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Original poster

He just doesn't eat. HELP!

10 replies

iesha · 29/03/2007 18:28

Hi all,
I'm really starting to worry about DS (2 last mth) because it doesn't matter what I put in front of him he hardly eats a thing. His typicals day is...
MAybe 1 spoon of cereal- this is a rarity these days
more often than not just the filling from the sandwich
and a bite or 2 of him main meal.

today he was at nursery and they put him as having a little bit of savoury mince for lunch and other than that he has had 2 bites of a banana and 2 small bits of shredded cabbage... all day!

Surely this isn't enough. He is energetic enough and is still growing at a rate of notts but I am so worried that he isn't gtting the nutrients he needs.

Any advice??

OP posts:
saadia · 29/03/2007 18:31

sounds like a phase, just try not to stress, keep offering him healthy stuff and maybe give him some vitamins - mine have Minadex.

Original poster
iesha · 29/03/2007 18:37

I try to keep meal time calm and dont nag him about food (i remember throwing up all over mum when she forced me to eat. lol) and of course he gets loads of praise when he does eat but nothing seems to work. I've even made sure he's busy all day to work up an appetite.
Never thought about vitamins. can you get them for toddlers?

OP posts:
saadia · 29/03/2007 20:18

yes, maybe check with your GP. Mine suggested Abidec but it looked too complicated (involved a syringe), but Minadex is also OK.

Also I would suggest not nesessarily having mealtimes as such. You could put some cubes of apple/cheese in a bowl within reach, or just pasta, something simple that he can eat himself.

It really is very difficult. Both my dss went through this but I found it did get easier as they got older because you can reason with them (bribe them) . Does he drink milk?

yomellamoHelly · 29/03/2007 20:48

My ds(1) hasn't eaten since he was 18 months - he used to eat anything and everything. Have been through all sort of emotions about this, but have finally managed to settle on accepting that it's the way things are. Fruit is always within reach. He gets offered meals at regular times and snacks at regular times. He gets treats on regular days (trip to coffee shop to share a cake with me and a trip to the corner shop to get magic stars). Gradually he's getting better (will now eat more than one brand of cereal and more than one type of bread for example, but it's a slow process), but has gone through quite long periods where he's survived on nothing but a bowl of cereal for breakfast and milk to drink. If you can try and not let it push your buttons and go with the flow. So long as he knows there is some (healthy) food available I doubt he'll come to any harm.

TheArmadillo · 29/03/2007 20:59

Just keep offering food and make sure he is drinking milk every day.

They can seem to survive on fresh air. Mine must do anyway.

I'd get him regularly wieghed (every month or so) to check his weight if you can.

My HV told me with ds that if a child doesn't eat much they can get slightly anemic which can cause a loss of appetite and so cause a vicious circle.

We used abidec (in his milk if necessary) to give him some iron and multivitamins.

Apart from that its just not making it an issue and keep profferring food.

My ds is now nearly 2 1/2. He hasn't eaten regularly since he was about 14 months. ITs scary and its a nightmare sometimes, but as long as their weight doesn;t drop they will be fine.

Original poster
iesha · 30/03/2007 11:23

Thanks everyone. yes he drinks loads of milk bt I have cut it down to only after meal times and after his nap as I thought he might be filling up on it. otherwise he gets water. he actually ate some breakfast today, about a third of a small pack of choc shreddies. Will have to see how he goes with luch. going to do cheese on toast as he loves chesse and toast, I thought of putting some sweetcorn on it too just so he has some veg today. Will look into some vitamins for him when I go to the shop tomorrow.

OP posts:
Original poster
iesha · 30/03/2007 11:24

Oh and this morning instead of just giving him breakfast I asked if he wanted some and if he was hungry. maybe this is the way to go, what do you think?

OP posts:
Malaleche · 30/03/2007 11:27

yes, maybe giving him a choice of two or three things and letting him help prepare it woud help?

admylin · 30/03/2007 11:30

It is a worry when they don't eat isn't it. My ds used to be really bad at eating from aged 2 and a half up to age 6 and I went to the doctor and he checked him over and said he's healthy so not to worry. I made sure he always had something to drink all day and if he was listening to music or watching a video I would put a plate of chopped raw veg and fruit in front of him and he would eat that. waffles went down well too. You could try that, when your ds is sitting comfortably watching a film you could maybe atleast get him to eat some snacks.
Now my ds is 8 and he still has phases of not eating but then he'll start growing and eat like a horse for a few weeks.

Original poster
iesha · 31/03/2007 12:48

I gave him a choice of cereal or toast for breakfast and he ate a quarter of toast and jam and he "helped" make soup and bread for lunch and ate alittle of it, so all your advice is getting us somewhere. I've also started to hide veg in food (tho i vowed never to d it) so at least he's getting some vitamims in 1 bite if you know what I mean.

Thanks for all your help, I'll keep trying with him and just keep fingers crossed.

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