16mth DS refuses all fruit, yoghurt, rice pudding & custard-ideas please!

[airhostess]

Hi,
My lovely DS has always been a dream when it comes to eating his food & desert. Over the last 2 months he won't eat any of the above and as of last week refuses weetabix mixed with banana and milk for breakfast. He has no milk other than in cooking. He refused milk at 6 mths! He doesn't like wet textures so all his fruit had to be grated intone above too. Should I be overly concerned or not?

Kind regards

[crackcrackcrak]

I'm confused. Arecyouvworried about dairy intake?

[SarahJessicaFarter]

My DD went through this. I bought a pampered chef knife, some child size cooking bits and involved her in the prep process. Anything she makes or chooses she eats. Do you eat together as a family?

[airhostess]

I'm not concerned about his milk intake just liked the thought of him having cereal with the banana. Three good things in one. My little one is only 16 months and won't hold anything that wet so cooking is a def no go at the moment. I'm not too concerned about that either yet....
What I would like is advice on how I can get fruit in him?

[crackcrackcrak]

Mixed up weetabix? Euw. Sorry

Just keep offering I guess. Toddlers are v choosy by nature but they do like things they can handle independently. Have you tried small things like blueberries/raspberries etc? Cherry tomatoes and tomberries were a hit with dd. she also loves tinned fruit but yours may not with the wet thing. Toddler are faddy and go through phases it may all change soon.

[airhostess]

He loved it! Lo

[mycatlikestwiglets]

My DS started refusing most healthy food around the same age; he's now 22mo and hasn't improved much! To get fruit into him I buy the smoothie pouches (Ella, HIP, C&G, Goodies etc.) - he loves slurping those up and they each contain one of his 5 a day. He also loves raisins. If you have a look around there are lots of products out there now which are 100% fruit, but don't look like fruit. Sneaky is the way forward!

[poozlepants]

Ds is 4 and he started this fussiness around 18 months. He still won't eat custard, rice or yoghurt or cereal with milk. For some reason milky pudding type things make him retch - which is pleasant. So he gets cereal without milk, eats grapes and apples. Before that I used those fruit pouches and gave him lots of apple juice to drink (otherwise he became constipated). He will drink milk now but he went through a phase of not so he got lots of cheese sandwiches or cheese on his pasta as his calcium intake. I would also do that thing where you put lots of vegetables whizzed up in a spaghetti bolognese sauce and they wouldn't notice.

[diyqueen]

Will he eat fruit whole, like apples or pears? Dd likes eating soft fruit in chunks off a fork as well rather than picking up with fingers, if you haven't tried that. Have you tried cereals that are less mushy, like raisin wheats or Cheerios etc? Dd's changed preferences loads of times but as long as she's getting a balance of food groups somehow I'm not worried what form it's in.

[BertieBotts]

I wouldn't worry about it. If he eats vegetables then he'll get what he can get from fruit in those, and less sugar!

IME as well food fads that happen between 1 and 3 vary wildly and he'll probably refuse or love totally different things in 6 months or so.

[HappyJoyful]

I'm with the poster who says about the whole fruit ? strawberries, blueberries..
DD at 22mo has totally gone off weetabix. Sometimes they just go through fussy stages.
Also with the suggestion about the pouches - she'll happily slurp them, yogurt ones and fruit ones.

[forevergreek]

Are you still mixing everything up baby style?

Maybe he just wants regular food? So cereal/ porridge, a piece of banana/ beaker of milk?

Whole fruits instead of purée?

[crackcrackcrak]

16 months is old for purée? I didn't mush anything so who knows but if it were me I'd just keep dumping things on the high chair and hood for the best

[airhostess]

Thanks for your suggestions. He eats meat, fish, veg & potatoes all with a spoon ( I load, he feeds himself) He won't eat fruit at all in any shape or form. I pop them on his tray, he touches them picks them up looking disgusted and throws them over the side! He's done this since introducing food. I've always grated or mushed fruit into his yoghurt etc. but now completely freaks out at the sight of it. I've tried different bowls etc!

Will look down the baby food aisle now I've fallen off my high & mighty "my child eats everything homemade" soapbox!

[forevergreek]

I would just cook salt free/ low salt food for yourselves and dish him up a bit of whatever. That's what we do :)

So even if we eat later they will eat why we ate tonight, tomorrow for lunch for example. 17 month here. Doesn't like chunks of cheese but hoovered up chicken tikka this eve!

[forevergreek]

We also just give plate/ food and spoon/ fork and let him get on with it. Would he eat more if your not loading every spoon/ feeding him? I just know lo hates being fed here and always had ( had waiter in Venice in awe at 10 months eating spaghetti like a pro!)

Try eating together and leaving him to it casually so a fuss isn't made