2 year old fussy eater

[mel191187]

Hi all I am really having problems getting my 2 year to try different foods. He won't eat any fruit or veg but loves all the things he shouldn't have. He has always been a good eater but recently he's gone right off all the food he used to eat. Anyone going through the same or has any advice. Thanks

I have the same problem. But at least he will eat brussels sprouts. Have you tried them? Like meatballs--only a veg! :) There are a couple of cookbooks out there about "stealth cooking", ie. making things with veg that don't look like it.

Try soups too. For some reason, my DS loves soup. Have you tried Chinese stuff? Fried rice (you can put more egg in), noodles, bok choy. Kids like these things. What about sushi? Also finger food-y.

This happens with most kids - especially at this age.
The worst thing you can do is make a fuss about it - which will make things worse!
Apart from not giving him sweets before meals - let him eat what he likes.
As long as he's eating enough and not losing weight - it doesn't matter if he
won't try different foods.
This is just a 'phase he's going through - it won't last forever - stop worrying!
Most of my kids and grandkids went through this stage - without coming to any harm!

He likes noodles but not too keen on rice. He hates Brussel sprouts aswell. We are trying to make dinner time fun for him and not paying too much attention to him to encourage him to eat. But he will always eat the plain stuff on his plate and leave the veg.

Have you tried raw veg vs. cooked? Sometimes it's all about texture. Like I said, you can try "stealth" recipes. You can even make popsicles that have carrot juice and carrot shavings in them, mixed with fruit juice. Soups are great because you can get all kinds of stuff into them and they don't notice.

Like advocate says, try to keep him off snacks before meals so he's hungry at mealtime. That's the main thing. This is hard, I know. My DS goes into the cupboards looking for bags of chips or into his sisters' room looking for candy.

We have figured out certain times that he likes to eat, like 4:30 or 5 p.m. Early dinner. So if we catch him then, he will usually eat a few good things, maybe some broccoli or sushi.

Make fruits and veggies looks fun and yummy!!
Don't stick to only one recipe, my DD is in the same age and she loves new things. I would find her somethings and she would totally eat it and after a few days she won't even touch it anymore. But, she loves to try everything new, so I just bought her different things and serve it to her in a few scoop she gets full easily, and gets hungry fast.
You might also try, not giving him any and eating the fruits and veggies in front of him saying how delicious it is.. and its a sad thing that he's not eating it, DON'T give him any wait for him to ask. Just make sure you are showing him how delicious the fruits/veggies and its a shame he can't taste it, for sure he will ask for it.
You might also try, eating the fruits/veggies in a different way.. for example in watermelon it is usually eaten after it is sliced but have you tried only slicing it in half then using spoon to eat it?
Stay away from Junk foods :D Hope this helps!

My DD is 2 in three weeks, she's a fussy eater but goes through phases of being quite amenable and then all of a sudden won't eat anything but cream cheese sandwiches. One thing I wondered - do you all sit down and eat together often? We used to have lunch together at the weekend and when we're at home with her (she's in nursery 2 days) but in Jan we started eating together at 6pm most nights and I think it's made a huge difference - the fussy phases have tended to be shorter. I try to make sure there's something she'll eat, even if it's only bread. Veg-wise she eats carrots, corn, cucumber, olives and avocado and small pieces of pepper chopped in something (eg fried rice) and nothing else. Our main issue is meat though - fish fingers, chicken curry, bolognese and sausages are about it. But who cares? She eats plenty generally and she tolerates things on her plate that she won't eat. She will sometimes now lick a tomato and has chewed on a courgette a couple of times before spitting it out but she wouldn't try before we ate together. This weekend she has eaten Cajun salmon with couscous with onions and peppers in, and risotto with tomato and chicken. A few weeks back she'd eat nothing but the cream cheese sarnies, and plain pasta with grated cheese.

When she was little her eating really stressed me out - it's got much better since I stopped caring and usually she at least eats fairly happily if there is bread, pasta, rice or carrots on her plate, even if she ignores everything else.

Hi yeah we eat together every night. He just won't try anything new he's always been a really good eater but just all of a sudden he got really fussy. I've got him some multivitamins now so at least hes getting the vitamins he needs and we will just keep trying him with new things