Toddler spitting food out. Help please!

[postive987]

Hey ladies,

My son has been troubling me past few week. He's 2 and a half. He used to be a good eat. Recently, he only takes 2 bites and spits out the third bite.

He drinks his milk happier but food has been an issue.

Any ideas please?

Could it be that he’s not very hungry and is full from milk? How much milk is he having in 24 hours roughly?

I could have written the same post few days ago!
Mine is actually 18 months and for a whole week he spitted out almost everything that wasn't crackers or breadsticks.... I had no idea of why that become a thing, however I suspected he wasn't hungry (it was a week we had bad weather and couldn't burn energies outside as he normally does).
I stopped giving him snacks one day and the following meal he ate everything without spitting. From that moment on I made an extra effort to make him run around the house, dance, go up the stairs multiple times and also go out for walks in the short intervals between showers. Appetite came back and he stopped spitting food out for good. In fact he's now experimenting even more than before!

@JiltedJohnsJulie around 3 bottles. Whenever I bring food to him, he start demanding for water or milk 😣.

@user1471523870 I might try that too. I think staying in doors has reduced his appetite. Not enough exercise I guess.

Would you say that teething can change taste buds ?

Does he still drink milk from a bottle? If so, is he choosing the comfort of the bottle over solid food, and isn't actually hungry enough to want both at the moment if his activity has reduced?

When my son (18 months) does that I :

• put the spit food back in his mouth
• talk sternly to him and sometimes put him in his playpen (which he hates)
• explain why it's wrong and make him say sorry

I also don't give him anything else. He gets a few chances but if he keeps spitting I say, "obviously you're not hungry so the meal is over." I do give him a couple of chances to change his mind but when that's it, that's it. He can go play but no more food until next meal.

The spitting remains minimal thus far. And more often that not, doing the above, I do get him to eat a decent amount.

Cutting the snacks as suggested above may be a good idea. And replace the milk in the bottle with water.

Is he generally well? Is he teething? Mine used to spit if they had a tooth coming through or a sore throat and just wanted milk? If it’s more a behaviour thing it could be they aren’t over hungry or just going through one of the many weird toddler phases.

I'd say that's too much milk OP. We have a small cup with breakfast and large beaker at bed. Milk is a comfort but is so filling. We had lots of issues with food and found cutting the milk was the only thing effective.

Really the approach has to be to offer the food (something you know they'll like). If it is spat out or left that's fine, no drama, but we wait for the next meal and try again. No snacks or alternatives. My health visitor always said they'll eat if they are hungry. Toddlers go through strange phases where they decide they no longer like something for no reason! Are they having vitamins as they should be?

I'd take away the bottle OP. I bet if the alternative is a cup he'll be keener on food. Also, don't react too much to the spitting. He may be partly doing it because he can see it winds you up. Toddlers are annoying that way!

3 bottles is a lot at his age. Maybe he's just not hungry?
Also, consider teething. My 20 month old has been spitting his food all week-hes getting back molars.
Whatever you do, don't make a big issue of it. Just take the food and walk away and try again later.

Kids go through stages of this. The best eaters as babies will become so fussy as toddlers. It's a developmental thing and It will pass. I'd be more worried if he wasn't taking fluids, so water is better than nothing. As pp said, he could be teething too.

I'd reduce the amount of milk just to see if that makes a difference but I wouldn't withhold water unless he's drinking massive amounts.

If he's spitting it out and watching your reaction... just completely ignore his behaviour. You've tried to feed him. Just give him small amounts so you don't end up with loads of wasted food lol. I wouldn't stick to the food he always eats cause that will cause issues later.

If he's less active, then this could contribute to this. But I'd look at what he's eating over 3 days rather than every meal. Sometimes we as adults are not hungry or feeling it. Same with kids. Basically, he won't starve himself.

It's a tough situation though! I'd ring your HV if you have concerns though.

In terms of teething.... it's not about taste buds... would any of us like to eat with a sore mouth or toothache? :)

@rottiemum88 yes he drinks from a bottle. I think it could be a comfort. Past few nights he's been waking up and I would give him a bottle and he would fall sleep so might need to cut that down x

@Microzilla well he seems fine to me but again he has been troubling me past few nights. Not sure if it's teething of comfort of bottle.

@CurlyEndive they certainly do test your patience 😅. I just need to remain calm. Thanks

Thanks ladies, I'll try cutting back on snacks and milk. Try getting him run up and down the stairs lol and certainly need to remain calm and not stress about it 😅 x

If he’s well, and not teething, I woukd cut him right down to one bottle for now. Ignore the demands and tantrums, he is tiny and really doesn’t know what’s best for him.

Offer food, like you’ve been doing but ignore any spitting and don’t ever offer an alternative.

Just for reference, this guide shows roughly what he should be eating in a day and how much milk he should have. Hope you find it useful

Not sure teething changes the taste buds but it certainly hurts and disrupt normal patterns.

It might be worth doing the m-chat test too, just to rule out ASD causing an issue with food

My two year old does the same but I'm pretty sure she does it for attention. It's a wonderful way to get everyone to stop eating and pay attention to her.

How are you both getting on now @positive987?

Have you managed to reduce his milk intake and is he still spitting food?

@JiltedJohnsJulie thank you so much for asking.

He does seem a lot better than before. He takes a bite, swallows it. May spit the second bite but then takes the third bite.
It could be he's bored of the same food I guess. Reducing milk has made a huge difference. Also I do give him time so his hunger builds up i.e playing in the garden or doing an a activity. Thank you ladies for lovely tips. xx

That all sounds good then positive