Eating habits of a 2.6yr old

[AmyLou32]

This is probably common, and I have tried to
Ignore it as best as I can for the last year, but my DD is a terrible eater and I don't know how to approach this anymore, it's bringing me down!

Weaning until the age of 1 went very well and DD tried and ate everything. Since then it's been very hit and miss and only getting worse of late.

She is good at breakfast and enjoys a few different cereals, but any meal after that, is an awful experience! She will rarely (once a fortnight perhaps) eat the meals that I put out for her, some of the time I give in and give her want she wants, normally peanut butter on toast, or just don't bother with the meal as I know I'll end up throwing it away! I give her what she wants sometimes, because obviously I feel that she is better off eating something rather than nothing! But I am really so upset as her diet is so limited and she won't attempt any new food!

Where do I go from here??? Do I give her what she wants because she is hungry and hope this is a phase, or should I be persisting and offering her only the meal, and under no circumstances should she have anything else if she doesn't eat it?? Even if it seems like she is desperately hungry!

Help - thanks x

I had DD2 who would not eat until the age of 20 months. I sent her to a nursery for 3 mornings a week and she stayed for lunch. Eating with others began to show her that she needed to do this too. However I do realise this is a very expensive option. I think the wisdom on this is to keep trying different foods and I ended up crying with frustration as my DD ate nothing! She did have milk though. Would she respond to being grown up and eating with adults? How about going to a cafe for a treat where they serve something different? Invite friends with children round for tea and serve a choice of food but no peanut butter. Obviously her diet, if it continues, could lead to her getting fat so you must keep going with trying to get healthier food into her. Good luck

Having had two VERY picky eaters, I can really sympathise with your problem. Unfortunately, I don't have a sure-fire solution. With my DD, nothing I did worked and it became a bit of an issue between us. Eventually I realised I was making her worse so I made a serious effort to relax and "let it be". She is still quite conservative about trying new foods, but she does eat a reasonable variety and I try not to worry :-) My DS (3 years younger) was just as picky, but I was generally less tense so it wasn't as bad. What I do now is prepare a meal for everyone and, if one of the children doesn't like/won't taste it, then they can have a bland alternative (like bread and cheese). I don't tell them off or make a big deal of it. And I try not to worry! Hope this helps.

Just put the meal out, all eat together and don't make a fuss. If they don't eat it, take it away and never offer anything else. I've written this so many times.

Thanks for the replies, Idis, is this something you have done with your DCs and it has worked? Just wondering with tantrums at an all time high, and my concern about her not eating at all, how long is she likely to go without eating, and if she doesn't eat, what other negative effects could it have?
Thanks

I have a fairly fussy 2 year old. I must admit that I tend to give in, and so a very high proportion if his daily food intake comes in the form of complesx carbs - bread, pasta and the like (which he likes). I put teeny portions of veg on his plate, and he gets a big clap if he eats even a bit (he likes the clapping a lot, so this does work for him, although it goes against the general advice to ignore and not make a fuss). If he is hungry between meals because he has eaten badly, I give him fruit.

I'm quite relaxed about it as my 5 year old was even fussier at this age, and is fine now. He has school lunch every day (no choices, just what is out in front of him), and I am always amazed at what he tells me he has eaten (we don't live in the UK and there are lots of fairly exotic local dishes on the menu that he seems very happy to have). He has never once refused what he has been given for lunch at school.

There's a thread on this from last day or so in Chat (and probably more under Feed the World... Some good suggestions on them and you are definitely not alone! Mine seems to eat foods that are only white with the odd pea, baked bean or sweetcorn to brighten the mix. Cakes, biscuits, jam...ate carrot muffins (with jam) so small victory there!
Hang in rhere, try try try not to show that it bothers you, and maybe give multi vitamin drops for a while.

My dd is also 2.6 and can be a picky eater... But has got a lot better recently. I give her a choice for lunch, and if she asks for peanut butter on toast at lunchtime that's a pretty nutritious choice, I'll give it to her with some fruit/tomatoes etc on the side. At dinner I make sure there's at least one part of the meal I know she's likely to eat if she's hungry, and try not to stress if she doesn't eat. If we've got 2 options for dinner and it makes no difference I'll often ask which she'd prefer too.

DS is 2.6 and is also a picky eater - but he won't starve himself! If no other food is offered then he'll eat.

And he never turns down food at nursery, just with me, because he knows I'm a soft touch.

I've no sympathy for him saying he doesn't like my (perfectly decent) food - he'll eat it or go hungry. And sometimes, he is actually quite happy not to eat - will not have supper at 6pm, will have his usual bottle at 7.30pm, and sleep through. He'll then have a big breakfast.

BTW I say all the above in the context of having an incredibly robust, energetic and tall DS, so can understand that my blase attitude might be unusual - it's obvious not having supper isn't going to kill DS.