14 month old barely eats

[EmmaLouise1982]

Hi all,
I wonder if anyone can give me some advice?
My little boy barely eats any solids/proper food some days and it's starting to worry me. Compared to other babies his age he seems to eat like a bird.
He's not especially underweight, a little under average for his age.
I still have him on cow and gate 1+ milk as up until now he has refused cows milk (I keep trying) and I'm wondering if maybe he has too much? He tends to have 7oz (200ml) upon waking followed by breakfast (which is barely touched!) he has a morning nap 2 hours after waking and would gladly have another 5oz milk if we let him but I try not to give it unless he gets really upset and won't settle at all. He has lunch at around 1 but I'm talking a good day if he eats a quarter of a cheese sandwich and a yoghurt. a few snacks throught the day (breadsticks, fruit etc.) a 7oz bottle at 3pm (if he hasn't had the extra morning one) we all eat dinner together at 6 and then he ha another botte 7oz before bed at 8. So altogether he is having 19-21oz of milk in a day.
I wouldn't say he is a fussy eater, he will eat most things, but quantity is an issue. Tonight he had one tiny bite of cheese and a handful of blueberries and that's it!! He will ALWAYS eat yoghurt when offered, I think he would like to live on it. I've tried feeding him, letting him feed himself, finger foods, distracting him, letting him eat in the garden, off my plate, pretty much every trick in the book!! He had reflux as a newborn but all resolved now and no other known issues! Has anyone else been through this? Any help would be much appreciated. Should I try and cut him down to just 2 bottles a day? :s Thanks!!

try to relax about it - they all go through phases when they are ravenous one week,then it seems that weeks go by when they barely eat!

I know it's hard (been there) but you will notice a difference in his appetite if you cut down his milk. The temptation is to give him the milk when he's not eating much because then 'at least' he will have the milk in him, but if you maybe try cutting it down gradually, say an ounce a week, you might notice an increase in his appetite. KEep going with trying the cow's milk too!

When you say you all have dinner at 6pm - how much does he eat? Also 6pm might be too late for him - try feeding him at 4.30/5pm instead and see if you can catch that 'window' when he's ready for food, iykwim.

My youngest is 19 months now - his mealtimes are generally breakfast around 7.30am, lunch around 12.30, dinner at 5pm - however he is not in a set daytme routine and often naps over lunchtime, in which case I'll give him a small sandwich, grapes,breadsticks, yoghurts (you know, the usual exciting stuff ) when he wakes after 1pm and that keeps him going till dinner and he usually wolfs that down! He also loves milk and gets a couple of bottles throughout the course of the day and one at bedtime too. (7/7.30)

If his weight is worrying you, perhaps a trip to the health visitor might put your mind at ease?

Also, I've had good success with BLW - it's a total mess at first but he loved having the control while I would slip a few mouthfuls in! And now he happily eats whatever his big brother and sister are having, every day.

I think it's easy to under estimate how easily their small tummies get full up. My DS 3.5 still loves his milky drinks and I am aware that he would probably have a cup of milk over most foods. It does fill him up and then he tends to eat less at meal times.

Thank you for your replies, yes I am definitely in a vicous circle with the milk because say he hasn't eaten lunch I think he's going to waste away and give him milk at 3 which is probably affecting his appetite for dinner, etc. I shall have to try cutting it down gradually as you suggested, maybe I will start making the day bottles smaller, 6, 5, 4 etc. until it's gone. Is cows milk less filling that formula or is it the same? I just can't imagine drinking a glass of milk and feeling full but I guess my tummy is (much) bigger, ha. He never really eats loads of dinner but it is the most successfull meal of the day quantity wise, if he's going to eat a fair amount it will be at dinner. Maybe I will try dinner earlier, it's just I like us to eat together and as I work sometimes it's hard to get dinner ready by 6, let alone earlier. Maybe he gets overtired though. Thanks again for your help x

I think cows milk is less satisfying than formula but it's probably marginal. Formula obviously has a lot more vitamins and minerals, and is higher in fat so it's more balanced.
If he drinks 20oz of forumula a day he'll get around 350 calories from that alone, they need roughly 1000 calories a day at that age. With a few bites of food like cheese sarnies, yoghurts, and a little bit of dinner, he probably is getting about 700ish - which could be just about enough for him personally - not every child needs lots. It's a chicken or egg thing isn't it, you don't know if he's on the small side because he doesn't quite meet his needs for growth or if he just needs less because he's naturally smaller. Are you/his dad average height/weight?
I think you have the right idea to gradually decrease his milk intake so he feels a bit hungrier for solids. One meal skipped probably isn't enough to motivate him to eat more, so maybe try being a little bit stricter for a few days at a time, not giving him more milk if he doesn't eat much, and see how it affects his appetite.
Good luck! x