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HELP - 17 month old hunger strike frightening me now

7 replies

muppet3 · 19/06/2008 12:08

DD has always been at the pickier end of baby eaters (eg never drank milk, so bf til she was 1 and then just fed her yoghurt), but has eaten a reasonable range of nice home-made food, plenty of fruit, bread, cheese, chicken etc. But as of a month ago she just stopped. She won't eat a 'main meal', ever. Not just occasionally - never. She will pick at fruit as snacks, but that's about it. Cheese, yoghurt, bread and meat have all gone out of the window. I don't bribe with snacks, I keep going with offering tasty savoury food - some for her to feed herself with a spoon, some as finger food so they're less frustrating. I've read every book I can and tried everything - different locations, utensils, with other toddler company, eating the same thing alongside her. Nothing works.

Now I'm beginning to get desperate. She was on the 25th centile until she was 12 months old, she had dropped to the 9th when the hunger strike started, now she's on the 4th and falling. My HV is a nightmare and holds clinics only when I am at work so the last thing I want to do is pitch up there to get DD weighed and get lectured.

Please can anyone help? Advice? Or just encouragement? Everyone else out there talks about hunger strikes, but what they actually mean is picky eating and stroppy attitudes from their toddler. I mean NOT eating at all except for maybe 3 or 4 mouthfuls of fruit in a whole day.

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Sarahellis · 19/06/2008 13:16

Hi

I am not sure how much help this will be for you but I understand what you are going through.
My Daughter did the same thing at that age.
Unfortunately for her she also has a condition which means she cannot eat any form of Dairy so her diet is based around Soy which is considered a Health Food.
I was pulling my hair out with worry as she to was loosing weight and had a couple of stomach bugs to add to the weight loss.
We are fortunate enough to be under a Dietician who regularly moniters her diet and weight and is able to answer any questions we had.
What she advised us to do was keep a diary of all the food she was offered and what she actually ate and then she reviewed it and gave us advice.
She told us to add things with extra calouries like a bit of butter or olive oil to my cooking so that what little we did get into her had more calouries in it. Also by writing down what she had eaten we realised that she was actually eating more than we thought (although not as much as I would like)
I would talk to your GP or child health nurse and get refered to a paediatric dietician they may be able to make more suggestions. From what I have read it is usually a phase they go through and the more stressed you get the more they pick up on it. I found that each mealtime became a battle of wills with me on the loosing side and miserable child. Now I try and keep calm and let her feed herself with as little supervision as poss. We all eat at the same time now aswell which is a pain to manage sometimes but is effective as she sits around the table with the adults and her baby sister and sees everyone else eating so joins in with the rest of us.
She has started to put on weight and actually asks for the food now which is such a relief.
I know how stressful it is trying to get them to eat. I think I started to go grey from the effort.
I hope some of this might help you. Even if its only to know that you are not alone.
Hang in there it will get better even if you cant see the light yet!!

Sarahellis · 19/06/2008 13:20

Oh I just thought of another thing I did.
I got her involved in the cooking.
Putting the chopped veg in the saucepan before cooking it, stiring a cake mixture, putting grated cheese in a bowl etc etc.
It got her interested and also got food into her on the way as a bit went into the bowl and a bit went into her mouth.....!
It dosn't happen overnight but I gradually got her through it.

luckylady74 · 19/06/2008 13:22

I would go to the gp straight away if she is honestly only eating a piece of fruit in a day. Take a record of a few days diet and don't move until she's had a thorough physical exam and been referred. Friend's children have only drunk milk for days, but that's got the calories they need - fruit hasn't.

ellideb · 19/06/2008 13:24

After watching that programme on TV the other night 'My child won't eat' or something like that, I'm inclined to change my views. The specialist at one of the clinics suggested just giving them exactly what they want to eat. If its chocolate biscuits and crisps then so be it. It removes the fuss and anxiety from eating completely. Children grow and thrive on remarkabley little food so I wouldn't worry about her getting the right nutrition. When she is ready to eat proper meals she will.

luckylady74 · 19/06/2008 17:33

Yes I'm all for give them what they want to eat, but a child would starve on one piece of food a day and slipping down the centiles after maintaining for 1st year is odd - this child is only young I assume.

TheHedgeWitch · 20/06/2008 11:40

This reply has been deleted

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brightongirldownunder · 20/06/2008 12:01

Agree with hedge, as I have a nightmare eater. I have binned the recipe books for toddlers as they made me so depressed. She would never eat any of that stuff. At 12 months I started from scratch. Purees, finger food including jaffa cakes, cheese sticks, breadsticks with houmous on the end (made it fun by calling it dipdips, now she has them all the time!), fish fingers with mayonnaise or salad cream, spaghetti with butter and pesto,nutella on toast, crisps with houmous or mayonnaise...basically some junk... and houmous!
Now, fingers crossed she's much better though she still has some days where grapes and breadsticks are the only thing on the menu.
Go to doc if you want to talk to someone, I wouldn't advise HV as you'll get unnecessary lecture (I always did).

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