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Dd5 becoming increasingly fussy with food and refusing most meals

2 replies

Stilettosandbrokenb0ttles · 20/08/2026 13:55

My dd has just turned 5 and her diet is absolutley awful.

We did BLW and she ate absolutley anything; fruits, veg, meat, fish, all kinds of meals such as bolognaise, curries, casseroles. She was a good eater at nursery too.

I can't really pinpoint where it all started to change but over the last couple of years I guess; the foods she will eat have dwindled to the point where she has a really limited range of acceptable foods and is absolutley obsessed with chocolate, sweets, crisps that kind of thing.

The thing is, we've always maintained a low pressure approach to eating - never forced her to eat anything or finish her plate, never withheld anything or called anything a 'treat', just always tried to introduce her to a wide variety of things and have spoken about how our bodies a balanced diet to stay healthy, everything is ok in moderation etc.

Skip to now and she basically wont eat a meal - anything I serve even if she used to eat it is met with 'I dont like it'. I always try to make sure there is at least something available I know she likes but thats getting harder and harder as she refuses more and more things. I never make anything else so she frequently goes to bed without any dinner, it doesnt seem to bother her.

The only vegetable she will currently eat is carrots and the only fruit are berries, yet 6 months ago broccoli, peas, sweetcorn, apples were all acceptable but not anymore. She will eat processed things like nuggets, chips, fish fingers but I dont buy them often.

I just dont know how to handle this. She looks very scrawny compared to her friends. Clothes hang off her. She is very active which doesnt help.

Has anybody been through anything similar?

OP posts:
spritzwiththat · 20/08/2026 22:39

Investigate ARFID

Phineyj · 21/08/2026 07:31

I think it would be better if she ate good quality fish fingers/nuggets/chips with carrots than went to bed hungry.

The thing with processed food is they're the same every time. If she has anxieties around food or generally, that reduces anxiety.

The advice on the Beat website is good.

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