17 month old suddenly REALLY fussy with food

[SapphireSunday]

We did BLW at 6 months and she took to it like a duck to water, ate everything put in front of her, and for the most part this has continued until the last few weeks.

Suddenly she literally only wants to a few things - mostly bread and banana.

We had a curry tonight that she has had before and liked but she wouldn’t even entertain the idea, she just kept telling me no and throwing it on the floor. I caved in the end and she just had naan bread followed by a banana and a yoghurt because I didn’t want her to go hungry, but I’m not sure this was the right approach?!

On the one hand I don’t want her to go hungry but on the other I don’t want her to become even fussier because I give and let her have whatever she wants.

Is this a normal stage? How do I get through it? Tia

Is your little one teething at the minute? When they teeth the pH in their saliva changes so food tastes off and all they want is bland food. Been through it with my little boy and once his teeth were through he was back eating everything again. Happened several times from 1-2yrs old.

Keep offering foods. I found as well if you put everything on the plate at once at lunch etc fruit and savoury etc it helps. At tea we don't offer pudding but always put meat carbohydrates and veg together. He doesn't always eat it but he's tried new stuff that way without full on meltdowns.

Try not not worry too much. As long as there is a protein veg/fruit and carbohydrates that's the main thing and also look at it over the day/week rather than the meal. That's what the hv etc always tell me.

Normal. My experience is they will eat literally anything until about this age and then they start to get a bit more discerning/opinionated. Curry is fairly ambitious for a toddler.

My DS just turned 2 and I've spent the last 18 months trying to get him to eat fruit. Everyday fruit on his plate, he might lick a grape but normally just goes on the floor.
This week he's decided he likes fruit and I've had to hide the bananas because he's screaming for more. He's now eating bananas, apples, grapes, blueberries, strawberries and nectarines.
Anyway my point is small children are fickle and she won't only be eating bread and bananas when's 16. Just keep offering a range of food.

It's a completely normal phase. I read somewhere that it's good to continue offering the foods they've always liked alongside a "safe" food. That way, they are still having exposure to the food and might even taste a bit if they feel up to it. Try not to react or put any pressure on as it can make it worse.

It's totally normal. I've posted this link a few times recently but honestly, this book really helped me relax about mealtimes and significantly reduced my worries. Try to ignore the really heavily pro-breastfeeding bits, the rest is useful, particularly the first few chapters.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/My-Child-Wont-Eat-Mealtimes-ebook/dp/B087Z5RGHM/ref=mpssa111?crid=2AW9DFO9O1EIS&keywords=my+child+won%27t+eat&qid=1672255528&sprefix=my+child+wont+eat%2Caps%2C73&sr=8-1

Don’t want to alarm you but my DS did this. We did BLW and he ate everything I gave him. He’s now just turned 3 and only now are we coming out the other side.
He will now put strange food to his lips and sometimes take a small bite.
He literally survived on toast, cereal, crackers, bananas and beans from 16 months till just recently.
I just figured i can’t force him to eat so i gave him what i knew he would eat with something unsafe. Most of the time the unsafe food wasn’t even looked at. He’s fine and you’re DD will be too.

DD was the same. Loved food, ate a huge range. Around 18m/2y suddenly changed and everything was refused. I was SO stressed about it. Even things she'd loved literally went from pan to bowl to floor to bin, she wouldn't even try them. She lived on porridge, olives and toast for ages. Got to 2 1/2 or 3, started going back to her previous self. As a pp says, just keep offering. She went back to being a brilliant eater and has been ever since, but dear god that was a joyless stage.

We've just been through this and like a pp above, it ended when a big fat tooth came through at the side. I can only assume there was a lot of movement happening that wasn't visible beneath the gums. I offered one thing i knew she would eat on each plate so eg. Half a breakfast muffin or a slice of toast alongside whatever i was giving to eat. Then counted it as a win if she ate anything other than the bread 😵‍💫🙃

This is more than likely a phase OP, and the best way to deal with it is accepting it. My now 3 year old was like this around that age. He loved Spag Bol so I made it most weeks to last for two dinners. One evening he looked at it as it was the most disgusting thing in the World...from then on, he wouldn't eat it for months afterwards. He did the same with mash & salmon, then with meatballs...he loves creamy mushroom sauce at the moment but I do wonder how long for 😅 But I don't stress anymore because I think its normal and most kids go through this. Certainly seems to be the norm within our circle.

FWIW, I think you did the right thing. Whenever DS refuses to eat what we have for dinner I just offer finger food that I know he likes (humus, cheese, yoghurt, toast) and we try again the next day. But whatever you do, don't stress about it, as long as he gets his nutrients, thriving and growing ☺️