2 YEAR OLD REFUSING TO TRY NEW FOODS

[Kittycat8484]

My nearly 3 year old still refuses certain solid foods, infact most!
I offer her food but she says no.
When she goes to nursery she rarely eats or drinks which is concerning too
Please dont give nasty feedback as I am trying and I already have an 18 year old so I have been there and it was easier before as he ate everything

Which food and drink does she like?

She enjoys milk but still the cow and gate ready made number 3
Water
The heinz meals
Or jacket potatoes cheese and beans
Toast
Wheetabix and banana

My nephew (3 in October) is the same. His mum has a few different foods he will eat but she’s tried loads of new ones, all rejected. I ask her what she’s tried and she’ll say, yes, tried it. Maybe at nursery he eats more, who knows?

How about eggs? Hard boiled? Yogurt? Could you do cheese on toast, beans on toast? Oven chips? Fishfingers?

Relax. He is two not 22.
Dont make a fuss put a plate with small amount of new food near him he can grab or not.

Just don’t sweat it! Just give him the foods he will eat, it’s a phase and won’t last forever. Will he have a multi vitamin gummy? Honestly parenting is hard without worrying over this diet thing, you can’t force him to eat and how many 18year olds do you know that are still eating cow and gate porridge??

Hi, my DC was like this; there is a name for it, but I can't remember. They are now a young adult and eat everything but carrots 😁

don’t stress him or you about it -
A child will typically reject a new food 8 to 15 times before they comfortably accept it. Some studies and pediatric resources state it can even take up to 20 distinct exposures for a child to willingly put a new food into their mouth. 1, 2, 3]
Despite this, peer-reviewed feeding research shows that most parents mistakenly give up and stop serving a specific item after only 3 to 5 rejections. 1, 2] Source - Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia website

Hello. I have a 5 yo and a 2 yo. 5 yo always pretty relaxed about food. The 2 yo is a nightmare. I spoke to the health visitor and she basically said don't worry about it, but these were her tips

-always provide something you know they will eat alongside something new (e.g. my DD is obsessed with peanut butter sandwiches, so we now always put a pb sandwich on the table next to her chicken and veg or whatever it is we actually want her to have... I think it has helped because now we don't have that initial reaction of screaming/shouting no, it's calmer for everyone)

• make sure they are not filling up on water between meals
• eat together so you are modelling what you want them to eat
• give a multivitamin (we have a liquid one)

But really the HV said if she is growing don't panic x

I have tried those xx

Cut the milk out. They don’t need formula past 1. It’ll be filling her up and stopping her appetite for food.
always eat with her, and eat the same food. Serve her a small portion and say nothing- eat your own meal. Have something on the plate she does like so it’s safe. If she eats nothing; no comment, take it away and do something else. And repeat again and again. No ‘toddler’ snacks. If she asks for food after meals, re-offer the same meal again. They need ongoing and repeated exposure to new foods, you can’t just offer once and give up.

There’s a phrase used in eating disorder treatments “Dish up…and shut up”…don’t make a big deal about it, make mealtimes enjoyable, make them fun. A lot of it is related to anxiety, reduce the anxiety and it helps with the avoidance.

Isn't the formula costing you a fortune?

Cut down on the milk - milk is food and if she's having several servings a day, she won't be hungry. Keep giving her 'safe' foods and include a small amount of new food on the plate as well. Don't bat an eyelid whether she tries it or not. Keep up cheerful chat at the table and ignore any whingeing or complaints. Try and involve her in the food preparation and let her fiddle and play with the food (rolling out pastry or biscuit dough, cutting up fruit or using cookie cutters to make shapes in sandwiches) Take the pressure of her and yourself. Most children go through a picky phase and most grow out of it. Give it time and don't worry. Get some gummy multivitamins to put your mind at rest.

I’d add water to the milk and start weaning her off it. In comparison my girls aged 20,15,14 ate everything as babies and toddlers and now have the most bland fussy diets ever.

Start cutting down the milk as it is a food and may be filling her up so she is not hungry.

Have a look at this book which you can get from Amazon- it has short snippets of basic principles for fussy eaters. I found it useful for my DS.

My SIL was a bit stressed about it but now she just lets him be. When he ate a full Sunday lunch the other month she was astonished (but pleased!). That is rare. He does love fruit though.

There’s a couple of children’s dieticians I follow on social media - one also has a podcast about weaning and kids eating. Maybe have a look for things like that to get general advice.
But, the basic things I have taken from them is to not make any fuss around food - if your child says they don’t want to eat it just say ok. Don’t try to force it as it puts pressure on them.
Offer new foods alongside accepted foods. My son loves cheese and garlic bread so I always make sure there’s a few bits of those, or something else he loves, on his plate with the dinner we’re having.
Putting really small portions of a new food on their plate - like one slice of pepper or 5 bits of sweetcorn. It makes it less overwhelming.
Putting all the food in the middle of the table and letting them choose. They’re being exposed to new foods, they’ll see you choose them and eat them and it’ll hopefully encourage them to eventually try.
As others have said, maybe try cutting down the formula as that’ll also be filling her up.
It’s so so hard when they just refuse to eat things or try anything new.

Stop giving him the formula, obviously.

Could it be ARFID, or do you think it's just picky eating?