If you have a picky eater, when did it start?

[EmmaInParis]

My DD is 18 months and so far pretty good with food - will try anything new and likes most things but has started to display preference for some foods over others. We enjoy cooking and eating as a family so hoping we are modelling enjoyment of all kinds of food.

However I was the WORST eater all through my childhood and I’m really worried she may end up like me (my mum said I ate anything as a baby but got fussier as I got older). It took me well into adulthood to start to enjoy something resembling a normal diet, I was incredibly restrictive before that and also struggled with some mildly disordered eating patterns in my teens. I would say I eat a healthy and varied diet now and I enjoy most foods but there are still certain things I don’t touch - but I’m trying very hard not to make that a big deal in front of her.

If you have/had a fussy eater, can you pinpoint when it started and anything you’d do differently in hindsight? I’m delighted with how she’s doing currently and want to do everything I can to encourage to enjoy a normal, healthy relationship with food. If anyone has any advice on how I can do this, I am all ears!

Around 18 months/2 is a common age for picky eating to start.

The best thing to do is to not make any fuss about it. Continue to offer a wide range of foods and if she doesn't eat them, just clear them away.

No praise for eating well, no bribery, no punishment for not eating. Do not let food become a stress point.

With this approach most children will start to branch out again fairly soon, maybe around 4/5, particularly when they start eating with other kids at school etc.

Obviously, some kids never become fussy and some have long lasting issues.

DS ate lots as a toddler but when he was 3 had tonsils and adenoids out, after that he's been a nightmare to feed! He's 12 now and still a pita.
He eats nothing in a sauce, no potato products, limited veg. He likes fruit though.
Not sure what I'd do differently? I've never been up for an argument around food.

My son was 14 months old when he started having issues with food, he has autism & it's a sensory & texture issue with him.

This is such a classic age for pickiness that it's not really predictive of anything. Toddlers go through a phase when they realise they have some (limited) choices and control in their life and they want to exert it. Some grow out of it swiftly, with others it takes longer, some never do. Fundamentally, most small children are a bit fussy about food; they have clear likes and dislikes and not much appetite for compromise. But in most cases (excluding SEN), it won't ultimately be a big deal, they will eat enough variety for basic healthy nutrition, they just prefer sausages. (Shrugs🙍)

Primary School.
Ate everything (except peppers) up to that point then the "I don't like it" started.

Thanks everyone some useful insights and advice here x

My middle one is a very picky eater and it probably started around 3, but got worse around 5. In hindsight I wish we’d just rolled with it more. Turns out he is a child who does most things on his terms, so no amount of cajoling and mealtime stress was going to change his mind about what he would or wouldn’t eat. So although I do cater to it to a degree we’ve also stopped searching for the mythical perfect version of something he used to eat in the hope he’d keep eating it. And we’ve stopped negotiating and getting stressed at mealtimes. It’s not worth the stress. He sees his parents and siblings eating a greater variety than him, his diet is still still pretty good and he’ll get there.

I am Thinking it was before 1yo. I can't recall him ever eating fruit but maybe we managed some in first 12 months. Veg selection narrowed down long before 18m. He did still eat milk+cereal at this age, I suppose.

Sorry to ask but what food would he eat at that age ? Any other symptoms apart from picky eating ?

Dd wouldn’t eat onion in anything. Which rules out decent spaghetti bol, chili con carne, shepherds pie etc. got round this by grating it. She never knew!!!!😀