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Help - my toddler wont eat!

Printed From: OHbaby!
Category: Have A Baby?
Forum Name: Toddler Times
Forum Description: Is bubs growing up and getting into everything? How do you train them to use the potty? When do you start feeding solids? Share your tips and advice here!
URL: https://www.ohbaby.co.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=18622
Printed Date: 23 July 2025 at 1:36am
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Topic: Help - my toddler wont eat!
Posted By: cat007
Subject: Help - my toddler wont eat!
Date Posted: 26 June 2008 at 7:22pm
My toddler isnt eating properly and I am at my wits end. He eats weetbix for breakfast okay but then at lunch, he only picks at a sandwich and eats a pot of yoghurt. He then only eats a couple of mouthfuls if Im lucky at dinnertime.

I can still only get him to eat the odd mouthful of mashed foods ie veges, he wont eat meat, or any chunky veges. He also cant drink or eat anything with fresh cows milk as it goes straight through him. I cook him up a batch of his favourite veges and after a mouthful or two he spits it all back out and refuses anything more.

I could handle that except that he goes to bed and wakes up hungry in the middle of the night.

Anybody got any ideas?

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Replies:
Posted By: Bizzy
Date Posted: 26 June 2008 at 7:50pm
i've heard of leaving little snacks around the house for them to help themselves too, maybe some dried fruit or rice crackers or something... or i used to give the kids toddler milk with quik so they thought they were having a treat and i felt they were getting the good stuff too.
his eating habits sound normal to me. these kids really drive us nuts with their eating habits - my boys went thru a stage the other week of eating all the carrots from the fridge!   

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Posted By: cat007
Date Posted: 26 June 2008 at 8:09pm
Thankyou for the encouragement. I hate feeling like I am a bad mother because my son isnt eating enough or healthy foods. Its nice to know that this is "normal" and that other mums struggle with the same thing.

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Posted By: MrsMojo
Date Posted: 26 June 2008 at 8:18pm

It does sound completely normal.  Remember just 1 year ago all his meals were liquid and he fed several times a day.  He's still at an age where he's not constrained by our idea of set "meal times".  Experts say that most toddlers prefer snacking rather than eating big meals.  I think the combination of small tummies and short attention spans means big meals can be a bit much for them at this age.

 

Michaela snacks most of the day.  She snacks on dry weetbix, crackers, watermelon (her current fav), bananas, apples, mandarins, bread, toast (and also peanut butter and vegemite straight form the jar if she can reach it without us noticing).  She's also offered 3 proper meals per day and sometimes she's really good about eating them and sometimes she just picks but we're not too concerned if she doesn't eat them.  Tonight she was offered spaghetti and meatballs and she slurped some of the spaghetti for novelty factor then picked some cheese off the top but the rest of her dinner was untouched.

 

I was worried for awhile when she refused to eat any meat at dinner time, and there've been a few days where she's refused to eat anything at all.  At those times I get concerned but when that happens we give her a bottle of complan before bed to fill her up and ensure she's getting a good serve of vitamins and minerals.

 

ETA: she doesn't always snack all day, sometimes she eats like a small bird but I figure it evens itself out over time... it's only when she hasn't eaten properly for several days that I resort to complan.

 

 



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Posted By: kebakat
Date Posted: 27 June 2008 at 7:39am
Daniels eating can drive me nuts sometimes. He is coming out of a stage where he refused to eat for most meals and did this for about 8 weeks straight. It really tested my patience. In the end I ended up getting tough with him holding his arms down and putting back in his mouth everything he spat out and now hes being good now that he's figured out that he simply has to swallow. We also get rid of all distractions on a bad day. No tv. no toys in sight etc, we think part of Daniels problem is that he would rather be doing other things than eat. We also offer a few different types of finger foods each meal so he can choose what he wants.


Posted By: Two Blondinis
Date Posted: 27 June 2008 at 8:17am
Originally posted by kebakat kebakat wrote:

we think part of Daniels problem is that he would rather be doing other things than eat.


We have exactly the same problem here! With Caitlin it's either she'll eat nothing but frozen peas or she'll have 2 dinners, a yogurt and a biscuit    I GIVE UP!!!

I figure she'll eat when she's hungry and just offer lots of healthy options (and hide the Poppa Jacks!)

Last night I made a really scrummy casserole. She puts one spoonful in her mouth and spits it out "YUCK MUM" I still feel bleugh so wasn't in the mood for a fight so I heated up one of those toddler meals "yum yum yum". Thanks a lot kid!

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Posted By: cat007
Date Posted: 28 June 2008 at 11:04pm
Its a relief to hear that its all normal. I have started giving him veges at breakfast time and he eats quite a bit of it.   At least he is getting some fresh food into him - then when he is hungry, I have decided to let him snack as he needs. He is mostly having lunches now but often not a lot for dinner. I guess spaghetti or creamed rice is a lot better than nothing.

I am going to stop worrying about it and just relax, knowing that he will never let himself starve and that it is just a normal part of being a young toddler. Thanks everyone!

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Posted By: LeahandJoel
Date Posted: 29 June 2008 at 9:32am

Leah snacks most of the morning, sometimes eats lunch but in the afternoon I don't let her have anything after 3pm and she will normally give dinner a good go as she is hungry by 4.30 or 4.45pm. I tried the afternoon tea thing but found she wasn't eating dinner, as soon as I stopped that she now eats much better. Every kid is different though and this is just what works for us at this particular time - who knows when it will change, if it will?!



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