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Help, 20 month old DD won't eat!

138 replies

Blatherskite · 07/08/2011 18:03

I had it easy with DS. He ate pretty much anything from the start and with the exception of obvious cheese (ie not melted in/on something) ,raw tomatoes and curry, he still will now at 4.5

20 month old DD is a whole different matter and I have no idea what to do.

She eats breakfast well, in fact the first thing she does when we get downstairs in the mornings is to stand at her high chair and call to be lifted in. She will then happily devour between 1 and 2 weetabix normally so she is obviously hungry. From then on it gets harder.

She won't eat sandwiches or soup or quiche or any of the usual lunchtime things, she turns her nose up at salad and dip. If I give her something she does like - today we had noodles and spring rolls - she'll eat a very little bit then stop. Same with dinner. She will eat pasta with a tomato-y/bolognese sauce, beans or pretty much anything 'Little Dish' make but apart from that, she just pashes it away and refuses Sad She used to love baked potatoes with cheese and beans but even that got pushed away yesterday, her previous favourite of quesadillas got refused last week too - she's getting worse and I'm panicing.

She must be hungry because when I call "dinner" or "lunch" she comes running and stands next to her highchair ready to be lifted in but then she'll take one look and turn her nose up. She must be hungry as she's only eating breakfast everyday!

Today I made plain, pan-fried haddock, boiled new potatoes, brocolli, asparagus and some purple cauliflower - all reasonably bland and easy to eat. I even gave her a blob of ketchup to help it go down but bar dipping her fork in the ketchup a few times she ate nothing. Then comes to argument between me and DH - I think she's too little to understand that she must eat her dinner to get a yogurt for dessert (although we do say this to her - repeatedly) and he thinks she's just waiting for the yogurt and shouldn't get anything if she won't eat her meal. The latter is how we work it for DS but he's almost 3 years older and so has more understanding of consequences. He thinks the yogurt fills her up just enough so that's all she wants. We refused her the yogurt today and let her down from the table but then she just cried as DS got his yogurt because he'd eaten everything on his plate and she wanted one too. I have tried giving other 'desserts' but she won't eat fruit either. She's eaten it in the past but very, very rarely, that usually gets pushed away too. On the odd occasion she does eat, there are lots of smiles and "Good girl"'s. If she's not eating, I usually leave her to it while I eat my food and then try to spoon feed her myself when I'm done - although this never works.

DD is also a very early riser (5.30am-6am) and I worry that not only is she too small to go without anything but that by not even giving her a yogurt, we risk her getting up even earlier because she is hungry. Beditme is about 7.30-8pm for both children.

All this is compounded for me by the fact that DD has always been tiny. She stuck to the 0.2 centile line in her book all the way up to a year. She's still wears 9-12 month clothes (she's just beginning to fit a few 12-18 month bits) despite being a few days off 20 months old. I'm just worried that she hasn't got a lot of weight to loose. I'm also worried that she's not getting enough nutrients in her diet of weetabix and mid morning smoothies. She's still dirtying at least 1 nappy a day so something is getting through, I'm just not sure what.

I have no idea where I've gone wrong or what to do next. Please help Mumsnet.

Sorry for the long post, I just wanted to get as much as I could think of down at the beginning.

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backwardpossom · 16/08/2011 15:40

As awful as it sounds, I'm so glad to read this thread. DS was 2 a couple of weeks ago and eats almost exactly the same as your DD. Don't know what to suggest - you're doing exactly the same things I do and I'm not making any headway either. :( Good luck!

Blatherskite · 16/08/2011 15:50

Sorry to hear you're in the same boat possom. I'm just feeling so deflated after she ate for MIL and then turned back into a little madam for me Sad

She did eat quite a bit of scrambled egg for lunch today so that seems to be on the 'like' list again. Going to try baked potatoes with cheese and beans again for dinner as that used to be a favourite too but she's gone off it recently. Going to use the booster seat rather than the highchair again too as she seemed to eat better in that last night. Her chair is pushed right up to the table but maybe she still feels separate? She likes to be the same as DS wherever possible so perhaps it'll help?

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ConstantCraving · 16/08/2011 21:00

Hi again, mine is now off her beloved mashed potato as well as nearly everything else. I think she's teething again as she is covered in dribble most of the day with her fingers jammed in her mouth, so am hoping things'll improve when they are through - although i suspect its more to do with being able to say 'no' to what's offered. I'm trying to stay calm and relaxed about it (and failing). Blathers, DD is also in a highchair with the tray removed and pushed up to the table but i think i might try a booster too. Musicmaiden, try pasta and pesto - mine does love pesto (thank god) and will still wolf this down.

backwardpossom · 16/08/2011 21:06

Don't get your hopes up with the booster... sigh

ConstantCraving · 16/08/2011 21:25

On no - don't shatter my illusion that it will magically fix everything!

backwardpossom · 16/08/2011 21:28

Well, I suppose it might!

Wine
ConstantCraving · 16/08/2011 21:30

Beaten you to it - but I'll have another, cheers Wine Grin

Blatherskite · 17/08/2011 07:37

Baked potatoes - with beans and cheese - seem to be back on the menu and she ate in the highchair as I had to run off to the doctors as soon as DH got home last night and didn't have time to tell him the plan so he didn't know to try the booster. She had breakfast in the booster again this morning though and seemed to enjoy sitting next to DS to eat.

I just don't have the energy to deal with this right now, I just want her to eat.

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Timepasses · 17/08/2011 18:03

My ds, 18 months, has also become a fussy eater, he used to eat anything out in front of him, now he would happily live on toast and yoghurt.

I have been reading this thread with interest, there have been some great tips which I will be trying. Thanks

Galena · 17/08/2011 18:22

I've just made some Annabel Karmel broccoli and cheese 'baby bites' - basically cheese, broccoli and bread all chucked in the food processor, rolled into balls and then coated in breadcrumbs and fried. We'll see what she thinks!

Tortington · 17/08/2011 18:24

its bullshit, unless a child has a medical condition, the child will not starve itself. if the kid misses a meal and you dont give in to snacks and crying - i guarentee the kid will eat next meal.

all the rest is pandering and its powerplay and attention seeking - and boy does it work

Galena · 17/08/2011 19:22

Thanks for your input, Custardo. Duly noted that we are all pandering to the powerplay and attention seeking. And now, if you don't mind, we'll go back to giving each other support in the way we were doing.

(For what it's worth, DD eats pretty well, but she can go a couple of days surviving pretty much on nothing if we provide foods she doesn't 'like' and all that happens is that her behaviour becomes unbearable, her sleep becomes non existent and our quality of life plummets. Everybody becomes tense and edgy, particularly around mealtimes, which then compounds the problem. I'd prefer to find some rather gentler way of encouraging her to eat than withholding preferred foods indefinitely. And it's working - she's starting to eat carrot and peas. Yes, it's on her terms and small amounts, but she's doing it. Why should I get so stressy about a handful of peas and a broccoli floret that everyone suffers?)

Tortington · 17/08/2011 19:32

your welcome to my valid point of view

Blatherskite · 17/08/2011 20:18

I honestly thought the same Custy - until I had DD. We do "that's what's for Dinner and there is nothing else if it's not eaten". We did it with DS and it worked but it's different with DD. She will refuse food not just for 1 meal but for every meal of the day if necessary and like Galena says, the longer she refuses, the worse her behaviour and sleep get and the harder it is to cope with when you're tired too. Then you'll happen to be serving something she'll eat and she has a meal and then it all starts again.

I really don't feel like I pander to her. I serve her exactly what we're all having and if she doesn't eat it then there is nothing else. Doesn't stop me worrying that she is at the absolute bottom of her red book chart though. Recently it's been impossible to pander to her anyway as normal favourites are also being refused. I never make more than one meal that's for sure and there are no extra snacks.

It'll pass one day. There are only a few weirdos on those Freaky Eaters programs who manage to get to thier 20's eating nothing but Wotsits and oven Chips, but in the meantime, it's nice to have a bit of support from other people who are tearing thier hair out at their toddlers fussiness. If it were as simple as refusing them food until the next meal, I promise you we'd all have fixed it by now.

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ConstantCraving · 17/08/2011 20:24

Actually CUSTARDO if you read the thread you'll see there is no pandering, no unhealthy snacks and plenty of DC's NOT just eating the next meal because they've missed the one before. It's fairly normal for toddlers to go through this phase (and that's all it is) and equally normal for parents to seek advice and support - which is what this thread is for. But no, I choose not to send my baby (she's 22 months) to bed hungry and crying. If that's pandering to attention seeking, fine.

Galena · 17/08/2011 20:55

I never said your point of view wasn't valid. :)

However, you might have seen it was perhaps not terribly helpful if you'd read the whole thread...

I'm happy with my parenting choices. I'm also happy for other people to make different ones. I'm just sharing my experiences with people who seem to be having similar ones.

Tortington · 17/08/2011 22:47

me too

backwardpossom · 17/08/2011 22:58

Well ladies, that's the problem solved. Might as well close this thread now, MNHQ....

Hmm
Tortington · 17/08/2011 23:03

indeed

Tortington · 17/08/2011 23:07

or accept (as a poster has below) that actually your child will eat, but would like you to pander to them.

its a valid choice, it is however a recognition that other posters have not accepted.

my POV was another way - you don't like it, that is quite different.

perhaps the title shouldm't read 'oh no my ds won't eat' becuase that is an absolute misnoma. Perhaps it hould have read 'my ds will eat, but not what i would like them too'

this is quite different, as long as we all accept this

backwardpossom · 17/08/2011 23:09

Because the title was obviously meant to be taken literally.

Tortington · 18/08/2011 00:52

exactly

Blatherskite · 18/08/2011 07:35

Custy you know that title wasn't meant literally.

Yes maybe it should have read "My DD will eat, but not what I would like her to" but being as I do not pander to her this often means that she does not eat at all.

I puposefully didn't post this in AIBU because I am not looking for a fight, just support. All your posts are doing is upsetting parents that are trying their best.

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inmysparetime · 18/08/2011 08:22

My son was the same, bottom of the chart, ate dinner only when it was sausages (which I served once a week). I stuck to the serving what we all had and taking it away without comment, but it took 2 years until the situation improved. He got hungry when he started school.
A complication in my case was that DS has a milk allergy so Was under a dietician. I had to make a food diary for him, I looked back over it recently (he's 9 now) and it's not pretty. A typical day was 1 weetabix with carrot grated in soya formula milk, 20 raisins, a teaspoon of baked beans and a pea. Not at one sitting obviously, but I learned to make breakfast his nutritious meal of the day as he was clearly not a dinner person. He survived fine, he'll never be chunky or even tall, but OP you will get through it, it may take time though.

Blatherskite · 18/08/2011 20:59

So,

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