INCREDIBLY fussy toddler

[LydiaMax2]

When I say incredibly fussy..... all he will eat is peanut butter sandwiches, some fruit, sometimes cheese, sometimes yogurt and obviously anything sweet (which we are seriously strict on).

Has anyone been through this? He is currently 2, and was a brilliant eater from 6m-12m, but since then he's been so fussy.

ANY advice and tips from anyone that's been through similar?

Thanks @LydiaMax2, I will check back in once we’ve seen the HV but that’s not until mid Feb.

Thanks others too. I appreciate hearing the advice and experience of others.

How are you getting on @LydiaMax2? HV has suggested reducing the less healthy staples he relies on and we’re going to go back to see her in a month. The thing she mentioned as a concern is that he doesn’t eat much protein. Of course his diet has now got even worse but he’s teething so I’m hoping it’s a temporary blip.

@Daybydayagain It sounds like your HV has said similar things to mine... did they also suggest the same as mine? To offer only one option at dinner time?
My little boy has gotten even worse. Because he didn't like that he had to sit in the high chair and have something put in front of him that he didn't like, then not be able to get down until everyone else had finished, he now point blank refuses to get into his high chair or even sit at the table, so getting an unknown dinner in front of him is impossible.

Anybody have any advice for this?

No she didn’t suggest offering just one option at dinner but that may be something to try. I can’t remember what I posted before but I’ve been trying to offer DS 3 things each meal time, including something he doesn’t usually eat. It’s not working for us yet as he always just eats his favourites but at least he doesn’t stress about the unknown/unwanted thing on his plate and maybe one day he’ll pick it up and eat it. He has also done things like but a carrot recently. I wonder if offering three things might help your DS to go back to sitting at the table so that it’s not a struggle? Not that we have mealtimes sussed at all as our DS has been trying to stand on his chair at dinner times recently I had no idea this part of parenting would be so hard and feel like such a failure.

bite a carrot

To be fair I don’t think anyone would like being put in a high chair and having to sit there until everyone has finished. He is a toddler so you need to decide what is most important to you, that he eats or how he eats? Some children that age eat better if they can move around or watch TV. My DS has ARFID and our priority is that he eats not how he eats.

Have a look at Division of Responsibility. Basically make a list of his safe foods. Make sure each meal you offer also includes 2-3 of his safe foods. Present everything buffet style. Encourage him, as much as possible related to age, to serve himself. Don’t praise, bargain, negotiate or comment in any way. He can eat or not eat anything he wants from the selection. If he doesn’t eat anything, don’t comment just offer a snack with options a couple of hours later.

Best of luck, it’s a very frustrating problem. Many children do just naturally grow out of it.

How are the fussy toddlers getting on now, a few months down the line? I have a 22m old who has ALWAYS been a fussy eater but has recently been going through her worst phase yet over the last few weeks, getting worse and worse. Every meal time ends in her having a screaming tantrum that can easily go on for a good hour. Me and DH are both so stressed and we feel that we have tried everything and followed all the advice and we are getting nowhere. It's also not a case of her suddenly becoming fussy as a toddler, even as a baby at the start of weaning she wouldn't eat most vegetables for example. It has just gotten worse over time so now some things she used to eat she no longer does. Also advice regarding 'safe foods' etc we can't implement as apart from sweet things, there are no safe foods. Any savoury food that she likes she will even refuse to eat them sometimes so for example two days ago she had toast and hummouse for lunch and today she hardly ate any of it and had a big tantrum asking for a "snack" instead. We have never offered an alternative by the way so I don't know why she does this as we have never given in to her demands for "snack" or "pud" when she has hardly eaten anything.

Hi meadowhay, I popped back here today because I’m trying not to stress about all the food that DS refuses. We have seen some progress since I last posted ... but that progress seems so tiny and we’ve got so far to go still.