Toddler snacks - are they necessary?

[Nosleepforthismum]

Struggling a bit with my two year olds eating. He eats a lot better if he’s hungry (like at breakfast) but I think snacks are becoming an issue and making him more fussy at lunch and dinner. The snacks I give him are healthy but involves either fruit or carbs (like toasted pitta bread and hummus or crumpet with marmite or a bag of crisps if we are out). He won’t touch vegetables on their own (like cucumber/broccoli) so I really try to get the vegetables in him at the main meals (soup, spag bol, cottage pie etc).

I’m wondering whether I should just ditch the snacks all together and bring the meals closer with something for supper if he’s still hungry before bed. Anyone done this or has any advice?

We have a 2 smack a day rule - one in the morning and one in the afternoon then that's it. It's really bad for their teeth to be grazing throughout the day.

Snack!!! I'd never hit my kids, what a typo!

I like the idea that one's children might misbehave once in the morning and once in the afternoon.

I like the idea that one's children might misbehave once in the morning and once in the afternoon 😂

I think NHS says 3 meals and 2 snacks but tbh so long as your child's weight is ok and they're not getting grumpy from hunger then I think it's fine. Milk counts as a snack too.

Mine never really had snacks as toddlers unless we were having a late meal or something.

They do now they’re older as they are like bottomless pits 😂

We never gave snacks as standard, but if DS ever said he was hungry between meals we gave the choice of either a small piece of cheese and crackers, or a piece of fruit (banana, apple, etc). Most of the time he didn't ask.

Rarely gave snacks here either. If we were out and about I'd take something to tide them over but in the house? No. They waited til mealtimes

My toddler gets loads of snacks

We generally do this too with obvious exceptions for any periods of illness, special occasions or any other exceptional circumstance.

Plenty of snacks here too, constantly hungry little boy! Usually ends up as one between breakfast and lunch, one between lunch and dinner and sometimes a weetabix
before bed if he’s still hungry or has had an early dinner at his childminder’s. Eats anything and everything, very active, and a healthy weight/height.

@WeightoftheWorld yeah similar here, I'm not very strict about it e.g. if a friend offers to share their snack in the park and my kids have already had a snack I'll just let it go and as a one off they'll have had 2 snacks that afternoon

4 meals a day would make more sense then. I have one perpetual eater and one who lives in air, it it wasn't child ead it simply wouldn't be meeting their needs.

@bakewellbride, brilliant typo! Especially that it's a rule 🤣

Try it and see how it goes.

One of my kids ate well at meal time’s despite having snacks.

My other child never wanted to eat much at mealtimes so we did cut snacks out to see if it made her eat more at mealtimes, but it didn’t. We went back to giving her snacks so that she got everything she needed.

We don't have a set pattern for snacks. If she's hungry she gets a snack if she isn't she doesn't.
We have a hard enough time getting her to eat meals without adding snacks into the mix.
We don't have many snack options available due to an extensive allergy list so we don't have most of the typical toddler snacks in the house and she has other restrictions due to severe reflux too.

Another no snacks unless needed and then very small, certainly not a whole crumpet or bag of crisps. Mine were back enough eating meals as it was! I would let them have a few grapes, carrot sticks, cucumber perhaps in the afternoon with hummus sometimes but we ate dinner fairly late so it didn't wreck their appetite but it wasn't routine.

Bad enough eating!

DS rarely snacks but he does have quite substantial meals.

I think they should eat when they're good and hungry, not because a clock says its time to eat.

Snack if needed as eaten early breakfast but half an apple or handful of blueberries no more. Snack at 3 like yoghurt or bananna

The problem with that approach is that you end up with children grazing. That’s okay but it isn’t (imo) ideal as they just end up existing on little bits of things and not meals. That might suit some people though, not sure.

I think they should eat when they're good and hungry, not because a clock says its time to eat.

One of my children would rarely eat if we’d have done that. 😬 Even as a teen, she doesn’t seem to feel hunger often.

My LO has fruit/crackers/cheese/pumpkin seeds/hard boiled egg as snacks

forcing them to wait until meal times make no sense to me. If they’re hungry then they’re hungry. Imagine if you were hungry and your partner wouldn’t let you eat until dinner

My middle child is like this, we give her 5 small meals a day instead of structured snacks/meals/times. E.g.

Toast with smashed fruit/avocado

Smoothie and crackers

Half sandwich and small bowl of soup

Yoghurt and granola or scrambled egg

Small portion of our dinner

Include protein in the meals he won't eat much of. I.e. if he ate afternoon snack but picked at dinner make sure his dinner is protein rich. Omelette, beef, lentils etc. Protein will keep him full even if he doesn't manage to eat much

I can only speak for me @WhiteNoise91 but I’ve never denied ds food if he asks for it, he just never does. I think - and I know this isn’t always the case - but I do know some of my mum friends constantly have snacks on the go and the children know this!