15 Month Old Who Doesn't Want to Eat.

Dont worry so much! It is prob a control issue that kids learn. My now 5 yr old use to eat everything (except tomatoe sauce) until we moved. Then she would only eat poptarts, fruit and mac and cheese. That happened at 2 1/2! She is now trying other foods. My 3 year old has always preferred certan foods over others. I bought a cook book called "The Sneaky Chef" by Missy Lapine. It is wonderful. I now get both of my kids to eat carrots, sweet pot, blueberries, spinach, cauliflower etc and it is hidden in the food. If you do it right, you can tell no texture of flavor difference. The book that I have is The Sneaky Chef to the Rescue which is her second book. She gives ideas on how to make sweets healthy so you dont feel bad when they eat it. Check out the web site: www.thesneakychef.com. I just bought the book out of desperation and it is working. My sons favorite food is spag so I hide the orange and white veggie puree in it. In hs noodle soup, i put the bean puree in it and mix good. My daughters favorite food is mac and cheese. I put the orange it in. I use the blue in pancakes and they are non the wiser that they are eating spinach in there blueberry muffins!

Also, my daughter has a real hard time when given sugar free items. They give her awful stomach aches and sometimes dark messy poops.

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If your child has energy, sleeps well, drinks, pees, poops, and is happy, please don't worry about his diet so much. Look at all the overweight people in the USA and think, "Do I REALLY need to stress about anyone not eating enough in this country??" Kids go through every kind of phase of eating and not; growing and not; and they WILL eat when they're hungry. They will also use it as a tool to 'win' against you if you make an issue of it. Please don't.

I am in the same boat. My son is 13 months and and only likes the fresh fruit, crackers, yoguart, cheese and baby foods...I've tried steaming veggies but they end up on the floor. Weird thing is is that he will eat baby food veggies! I don't think there is anything developmentally wrong I think they just go from eating mushy food to eating people food. I talked to my peditrician and she said beans are really good to offer so you can try those, even mash them up some if needed. Best of luck, but I wouldn't worry about anything being developmentally wrong I think its just he's being stubborn. Best of luck and keep up the good work!

well. um your letting him be in charge. at 15 months old i know hes not the one doing the shopping or preparing the food. so stop giving him that stuff. he will throw a fit, of course hes not going to be happy but you dont stop this now you are going to end up with an extremely over weight child. dont cave HE WILL EAT WHEN HUNGRY.

That's wonderful that you want to expand your son's healthy eating. This can be exciting for your son to try new things or frustrating as he likes to stick with his "favorites." The best advice...is do not give up and do not get frustrated (no eye-rollling, bribing, pleading, begging) just continue to offer him what you and your husband are having for meals. A wise woman once told me....no child will purposely starve themselves to death...meaning they will eat it if they are hungry. At 15 months, they are not eating large quantities, so keep trying. I would stop drinks other then milk or juice or water (I alwys added water to the juice so they are not getting all that sugar.) Making foods that are easy for your child to grab may also help. If he likes fries, make them by baking them in the oven with real potatoes, they maybe you could try sweet potatoes made the same way. My kids always liked frozen peas and not cooked. (Added benefit of peas...hand and eye coordination as they are eating them.) Good luck and do not give up.

The nutritionist seems like s/he is causing you a lot of anxiety about normal toddler behavior. Just keep offering your child some of what you want him to eat at every meal. Don't make it a power struggle. Show how much you enjoy the food and eventually the child will try some. I never thought my child would eat anything, but he's 2 now and will gobble up a green salad. There are a lot of things he won't eat, but as long as he's getting fresh produce, quality protein, whole grains, etc. I don't worry about it anymore. He doesn't eat green beans yet, but he does eat carrots and hummus. So just keep offering and don't worry so much. Your kid already eats a lot of healthy things and will not starve himself. He'll be fine.

Don't be so hard on yourself! This could even be related to pre-birth sibling rivalry!! If it wasn't for chicken and peanut butter, a couple of my children wouldn't have had any kind of protein until they were teenagers.
I try really hard to simply let the youngest eat whatever is on their plate that they want, but I don't let them snack when they don't eat any portion of a meal.
I say just keep offering him exactly what you and your husband are eating. Put it on his high chair tray so he doesn't throw the plate in the floor. Whether he eats it or not, don't worry and don't make comments like "please eat for mommy". Maybe if it's behavior based, when he sees you're not taking the bait and giving him lots of attention, he'll just eat when he's hungry. Then you can heap on the attention about what a big boy he is for eating all his dinner and give him a treat for being good - even something totally simple (and budget friendly) like reading an extra book.
Best of luck!

I agree that this a "behavior" thing, but I wouldn't call it a problem. It doesn't sound like the nutritionist has worked with many toddlers. Toddlers graze as they go, and that is about the best you can hope for some days. Every single thing I have read about toddlers' eating habits at this age talks about this exact thing. It's a control thing, toddlers have very little control over anything in thier lives, and they learn pretty quickly that they can assert control over what they put in their mouths. 15 mos is exactly the age my son (who was a fabulous eater before) started doing this. And it changes constantly. One day he loves waffles, next day he won't touch them. So seriously, don't worry too much. I tried never to make mealtime a battle- not worth it.

Mine is much better now (at 19 mos old). One thing that helped me get through this was allowing him as much control as I could over other things. Mine has been a pretty early talker, so that helped. But I let him pick between two choices (for food, toys, books, everything), help with things around the house, and any time I can see an opportunity to let him "decide" something. That really helped.

A couple of healthy food suggestions: flavored yogurt has tons of sugar. I make my son plain whole milk yogurt every morning with some fresh or thawed frozen fruit in it. If you need to make it sweeter than the fruit is naturally, adding a little sugar to the plain kind is still less sugar than the store bought stuff. If you try to stick with the healthier versions of crackers and cereal, these arent that bad. I do plain graham crackers and cheerios or Kix. I would avoid the fries, or do homemade oven fries. I never let my son even try stuff that I don't want him to get hooked on. My sister says I'm mean, but I figure he doesn't even know what he is missing. And then I don't feel bad when I let him have pie or ice cream on special occasions. And the natural sugars that fruit or all-fruit juices with no sugar added are fine. There is nothing wrong with eating fruit sugars, the refined stuff is what is bad. My ped said to let him eat as much fresh fruit as he wanted as long as it didnt upset him stomach. I would talk to your pediatrician and see what they think, but don't stress too much. It'll pass if you don't make a big thing out of it. Hope this helps.

Hey T., no worries, this is perfectly normal for a kid that age. Kids know what they want to eat and when they want to eat it and he will eventually grow into a phase where he is more willing to try new things. It sounds like what he does eat is pretty healthy, so don't stress or feel like he's not "normal" or like you're doing something wrong! I bet if you step back and just go with the flow a little it will ease your frustration as well as his. Some toddlers skip entire meals and don't eat at all and this is also perfectly normal for their age. My nephew pretty much only ate chicken nuggets and french fries and carrots for an entire year and he turned out just fine. Sometimes my daughter loves strawberries and will eat a whole plate and sometimes she can't stand them and she's just over two. It's hard to remember that their bodies know what they need and how much, but it's true. Just keep trying new things and he'll eventually grow out of it. Good luck and relax, you have a normal, happy toddler. : )

Hi T.! I have four children and all of my children were like that. My mom is a top notch dietician. Her advice to me was to cook 3 normal meals and offer 3 healthy snacks per day. She said to always include at least one food that you know your child will eat with every meal and every snack. Then encourage your child to eat "one bite" of new foods and either have a napkin or the trash can ready so that they can spit it out if they don't like it. You can try something new that no one in the family has ever eaten before and all try it and spit it out if you don't like it. Make meals and snacks fun.

All of my children were basically vegetarians until they were about 2 years old. I have no clue why little ones do not like meat. Mom told me to use yogurt, cheese, eggs, etc to get protein in their diet. The key is to offer 3 healthy meals and 3 healthy snacks every day. Children tend to eat smaller meals more frequently because they have smaller stomachs. She also told me not to buy junk food and sweets. Do not buy them. Do not have them in the house. When you have a picky eater they will often "fill up" on junk in between meals and then not be hungry at meal times. If it is not in the house they can't eat it.

Children's taste buds develop over time. What they eat today and what they eat 10 years from now will be different. My mom encouraged me never to make food/meal time a battle ground. Just go with the flow with your child and eventually they will be eating like the rest of the family. That philosophy worked for my mom who has 5 children and it worked for me with my 4 children.

Hi T.,
I agree with the nutritionist. No fries! If they are not in the house, he can't have them. Skip the drive-thrus too. You are blessed that he is so young, and you have the ability to start him out right. 1 in 3 kids are expected to develop Type II Diabetes and 1 in 2 if they are Black or Hispanic. You can choose not to let him become one of the statistics. Change at his age is much easier than later!
My adopted daughter was 10 lbs. at 9 mos. when we got her. She had to eat what we gave her because I was determined that she was going to be healthy. She just turned 8 and she has been reading labels since she was 7! This time with your son will pass.
I used to distract my daughter while feeding her. (Sometimes I still do!) If your son is eating cereal and drinking juices (sugar free are dangerous too), he's probably spiking his blood sugar early in the a.m., and he will continue to crave high glycemic foods like french fries, cereal, bread, etc. the rest of the day. Switching to things like non-instant oatmeal, egg whites, and other forms of protein first thing in the morning is important to get started off on the right track. It may be tough at first; but if you hang tough, it will definitely pay off in the end.
I'd also recommend a good pharmaceutical grade supplement as well as fish oil so that he's getting additional antioxidants.
Let me know if you want some food lists and/or other ideas. I feel your pain!
Good luck!
N. E., Wellness Coach

I know it's hard to change, but kids (like any of us) develop a taste for junk (crackers, juice, fries, etc.) and then don't want to eat anything else. That's why so many people are obese today - they only want to eat what tastes good. The reason that stuff tastes good is either because it's loaded with MSG (there are many names for it on labels), fat and salt, or it's sweet. We like sweet tastes so that we'll eat fruit. Juice isn't good for people, except maybe for an occasional treat. It's just the sugar and water left from fruit; that's no better than the sugar left from beets or sugar cane. Yogurt, unless it's plain, is loaded with sugar - more than a can of soda. The light stuff of course has artificial sweetner, which some people think is toxic. Most crackers are made of white flour and shortening (and MSG - an addicting flavor enhancer). There's nothing good about that. Don't have the stuff in the house. The fat kids I know are the same way - their parents say "he won't eat anything but cookies and crackers and chocolate milk...", so that's all they are offered. I know it's hard, but the problem will only get worse (it may get worse before it gets better) until you untrain him to expect that stuff. He knows if he holds out long enough you'll give in - you've trained him.

Hi T.,
I agree with some of the moms on here, it sounds a like a behavioral issue and this is one you don't want to cave in on. I just have 2 things to share with you. First off do you give snacks and how often? Make sure he's not snacking/grazing too much in between meals. Toddlers are just like adults in this respect. If we snack all day long we are gonna lose our appetite and won't be able to eat dinner. I usually give my kids two snacks during the day-one in the am and one in the afternoon. There is also a book I can recommend called: Coping with a Picky Eater by William G. Wilkoff. My friend was having problems with her toddler and this book helped her a lot. I haven't read it myself but she said it was good. HOpe this helps!

T. - I agree with your nutritionist that this eating problem - especially with a 15 month old - has become behavioral. Although the fries he is eating are salt free they are fried which is very bad on a developing little one. The fries, cereal, crackers are all starches which turn to sugar and I bet the yogurt has fruit on it and the fresh fruit turn to sugar in his system as well - not as quickly as the starches but they are sugars none-the-less. I know that it might be terrible for a day or two but he will come to understand when he is hungry enough that the food you are giving him is tasty and satisfying. I would suggest that you remove the fries from everyone's diet while he is struggling with this. Yogurt is good for him and he is getting the calcium and protein he needs but he is getting very little fiber - only from the fruit if it is fresh - and that is not good for his digestive system. Unless he is too thin, I would suggest holding firm and ignoring the temper tantrums. This is a real turning point between you both and he is learning quickly how to get what he wants, but he is old enough to understand when you tell him no and to know what you want him to do. A reward system might also help - if he eats something healthy (make it tasty) then he can have something he wants. Like a two bites for one type of system. You MUST be firm with the reward system though because he will try to manipulate you to give him all of what he wants without eating the other. You know that you are doing what is right - you must be firm with yourself and don't beat yourself up too much. This WILL pass and he will learn. Ride it out and let me know how things go along the way. Good luck - you are not alone!

T.,
My son is a very picky eater. He also has an allergy to eggs and peanuts. It's amazing how he completely stays away from any foods containing these ingredients. We didn't even know about his allergies until he was about 14 mos old- right when we started trying different types of foods with him. Prior to that, he seemed to be open to eating more types of foods. Kids with food allergies are notorious picky eaters. I don't know if your son has had any allergy type symptoms... Might be something to consider? As for the developmental or behavioral problem because he won't eat other foods- that's absurd! A nutritionist is not the person to be making that assessment. If you are really concerned, see the pediatrician. My ped just told me to keep trying foods and it will get better slowly over time- which it has, but VERY slowly. My son is now almost 3 and although he eats more foods, he is still extremely picky.

I have a 14 month old so I feel your pain. I have made sweet potato fries for my son and he loves them. I peel a sweet potato and cut slices and then sticks about 1/4" square leave them the length of the sweet potato then bake them at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes turning every 15 minutes. I also give him canned chickpeas or any canned bean. He also likes stouffer's lasagna which is sort of healthy. Try cooking spinach or using frozen and adding it to tomato sauces for spaghetti. Also I have heard that they really learn by example. If you and your husband eat healthy and let him see that he will eventually pick up good habits. It is hard to eat things that are not in the house. One more thing my son will not eat if he does not have something to feed himself so I put cheerios on his high chair tray to sort of distract him and then I slip in bites while he is trying to pick them up or right before he puts a cheerio in his mouth. Good Luck

I have a child with food issues. I can tell you from my experience that healthy food is not always on the top of their list. My childs weight was extremely low so most of the stuff we tried were all high fat. Try cutting up veggies (cucumber, grape tomato, carrots) and serve with some type of dip. Your child might need them cooked a little to soften them. Dont be afraid to add butter cheese sourcream or whatever they like to encourage a new food. It's a means to an end. My daughter loves sourcream. When we first introduced mashed potatoes it was a 50/50 mixture. Now she doesnt need as much sourcream to eat potatoes. I was also encouraged to make casseroles. I have made every casserole under the sun with no luck. I finally gave up but I still think it's worth a try.
If you suspect a physical or behavioral problem go ahead and have them evaluated. You'll probably need to see a occupational therapist, GI specialist and/or dysphasia clinic for physical issues. Behavioral therapist for behavior issues. Ive seen them all. Your pediatrician may also want to run some tests too. Talk to your pediatrician. They will know which direction to point you. You don't want to put your child through any unnecessary tests.
Cooking for a toddler can be exhausting. I felt like a five star chef for the worst customer ever. As a full time working mom and new mother I know you are worn out. Good luck!

I would fire anyone that is telling me negative things about my child. You should not focus on the behavior and just realize that your child is NORMAL. Get the thoughts that there is a problem out of your head. I have an 18 month old son that has been driving me crazy ever since he got off baby food at 12 months. All my friends with babies this age have the same problem. There is nothing wrong with your child. If you turn this into a problem, then you will have one. Let it go. Just keep trying different foods. My son loves grits and yogurt every morning. I hate feeding him the same thing everyday and I make pancakes, french toast, oatmeal, but he won't eat it. I don't want to make a big deal out of food and eating, so I just let him eat what he wants and don't make a fuss about it. I am worried that if you focus on it and make a big deal out of it, it will become a big deal. Just keep trying new things and giving him new foods. I would not give him fries. Do you really think that is healthy for a baby? If you never give him sugar and fat, he won't even know what they are and won't want them. Don't expose him to things that are bad for him at such a young age. He has the rest of his life to eat bad things. You should be giving him the healthiest, organic food you can find. One thing my son will eat are veggie patties, Happy Baby fish bites, and ABC pasta that you can find at Harris Teeter. I know this is a hard time, I am in the middle of it too. Just know that it is all what you make it and if you stress over it, your baby feels it with you. Make eating fun and relaxed and it will turn into that.. Good Luck!