Fussy Eater - 16 month old! Any Advice?
Answer:
My little girl went through a phase very similar. They are just asserting their own independance. I found that giving finger food and just leaving her to get on with it really helped. It seemed the more fuss I made trying to make her eat, the less she would. Another good suggestion, which I got from my health visitor, was to leave a little dich of finger food on the floor when she is playing. That way she will just pick at it while she is busy playing and wont go to bed with an empty stomach if she didnt eat at teatime.
Im sure your daughter will grow out of it, but if you have any concerns speak to your doctor or health visitor. They will keep a check on her weight and let you know if there is any cause to worry. Im sure she will be fine in time though. Good luck!
I think this is quite a normal phase. It sounds like you are doing the right things by giving her fruit and removing the biscuits. At this age it can be a bit of a battle of wills - don't give in to her and sooner or later she will learn that you are in control and she must eat properly. It won't be easy, but stick at it, it sounds like you are doing fine.
Does she have alot of juice, I know that can fill them up. Try lots of finger foods. If they see something interesting they will be more likely to eat it. Try some peas, my little girl loves them because they are colourful and she can pick them up. There are veggie fingers too, they have breadcrumbs on them with lots of colourful bits inside. Milk will probably also fill her up. I don't think she needs milk in a bottle anymore at 16 months. But some kids are fussy, I wouldn't worry too much because no child will starve it's self. If she ends up losing weight then take her to a dietician.
this is normal among kids. my baby cousin is the same way and about the same age. what we do is we play with him. tickle him then do the whole airplane thing. when we find something he likes to eat we give him that then gradually we stick other things in it like vegetables and fruits.
only advice i can give is dont stress about it cos it will just make them worse as long as they are having something they are eating and its just one of those phases that they will grow out of mine has at last yay!
even though im a kid i know what you should do. ok make meal time fun decorate the food make it look fun to eat or put a little blanket on the floor and pretend its jungle food from the jungle.!!!!!!!
i have 2 children, my 6 year old was a fussy eater from 7 months and still is, she virtually lives on toast! i've tried everything from bribery to telling her she will become ill to getting her to prepare the food with me to no avail. my son whom is 2 eats and tries everything and his fave foods are all the healthy ones.
i think you have to accept a child will eat what and when they want and eventually when they're older they will experience more as my stepson did, he was a fussy eater but now eats anything when he reached 17. this seems a long way away but no harm will come to your child as you've stated she will have a healthy breakfast. try to get her to eat more fruit as they usually like it with it being sweet.
you can also get vitamins drops from your doctor or chemists which is what my 6 year old was prescribed.
good luck.
The more attention you give her when she plays up the more she will do it, try spending more time reading with her and ignore her bad behaviour. If dinner goes on the floor clean it up and take her out of her high chair.
Sounds harsh I know but she cant live on biscuits and she needs to know boundarys, if you dont do it now you are only saving up problems for the future.
Hi there,
I wouldnt worrie too much about this, I think by this age children start to discover that they have their own will and start experimenting with saying no, and seeing how far they can take it.
But I guess it will also depend on what sort of food you are feeding her for dinner? Does she act the same if you give her milk and porridge/wheatabix for dinner?
Has she ever said/gestured that she doesnt like the food you give her for dinner? you say she shakes her head do you think this is more of her not wanting to eat it or not liking it?
My little girl was very similar. My biggest concern was the amount of nutrition that she was getting. As your little one does, she was eating well at breakfast, and drinking her milk throughout the day. I had taken her to the Dr. I was so worried. He told me that as long as she was in the right percentages on her growth chart, there was no need to be concerned. One thing I used to do which was really effective was playing little games with her. Kids really want to mimic you. I would take some grapes and get up close to her ear and make a loud crunch, and start laughing. One she saw me do this a few times, she started to do it. My motto is whatever works.
have u tried finger foods
plain pasta : rotini, elbows, any kind
cooked carrots
cooked broccolli flower top
boil some water and cook the broccoli but not too soft
chicken fingers
I don;t have kids, but I use to get my little sister to eat things by changing the color. She use to refuse to drink milk...then I put blue food coloring in it. Might try just giving her what she has for breakfast for lunch/dinner. Are biscuits the same as cookies? If so you could get really bad cookies in the tin and give one to her...that might deter her... like I said, I don;t have kids, just the experience I had with my little sister (10 years younger then me). Good Luck!
I'm going throught the same with my 2 year old, breakfast isn't a problem but anything after that is a nightmare. I got advise from my health visitor and basically was told that if she refused what was placed in front of her take it away and make her wait until the next meal without snacks in between. You will feel like a monster and think that she's going to starve, but she won't, she'll be getting all she needs for the day from her breakfast. It may take time but stick with it, you have to be in control not the other way round..wishing you all the very best.
oh so normal.You are doing good by taking away the biscuits though.Seems like she may be testing you there,lol...don't give in, use those biscuits as a reward if you can.
As far as her not eating at lunch or dinner.Try finger foods like carrots,peas,bananas,apple slices,Cheerios,shredded cheese. ext. All of my little ones loved the above mentions and i also would toast bread with a hint of Cinnamon on it,slice it into sticks and serve.Mine loved that.
Your little one may be drinking allot of juice or milk and that may be why she holds back at 2 of her meal times.
Its no big deal,most of them go through this phase.They are up and down about their eating habits.Sometimes you cant get them full enough and others you cant get the food in them.Don't worry I have been told that children will eat what they need.Just don't give in on those biscuits though.
If you are too worried, try setting a small plate..with in her reach.during the day...of something that is not going to spoil.And leave it there through out the day.You will see her sneak up once and a while and take a bite or two.And feel better that she is eating.:)
keep fighting the fight honestly it does get much different as ythey get older it just depends on your willpower
It's just a phase. my daughter did that at 15 months and continued until she was 18 months. so i just fed her when she was hungry. don't give cookies. it may become a habit.
I have a 2 year old and this is what worked for me. Frist stop buying the biscuits just dont have any in the house for a week or two, and tell her all gone. For the fussy eating try to give her finger foods so that she can feed them to herself, forget the spoon it will just end up on the floor anyways. If that doesn't work try feeding her later then what you normally do, so that way she is sure to be hungry.
i don't believe tormenting her by hiding what she likes and not giving into her plea is the right solution! but u can try making dinner time fun as well as nutritious, make fun sounds when feeding her most babies fall for that.Include plane sounds and motions with the spoon/fork. or get someone else she likes more to feed her.
I find that sometimes my son will eat better if you just ignore him and let him get on with it. Give her a bowl or plate of easy to eat food, a spoon and/or fork and sit down with her and eat your own food (ideally the same as she is eating). She may be doing this simply for the attention!
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