18 month old not eating

[ThisIsReallyFunny]

I don't know what to do with my DD anymore. She is refusing to eat what main meal I offer her. She will happily eat fruit and yoghurt but if I present her with something in a bowl she will turn her face away and purse her lips. Once or twice she will open her mouth without realising and I can get a few spoonfuls in but other than that she will refuse. I don't know how to get to her eat. I have tried finger foods but she plays with it, eats a morsel or so then gets bored. Please help. I can't go through any more meal times with a crying toddler (and parent)

I am in exactly the same position with my 19 month old son. I keep making meals and he rejects everything. He used to eat anything. The only thing I can get him to eat is Ella's kitchen pouches sucked straight from the pouch.
It's so, so tough. Often we both spend meal times in tears. No advice but solidarity. Xxx

IME a lot of babies go through a fussy stage at this age, and it doesn't mean she'll always be a fussy eater. It's a power thing - she's realised that she has the ability to say no, and that you get stressed when she does.

My advice is to carry on offering her mixture of things, some she'll definitely like and some she probably won't. Stay very calm and try to be completely relaxed about which foods she eats and which she refuses. It won't harm her to live on fruit and yoghurt for a couple of weeks - and by then she'll probably have moved out of this phase.

I've been advised by various others not to "give in" and offer fruit or yoghurt if she hasn't eaten properly - should I not do this? I want her to learn that these things come after she's eaten a proper meal not that she gets it regardless.

Personally, I don't agree with that advice. I would offer several different kinds of food and not treat any of them as 'good' or 'bad' or 'you can't have this until you've had that' as I believe it sends the wrong message about sweet food being the 'reward' for eating your horrible savoury food. I have three DC and they're all good eaters and a healthy weight. But it's up to you of course!

No, ignore the 'don't give in' advice. 18mo is way too young to process that. Just keep offering as normal. What Tilapia said basically. It will pass. Then happen again. Then pass again. Sometimes my ds eats more when I don't sit with him. I leave him to it with peppa on the ipad and go sit in another room. Don't make meals a battle. It's not worth it.

Thank you for your advice - really hope it passes soon as it's really stressing me out

I could have written your OP myself!

My 16 month old DS is so so fussy about his evening meal at the moment, it's driving me crackers. He will eat chips and toast no problem but anything else is a no no, a lot of the time he won't even try 😢. Of course he demolishes his fruit and yoghurt for afterwards!

This evening I realised that he is finding it funny seeing me getting worked up about it, he was chuckling away to himself and I just wanted to cry. In the end he had ham and cheese for dinner, followed by a yoghurt. He makes a really good attempt at feeding himself the yoghurt but he won't feed himself his main.

Tilapia it definitely seems like a power thing with him. I'm going to follow your advice and try to stay nice and calm. It's just so frustrating to see all my lovingly cooked food end up on the floor or on DS's head!

Doesn't seem like a power thing with my dd though as she just cries 😥

It's just a phase and no one has died from eating breadsticks for a month.

Don't get stressed and just let them eat what they want. Pick your battles when you can reason with them!

How have you got on today ThisIsReallyFunny? Lunch and breakfast were fine here as I gave him what I know he will eat - weetabix and fruit and beans and cheese on toast followed by fruit. I've just tried to give him his tea however and you would think I was trying to poison him. I'm now sitting in the hall way as he eats an Ella's kitchen pouch from the packet. The meal I cooked him both whole and puréed is on the floor as he screamed, cried, kicked and refused to even taste. I'm weak so I'll also give him a yoghurt.

I hope you're having more luck...

I think my ds went through this phase and it was when he was teething molars. Could have been wrong though. I started giving food which was colder and easier on the gums.
I would also leave snacks out on a small table for him to help himself.

It passed. It was easier once his sibling arrived and I didn't spend mealtimes obsessing over what he was eating as I had other things to distract me

I understand how worried and stressed your feel but don't let your daughter see this. Children will always win any food battle, so the answer is don't battle with her. She is winning by crying, that's what you do when your 18 months.

Do you sit down as a family to eat? Does she get some of what you're having? Are mealtimes pleasant? Keep offering as usual, don't make a fuss, it will pass. I've been there and you do worry but mine now eats for England.

Totally agree about them picking up on your anxiety. I know it's hard but pretend you don't care if she eats or not!

Breakfast was okay, she had a weetabix and ate half a bagel on her own.

Lunch she had a hummus roll, some strawberries and a satsuma

Dinner she ate some prawn toast and I tried to feed her some lentil & potato curry I made which she ate begrudgingly (but without tears), blueberries and some fromage frais. We might be turning a corner but I don't want to say too much in case it all goes t*ts up tomorrow!

Fingers crossed for you OP!

That sounds amazing, at one point mine refused everything except plain pasta.