Poorly one year old advice

[doadeer]

DS (12 months) and I have had horrible colds this week. He is feeling really sorry for himself, very sad and cuddly.

He has no interest in food or drink at all. I keep trying milk and small bits of porridge (usually loves) but he isn't having any of it. He never drinks water (despite my constant efforts).

His lack of eating has been going on for 2 days.

Any ideas on what I can try and feed him? When should I get worried? He has no signs of dehydration - GP told me what to look for a previous time he was unwell

Providing he's not dehydrated I wouldn't worry about it - I never feel like eating much when I'm sick either. Just keep offering and giving pain relief and he'll hopefully be back to normal in a few days.

Oh bless him, its horrible isnt it, my 12month old son had a chest infection last week and we ended up in hospital for theee days with him as he was struggling to breathe, he also didnt want to eat or drink, the docs jus said to keep offering, and evenutually he took some water and cheetos!! His fave as he loves to steal them off his big sis! Aslong as hes not dehydrated, jus keep trying lil and often. Hope he perks up soon, its such a worry isnt it xx

Ah sorry to hear that, my ds had a rough December with heavy cold : ulcerated throat and then later ear infection ... and he barley ate for about 3 weeks ... things that worked ( and after a few days I wasn’t carrying about nutrition just calories not his usual diet )

Crushed ice to suck
Hey Jude lollies ( Sainsbury’s do them they are 100% veg and fruit )
Milka lollies
Trifle
Fruit and yogurt

That was about it... little bit of bottle and constant tempting with favourite dinners until finally he felt well enough to eat. He did drink plenty of water but was advised to give squash to help him absorb it better ( the sugars apparently help / so don’t do no added sugar options )
It is a terrible worry but honestly as soon as he felt well enough he ate tons for a few weeks after and put all the weight on he lost .

That being said I was taking him to the doctor regularly at least 5 times in thAt 5 week period ( 3 of those linked to the ear infection as it perforated ) and I was never made to feel like it was a bad thing.

Provided he's got no other symptoms e.g fever, no wet of dirty nappies, mottling/rash etc then I'd just keep offering regularly and ride it out. Equally, if you're not happy, don't hesitate to get advice as little ones go down hill very rapidly as I'm sure you know.

Could you offer him something like jelly? It's got water but also a bit of sugar for a boost? Hope your little one feels better soon

Thanks everyone for all the tips. It's so hard to strike the balance between not being over anxious but being vigilant!!

Hasn't helped I've felt like death warmed up too! And we had just cracked sleeping and he was sleeping through and now of course he is back in bed with me

I wouldn’t worry about food but push drinks.

Hi Doadeer, I feel your pain as my little one has had lots of cold this winter and she's rejected every food she normally loves, it's heartbreaking. She has taken homemade soup on occasion but we've had the most consistent success during the worst periods with either toddler ready meals as they are so slimy or even purees. She just isn't up for chunky solids as I think they hurt her throat. Ok so it's not great nutritionally but it's better than the zero nutrition I was getting in to her otherwise, and it saved my sanity as there's nothing worse than slaving over a home cooked meal to have it screamed at and thrown on the floor! At least if your LO doesn't want it you haven't invested lots of time and effort. Hope you and your little one feel better soon.