my 1 year old still doesnt eat.......

[happytrappy]

hello
my 1 year old still doesnt really eat any food.
She refuses anything that is presented to her on a spoon, and always has, pureed, lumpy etc.
I offer her finger food but she just doesnt eat or at least never eats more than the equivalent of 1 teaspoon.
The only things she does occasionally eat are Organix cheese and herb puffs, salmon and a tiny amount of sausage.
I just wanted to know if there is anyone else out there who has had similar experiences as Im begining to wonder if she will ever eat (normally). (my other daughter eats really well and always has done)
I have been to see a doctor and a speech therapist who have said there is nothing physically wrong with her and suggested its down to her 'independent & strong minded character' and that she 'seems to be a girl who likes to do things her way and on her own terms'
Im still breastfeeding so at least I know she is getting something - but its starting to be very tiring.
any advice will be appreciated so thanks in advance

My ds goes through phases of this. He is 10 months old and is also dtermined to have things his own way! I think it may improve when they can use a spoon and feed themselves.

He can go for weeks and just refuse to eat off a spoon. He eats tiny amounts of finger foods and lots of milk. There is no point in forcing it and making her unhappy.

How are you when trying to feed her? Do you think you might be creating a stressful situation to eat in?
I don't mean that critically, but I know from my own experiences when my DS has been stubborn for several days in a row with food, that I start to get anxious, and irritable, and short..... and then erratic with how I deal with mealtimes... and then don't bother with cooking, cos I just think 'well, what's the point'.... but I soon catch myself, and problem goes away again eventually... (but then I am now firmly from the 'old school' approach of - you don't eat that, you don't get anything.... maybe 1yr old is a bit young for that though!)

I've found the best thing is to walk away, leave a few bits out, like a bowl with apple puree in it, a bowl with yoghurt, maybe a rice cake on the table, a stick of carrot, a mini quiche (eg), and something else, all looking colourful... and then perhaps a toy or two. Seem entirely uninterested or bothered, and let her play with it all and work it out, start to become interested, and also not feel that it is a battle of wills with her mum that she has to win at all costs.

But, that's just my first thoughts, and I am no psychologist, or doctor, and I am sure someone will come along in a minute with some far better ideas....

My one-week-to-one year old is just the same, odd bit here, mostly eats plain yogurt, beef(?) and mummy milk. Taking her camping for the weekend and watching her learn to crawl up a steep bank really put appetite in her. She ate her own weight in curry, porridge, fish, and anything going. Maybe I just need to keep her outside and moving 12 hours a day, easy! My older daughter, now 3 has always had a tiny appetite, even after weaned at 19 months, but seems to be growing fine.

And sometimes I just put the high chair at an angle to mine and pretty much ignore her, with some finger food, and sometimes she eats it while I'm carefully not looking. NOt often, mind, but it's all calories!

my DD2 would not accept food from a spoon after she was about eight months so I offered her finger food. She would only accept philadelphia on toast, cheese and apples. She wasn't gaining weight properly so at 13 months I stopped breastfeeding as I realised she was filling up on milk instead of getting calories from solid food. I dropped her pre-breakfast feed and then gave her baked beans and cheese on toast which she gradually accepted. The health visitor told me to give her treats to stimulate her appetite so I gave her ice cream, plain biscuits and croissants etc. Once she was eating breakfast I stopped breastfeeding which coincided with her starting to walk and her appetite increased further. She is eating fairly well now. We still have bad days when all she will eat are cubes of cheese and apples. I try to mitigate this by serving her favourite food (pasta)the following day to keep her appetite up. Sometimes even that doesn't work.
I try think about what she has eaten over a week rather than just for a day and I try not to hover over her while she eats. It's terribly worrying,I know, but believe me, you are not alone. Get the support of your GP/health visitor, get her weighed regularly and keep trying out different foods and different ways of eating. Mine loves dipping toast/ pitta/ chips/ carrot sticks in pots of houmous or boiled eggs. yours might like that too.

DS (15mo) has never been a great eater and went through a terrible stage around a year or so, which coincided with his molars coming through. He now eats a limited selection of around 7 or 8 meals which is just about enough to rotate on a weekly basis, anything new is generally refused so I don't stress myself by cooking up stuff I know he's unlikely to eat. Hopefully I'll be able to broaden his palate when he's a bit older.

Things that have helped me a bit are:

• Offering snacks during the day at regular intervals, then just having a cooked meal once a day in the evening.

• Finding one thing he never refuses (peas and sweetcorn) and serving it with every meal -- he will often refuse a mouthful of something but then accept it once a couple of peas are on the fork as well.

• Finding basic meals that he likes and doing slight variations on it. Eg he loves cauliflower cheese so I make it with a bit of broccoli/beans/other veg in as well. So if your DD likes salmon, will she eat salmon and peas, salmon fishcakes, salmon pasta?

• Not stressing (much easier said than done) and never trying to force him to eat something if he's not keen.

• Also giving him a fork, he much prefers eating off that, the only thing he will eat off a spoon now is fruit puree or yoghurt!

describes my dd exactly - now 13 months. Some days she eats a little - perhaps a few teaspoons over a whole day - and other days she eats much less or virtually nothing at all. She's still bf, though on days when I work and she doesn't have any milk all day she doesn't eat any more that on the days when she has several feeds. I think the main thing is whether she is gaining weight, however slowly, rather than losing it (their weight gain slows right down at 1 anyway) - as long as she's happy, healthy, lively and meeting her milestones there's not a lot to worry about. Take a look at 'My child won't eat' published by La Leche League, which I found very helpful and reassuring.

Oh, this sounds so like my eldest, who was the queen of picky eaters.

She drove us distracted when she was small, and when she went to school, at the beginning of every academic year without fail, we would get a letter from her teacher saying she wouldn't eat lunch, ever.

She's still very picky, but she has extended her repertoire over the years, until she now eats a healthy, if unadventurous, diet.

Don't let it become a big issue (I know it isn't easy when you're worried), never force food on her and try to find a few favourites she will accept. It does get better.

DS2 never liked the spoon because he wanted to eat alone. So I gave him his food in a glass/bottle when he was having soups or tiny pieces he could eat with his fingers or big pieces he could suck eg asparagus, slice of watermelon, ? And I was bf too.