has been aware of that for months. (Still not exactly how much he gets it, but he does talk about it a lot and kisses my belly and "shares" with his sister..)

But no real major change yet...

[emm09]

Are his 2 yr molars in the process of coming in?  DD always goes off solids for a while right before a tooth is about to erupt. 

[naturalmummy]

He has never seemed to be too affected by teeth coming in, esp the 1 year molars which surprised me, but that could be it. Though he doesn't complain of his mouth hurting and he'll let me stick my fingers in there to check.

It seems most strange to me that it's mainly dinner he totally will not touch.

[treeoflife3]

you know, I didn't even think off the molars.my kiddos are trying to come in and for awhile, it was horrible... and mostly in the evenings around dinner time or after actually.  It was obvious though that it was her mouth because she was aggressively chewing on her fingers when she was particularly fussy and refusing to eat.  She had never had teething issues either... I was amazed at how easy teething was.  Some fussiness, sure, because she usually had 2-4 coming in at the same time but that fussiness could have been other things too.  the 2 year molars have been WAY worse than all the other teeth combined... and they still aren't in yet!

[naturalmummy]

I'm hoping that is it. I keep asking him if his teeth/mouth hurt, and he isn't complaining...but that could be it. I would love an explanation! Off to try dinner #5 and hoping for not total rejection. Thanks!

[RootsAlive]

I am the mother of 3 kids (13, 10 and 19 months) and I have found that sometimes, they just don't want to eat. It can go along with growth spurts- eating more while they're growing, and not needing so much when they've reached a plateau. I get the impression that your DS is young, maybe the amazing growth rate of the baby/toddler stage is starting to slow down a wee bit, or if he's cutting teeth, then his appetite may not be at all it's norm. Try not to worry, it will pick back up again. And if for some reason it doesn't, take him to his PED for a check up, just to make sure everything is okay (but mostly just so you'll feel better about it ; ) ) One thing I've found, is that kids are really amazing at knowing what their bodies need. Maybe he just isn't needing very much right now. As long as he's having some intake, and the foods are high quality, try to rest your mind a bit. Blessings.