Everyone tells me "she'll eat when she gets hungry" but,,,,,,

[joy2bmom]

I'm not sure i'm convinced of this She gets plenty to drink but she doesn't hardly eat anything, for the last 2 days here's what my 2.5 yr. old has had to eat: 2 crackers (saltines), about 3spoonfulls of applesauce, several m&m's, 2 fries and a couple pretzels. Does that sound like enough for 2days? I'm not too picky about what she eats right now cuz she doesn't eat much so if she'd eat a whole order of fries at McD's i'd be ok with that (even though we never go there ) She WON'T try anything new, if she's never seen it before it wont go near her mouth. She used to eat real good(15months) she ate spinach, broccoli, pea's, lots of veggies, i tried to start her out with the good foods so,,,,,,,What Happened!

[Mere]

Well, that is definitely not a lot of food! My ds is pretty picky, and certainly has gone through days where he doesn't eat much. I just make sure that what's available for him to eat is somewhat nutritious. Even if he refuses food, one that often works is for me, dh or dd to eat something and then he'll want it. Sometimes too I won't even ask him, I'll just hand him a smoothie (that I have greatly fortified with greens and other goodies). Another strategy is to just set something out on the table that I think he *might* like and wait for him to discover it (and not say a thing about it).

I really think your dd will eat, eventually. One thing though, are you giving her juice to drink? if so, that could be filling her up too much.

[joy2bmom]

no juice here She drinks water, iced green tea(without sugar) and raw cows milk.
I sure hope ur right that she'll eat eventually cuz this is driving me crazy with worry
Thank You

[attachedmamaof3]

My oldest (who is now 9 yrs old, so he did somehow survive this) went TWO MONTHS no exaggeration TWO MONTHS on chocolate pudding alone. Seriously. Well, and breastmilk, I forgot that...so breastmilk and chocolate pudding for TWO MONTHS. My DR. just kept telling me to keep healthy choices in the house for him and that he would eventually eat normally again.

DP and I were frantic. Nope. Then one day he just started eating regular food, it was the weirdest thing!!

So, my point is, she will get over it in her own time...I think we made his phase longer because I kept pushing him to eat...and I think it kind of became a power struggle of sorts.

[dubfam]

Is the Green Tea Caffeine Free? Because I know that caffeine is a appetite suppressant, not to mention, toddlers and caffeine...:

My DS is a really selective eater. He is 4 and it started at 2. It is mostly texture for him. He wont touch anything green, either, and there is not one veggie that he likes. he wont even eat carrots or cucumbers! When he was a babe he would eat anything. He was raised on a mostly vegan diet until he was 2.

So I know how it feels. I really don;t think they will starve themselves. But I have certainly spent a fair amount of time worrying about it.

I wish I had more advice, but I don't. Only sympathy!

Just keep trying!! And don't worry too much!

[mamabike]

My 4 year old ds and 2 yr old dd are both very picky eaters. Both are in the 75th percentile for height and the 10th percentile for weight. I know how worrying it is to have a child who isn't eating well!

We coaxed my son to eat veggies by buying a juicer and making fruit/veggie juices. We started with juices that were mostly apple and a little carrot and then, over a few months, increased the concentration of the veggie part and put in less fruit. Once he got used to the taste of the veggie in the juice he was able to transition to eating the real thing.

We allow books at the table for ds supper. When he is reluctant to eat, we bring out a book. Then, we read a page and he takes a bite...we read a page and he takes a bite.... I know some people would not approve of this but sometimes you do what you have to. My son does not seem to have normal appetite cues. He almost never asks for food or complains of being hungry.

The more attention I give to the food refusal behaviour and the more pressure I put on my kids to eat - the less they actually consume. It is so hard sometimes, but I have to act like I don't care whether they eat much or not.

Picnics or eating while going for a walk in the stroller sometimes works too.

The book "Just Take a Bite" was helpful too.

Hang in there. It will get better.

[Rivka5]

I felt really smug when my daughter was around 12-20 months, because she ate a huge variety of vegetables and other healthy foods. Now she's 25 months, and her diet has narrowed considerably. It seems sometimes as if her goal is a 100% brown-and-white diet: Annie's mac, bread and butter, bagels and cream cheese, milk, crackers, Cheerios.

I am trying to stay completely hands-off with her food intake. I have really had to learn - and there is research that backs this up - that the more you try to nag a toddler to eat, the less they eat. I am trying HARD not to comment on what she eats, ask her to eat more, pressure her to "just try" something, or judge whether she's eaten "enough." Instead, I try to just serve food and let her take what she wants.

I do limit juice (she can have 4oz a day, mixed with an equal amount of water) and would consider limiting milk if she started drinking more than 24oz a day. You say that your daughter gets "plenty to drink" - what is she drinking? Is it possible that she might eat more if she fills up less on fluids?

Offering a snack tray has worked extremely well for us. Every morning, I fill a muffin tin that has 6 jumbo-sized cups with 6 different foods. Any time we're in the house playing, the snack tray is on the floor or couch or kid-sized table, for easily accessible snacking. She eats *so* much more, and I am freed up from a lot of the frustration that comes from fetching her snacks that she doesn't eat.

Examples of foods we put on the snack tray:
Homemade, whole-grain, banana-raisin muffins
Baby carrots
Yellow or red bell pepper
Cucumber spears
Grapes
Mango slices
Canteloupe
Strawberries
Whole-grain crackers (different kinds)
Crackers with sun butter or peanut butter
"Veggie booty"
Cheese cubes
Pretzels
Raisins
Banana chips
Dry cereal

I would guess that about 75% of her vitamin A & C intake comes from fruits and veggies eaten off the snack tray.

Another thing that works for us is offering frozen veggies straight from the freezer. (Usually Cascadian Farms organic veggies.) She'll eat sweet potato fries, corn, peas, green beans that way.

[RiverSky]

Originally Posted by dubfam

Is the Green Tea Caffeine Free? Because I know that caffeine is a appetite suppressant, not to mention, toddlers and caffeine...

This was my first thought. I've never heard of anyone giving iced tea to a toddler.

Have you tried things like cantaloupe, bananas, yogurt, crackers & cheese? You could try making snack trays (say in ice cube trays), food decorated in fun ways, etc., and just offering them frequently, like at least three times a day.

ETA: I notice someone beat me to the snack tray idea...

[joy2bmom]

Thanks so much for all the support here!
I do give dd caffeine free tea, and you may be right about getting too much to drink, she drinks alot, if it was her choice she'd drink instead of eatting.

[*Aimee*]

I've given my son cold tea since he was 6 months old. But I'd recommend switching to an herbal tea, most decaffination processes are yucky and chemical filled. I hope she starts eating more for you soon. Does she seem okay? like, not sick or grumpy or anything? I know sometimes my son is too busy doing important things to worry about eating.

[~Megan~]

Is she nursing too? Do you think she doesn't want to eat or has a physical problem or pychological problem?

Is this a normal amount for her when she isn't sick?

[JBaxter]

How about smoothies? Nathan did the I dont want to eat for a while and I did find he liked to help me make smoothies. Organic yogurt, fruit of his choosing a little juce of his choosing and a scoop of icecream. I also added a few spinach leaves. He got to turn on the blender.

[joy2bmom]

[QUOTE=*Aimee*;8209081] Does she seem okay? like, not sick or grumpy or anything? QUOTE]
she does seem okay, she has a bundle of energy

Originally Posted by ~Megan~

Is this a normal amount for her when she isn't sick?

This is a normal amount for her unfortunately she's not still breastfed, i think i'd feel better about this whole thing if she was still breastfed

Originally Posted by JBaxter

How about smoothies? Nathan did the I dont want to eat for a while and I did find he liked to help me make smoothies. Organic yogurt, fruit of his choosing a little juce of his choosing and a scoop of icecream. I also added a few spinach leaves. He got to turn on the blender.

Smoothies sound good and that sounds fun for her too, i'll try that

[RainCoastMama]

Our first DD was a nightmare eater. We used pure trickery, namely:

smoothies
soups
cheese, cheese on everything

Good luck - it *will* get better (I didn't believe when people said that either)

[Legato_bluesummers]

My Little Bit of Input -

I know when I was 4 and still to my age now of 20, I only eat like one meal a day. My parents thought it was a phase that I was going through when I was 4. But then months and months went by and they realized it wasn't. I always told them that I would eat when I am hungry. That was because when they tried to get me to eat, I wouldn't. I don't eat when I am not hungry. Still now, my dw worries about my eating habbit all the time. But I tell her the same thing, that I will eat when I am hungry. The variety of foods that I ate and still eat is extensive though. So I get a lot of nutrients and vitamins. But still ate one meal a day.

I wouldn't worry about it too much really. I have been like that for years. The best thing about it is that I have only been sick 5 times my whole life. Never had a cavity. I am really healthy. *from docs point of view* But that is just me. Everybody is different.

I wish you luck though.

[FoxintheSnow]

DS is the same way. He would drink all day and never eat if it were up to him. I leave things like dry cereal out or carrot sticks and he'll graze on them without thinking. I also juice lots of things to get veggies into him. He's a hugely picky eater, but he loves sushi of all things. Ive noticed that ds is much much more likely to eat at restaurants. Have you noticed that at all?

[Bethkm]

I can totally relate as my 4.5 yr old is extremely picky and I've always put a certain amount of blame on myself for this. I'm starting solids with the baby and I was talking about this whole picky eater thing with my LC friend. She reminded me that DS (the picky one) didn't nurse for 36 hours after he was born. She just commented taht he came out of the womb unexcited about eating and he may never get taht excited about food. I thought it was an interesting connection and it helped me relax a bit.

I agree with others who say offer healthy choices and go from there. I'm still in the middle of it so no other great advice. DS would eat sleeves and sleeves of saltines if I let him!

[joy2bmom]

Originally Posted by Jokerama

. Ive noticed that ds is much much more likely to eat at restaurants. Have you noticed that at all?

Oh yea, we will go to a local mexican restaurant and she will eat alot of their chips and dip but she wont eat any other food there.

[jillmamma]

My DD is getting more and more picky lately too. She loves rice and cheese though, so I have found I can sneak some veggies in if I add them to her rice and put cheese on top.

[NiteNicole]

I have noticed my toddler MUST eat anything she thinks is mine. Anything. I think if I ate dirt, she'd insist on having at least half. This may be something you've already tried, but have you tried just eating in front of her and see if she's interested in your food?