To just stop offering DD breakfast and lunch?

[turkishdeelitee]

Because she literally never eats breakfast, just point blank refuses. Also refuses lunch for five out of seven days a week. She does eat an OK dinner if it’s something she likes. I’m fed up and worried. She’s nearly 3.

So does she eat nothing from waking till teatime? Or do you offer milk and snacks. If milk and snacks, remove these.

Keep offering, but try to stick to food that can easily go back in the fridge for another time. It's annoying having to throw away good food.

Is her weight ok? Does she drink milk?

I’d start making more things that she likes, offer them in informal settings - on a tray, little bowls, in front of TV.

Personally I’d focus on calories and nutrition over table discipline or eating adult tastes such as broccoli etc

So she eats nothing ?

or you offer snacks ?

Stop the snacks and sure she will eat

Literally nothing. I don’t know how she does it.

Well I wouldn’t stop offering… Offer high calorie drinks like whole milk (arla growing up milk is good) and snacks like Babybels, crackers, yoghurts etc. Don’t make it formal I.e at the dinner table, just casually put them somewhere she can reach as she plays/watches TV and see what happens.

Obviously track calorie intake and if you notice her losing weight and energy, go see the GP.

What do you offer for breakfast?

I would seek professional help if she’s not eating from waking until teatime.

What are you offering at breakfast time?

The one thing you can't do is stop offering. But it must be so hard taking the time to prepare something and then to waste it. And the worry about her! This sounds really difficult.

What does she eat for dinner...is there a way to make some of those foods lunch or breakfast?

If she'd refused breakfast and lunch but you offered her something like chocolate or ice cream would she have those?

Does she have 'safe' foods?

Is she hyperactive?

Echo other posters. If there are certain things she likes, irrespective of whether it’s the sort of thing you’d eat at that time of day (say, I dunno, fishfingers for breakfast!) I’d offer them to her in a really low-key, no pressure sort of way.

When did this start? Was it after an illness? Did she used to eat a ‘normal’ diet? I assume you aren’t doing anything daft like giving milk through the night at this age? I would just make a small buffet type breakfast and lunch and leave in the middle of the table that you can both eat so nothing goes to waste and then just give her a little empty plate so she can choose some bits for her plate if she likes. I would avoid loading up a big plate of food for her as this could be too overwhelming for her. I think I’d be speaking to the G.P to rule out any other issues. If she used to eat and now doesn’t or if she’s never eaten, neither are normal behaviours so I would be looking into if there is something else going on. Also best to look at what they have eaten over a whole week rather than each day if you are concerned about her getting enough nutrients.

You’re very rude, OP. It’s pretty standard on a forum to ask a follow up question, but then also give advice on that assumption, because threads move on and questions aren’t answered etc. That poster was not being ignorant. You are the ignorant one who doesn’t understand forum etiquette.

My 13 year old DD has been like this since this age. When she was little she'd eat an Ella's mango puree.

Now she might eat a pancake or (bizarrely) mashed potato. She just doesn't get hungry till later in the day.

My sister was similar actually.

Perhaps some people just have very efficient metabolism?

Try not to stress and look at calorie intake over a week and if she's growing.

If you offered her something for breakfast that she'd happily eat at tea time what would happen?

But she didn’t ask a question - she ordered me to Stop the snacks and sure she will eat direct quote when there was nothing about snacks in my OP!

I actually think it’s far ruder to make stuff up but anyway!

Thanks for the advice. She’s always been quite a poor eater in terms of variety but would eat well and fairly healthily although restricted. So breakfast was typically boiled egg and toast (often wouldn’t eat it all but fine) lunch home made pizza or stir fry or beans on toast, then dinner roast chicken with potatoes and broccoli or home made chilli.

now she refuses breakfast every day. I do offer a healthy snack (banana usually) mid morning - she refuses that too. Lunch was just now refused apart from a mouse sized bite of chicken. I’m really stressed with it to be honest and trying not to be as that’s the worst you can do.

She also starts preschool soon and she won’t eat packed lunches!

Honestly don’t know. But she has eaten scrambled eggs on toast for dinner before but refused it at breakfast!

She didn’t order you to do anything! As PP said you come across as very rude

‘Stop the non existent snacks’ is an order, an instruction. It is far ruder to invent things someone hasn’t written. But I am not wasting any more time on this.

She did ask a question. It’s right there. She asked if you gave her snacks, then followed it with the comment to stop giving snacks. That’s a totally normal way to reply on a chat forum. If the answer is yes, then the the advice applies but if the answer is no then you can ignore it. No one has been rude except you, which is why you’re now not getting many responses.

I think it's madness that you'd consider not offering her food at all, she's not even 3.

If you know there are food she will always eat not matter what meal it is offer them. I'm presuming you've spoken to the health visitor or GP about her aversion to eating?

I thought this was going to be a teen. But no you let a 3 year old dictate meals to you?

I wouldn’t seriously not offer her food but the amount of waste as well as the stress involved means it’s tempting. I have tried not giving her a plate and just eating from mine to see if that tempts her; it doesn’t. I don’t know how she manages to go from waking to nearly half five some days with nothing but she does.

Have you heard of AFRID? It might be worth considering. Keep offering food even if she refuses.