17 Month Who Does Not Eat

Hi S.- While I agree with the other moms that he will eat when he is hungry, I noticed something you had said. You said he drinks plenty of water and milk. Maybe I would cut back on some of those drinks. He may just feel like he is full from all the fluid and that's why he's not eating. Just a thought.
My son is almost 6, but when he was younger it was a battle for him to eat. Tears, whining, time outs, you name it. He just did not want to eat that much. So, I told him it was fine if he didn't want to eat, but he got NOTHING else until the next meal, no dessert, no snack. He figured it out after he was a bit hungry from not eating his meal. Also, if he didn't eat lunch, but later told me he was hungry, I would re-offer him his lunch.
Your job is to have healthy nutritous food for him, and as another mama stated, his job is to eat. YOu can't force it, just like we can't force them to use the potty (doncha wish you could though?).
L.

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If I were you, I'd check with your pediatrician just for piece of mind but in my experience, it is completely normal for toddlers to slow way down on what they eat during this time. They just aren't growing the way they did when they were infants. Maybe you might want to consider reducing the amount of milk you give him - because if you're giving him plenty of milk he might be drinking his calories. (When he refuses to eat a meal, are you giving him milk to drink right afterwards?) And if he's getting full off of milk, then he's less likely to eat during meal times.

What I did when my boys were toddlers was to give them a small portion of everything we ate. One of my boys was SUPER picky and I would literally have to offer him a new food 10 to 14 times before he would even taste it. And then he'd have to have it for another 3 to 7 times before he might decide he liked it!

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Hi S. -

Well, like others have already said, I wouldn't worry too much as most kids are picky at that age. I wouldn't try protein powder, though - it's fine for teens and adults but the concentrated protein is too intense for a young toddler's system. If you're concerned, I would try Pediasure, as someone already mentioned.

Also, I would NOT try to force your young child into a strict eating schedule as a couple of people have mentioned. This is one of the worst things you can do for a child (this is what our parents did to our generation, and look at the problems most of us are dealing with!). It is well documented that children who are allowed to "graze" are much healthier in the long run and deal with fewer weight issues as adults. This is what I did with my own son; he is now 5 and sits down at regular meal times so it's not like they do it forever. Although we would ALL be healthier if we continued to eat in that fashion.

Anyways, good luck! Try Pediasure, and make healthy foods available to him at all times of the day. He'll settle into a routine at some point but there's no need to rush it. :)

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Hi S.,
When our daughter was about 19 months(and actually still)she was picky too -- but we were able to get her to eat boiled eggs! The novelty of an egg and peeling it in front of her so she could see it -- I think helped. She liked the whites only, but they were an easy source of protein. I'd pop the yellow centers in my mouth for a little extra protein too. This love affair with hard boiled eggs lasted for quite some time. She also liked pepperoni slices and canadian bacon slices, all easy for me to provide and finger foods for her. She would eat "bendy" bacon as well -- so she had bacon for breakfast just about every day (I simply microwaved a few pieces for her in the am). Although all those options (not the eggs) are high in fat and salt -- but the doctor said it didn't matter for her age. She has since decided she no longer likes eggs of any kind, but luckily she is old enough to eat peanut butter, and she does like that (she's now 5 almost 6). I don't eat a lot of processed foods myself, but pepperoni and canadian bacon seemed to work for her a lot of the time, so that is what she ate for protein for a while. Now she likes baked chicken, grilled steak, pork chops, some white fish, so she's set. She is extremely muscular but also lean, no fat anywhere on her at all -so all that bacon and pepperoni etc, did not cause her to gain weight. Sorry, no advice on the whey protein powder, but I bet you could find that on the internet by googling "whey protein for children how much"

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Kids that age are notoriously picky eaters. My older son, 4, was and still is very picky. And I've got a 17 month old too, kid won't eat a darn thing. And if you offer something he doesn't want he throws it on the floor. Good times.

So what I do... since they like milk, I mix carnation instant breakfast in their milk. Not all the time, but usually in the morning that way I know they are getting some nutrition for breakfast if they decide not to eat.

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S.,

Ahh, isn't toddler hood filled with frustrations? Mine are almost five and 17 months (in a few days). They've both been good eaters (thankfully).

My daughter especially will start getting picky if I've given the same thing for the same meal too many times in a row. All I can do is offer the food. I've tried putting the one more bite in her mouth and she'll promptly spit it right back out.

I would try cutting back on the liquids offered throughout the day, and see if that helps his eating habits. It also takes at least 10 introductions of a "new" food before your son is able to decide if he likes it or not.

The other thing that I've noticed with both my kids is that their eating will go in cycles. They'll eat everything in the house, then they'll have no appetite. This usually happens around a growth spurt. They'll chunk out then shoot up, be normal for a while then start all over.

Hope this helps,
M.

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Hi S.,
I read all the comments before mine and I have to agree with the people who said to limit liquids. I think that this is the time in your son's life where he is learning to eat solids primarily. So, if you feed him ensure or add instant breakfast to his milk he is going to LOVE IT. Those things are packed with sugar. I don't think it will help your situation. It will just get them hooked on that. I truly believe that kids will eat when they are hungry. If they don't eat breakfast, they will be hungry at lunch and so forth. I have to remind myself of this sometimes. However, I also remind myself that I have great eaters. Good luck to you! A.

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My son did the same thing and the Dr. told me not to worry about it. It's normal. They are still figuring what this food thing is all about :-). One thing I did NOT do is feed him when he decided he was hungry. I gave him his breakfast at breakfast time, His snack at snack time, his lunch at lunch time, then a snack again at the second snack time, then dinner at dinner time and then another small snack about 30 mins to an hour after dinner. I only let him eat during those times. I didn't want him to get in the habit of eating when ever HE felt like it. I offered enough food through out the day that I knew he would get enough of what he needed even if he only ate twice out of those times. Until he "gets it" I only offered "good snacks" like a couple slices of cheese and a couple of crackers or some fruit or yogurt, things like that. No "junk snacks like cookies and such. About 2 hours after lunch is when I would offer the "junk snacks" but only after he got used to eating on that schedule. The schedule I had was 8am breakfast, 10am small snack, 12 lunch, 2pm a little bigger of a snack, if he wasn't naping, if he was I would get him up at 3pm and offer a small snack. If I let him sleep past 3 he wouldn't go to bed later that night, some where between 5 & 6pm dinner, 7pm desert, 7:30 bath, 30 mins to relax and 8:30 bed.

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I have a picky 23 month old who is at the 3 percentile in weight and 35 percentile in height! He is very healthy, active and happy though so we have gradually mellowed out on the whole weight thing.

The fruit smoothies absolutely can't be beat as they can be varied and are almost always loved, and I like the other suggestion to blend in a few veggies with it! Also, if your son likes BEANS, as ours does, you've hit the jackpot of protein, fiber & iron-rich foods also sugar-free! Try mexican food like burritos or enchiladas, or make your own beans at home if you can cook!

Another thing he LOVES is soymilk! We get the fortified kind so he gets iron as well a protein & vitamins, and he likes it better than cow's milk! He doesn't drink it all day, but it is comforting to know he is getting protein & iron, and it is accessible between feedings and doesn't go bad as fast as cow milk. Also, fortified cereals contain iron & other vitamins. I have to admit that I will let him have ice cream (strawberry or vanilla), peanut butter or oatmeal cookies, carnation instant breakfast, popsicles, trader joe's greek style yogurt, and other goodies fairly often because he rarely eats too much of it anyway. In fact, I think that since I have been more relaxed with the sugar, his appetite for all foods, including vegetables has increased.

Some surprise favorites for my picky eater (ALL OF THESE CONTAIN IRON and PROTEIN!!):

Cantaloupe w/cottage cheese
Dried fruit (esp. raisins, apricots, prunes)
Oatmeal (use colander to sift out half the sugar, add raisins)
Mashed potatoes (w/cheese & Spinach)
Clam chowder
Soy Milk
Shrimp (esp. w/linguine & white sauce)
Chicken drumsticks
Pinto beans (whole even better than refried)
Spaghetti
Tacos w/out shells, or ground beef w/fresh onions, garlic, cilantro, tomatoes.
Whole FRUIT (watermelon, grape, mango, plum, banana, apple, orange, strawberry, peach, blueberry, raspberry, papaya, etc., use melon baller when possible, - watch out for kiwis, many are allergic to the fuzzy skin)
Buttered MULTIGRAIN toast (prefers over white, try several kinds)
Cream cheese cubes wrapped in ham slices
nitrate/nitrite free hot dogs from trader joe's
broccoli (esp. w/mac n cheese)
quiche (trader joe's quiche mexicaine)
CHEESE (when all else fails)

Like another person mentioned, ours will go long periods eating hardly anything and then down a huge meal like a viking -- usually when my husband cooks or we go out to a restaurant he likes. If it's a favorite food, it still has to be prepared well (& I am a terrible cook!) He will also rarely eat the same thing two days in a row. I think part of the reason he doesn't eat a lot is simply that he is a bit of a gourmet eater. I don't worry about this though because I agree that putting pressure on children only creates eating issues in the future. I have always been a healthy weight and eaten what I wanted because I love healthy foods as well as sweets, and I was a picky eater growing up. My husband was SUPER SKINNY growing up just like our son, but he is a healthy 5'10" now.

A book which really helped me to relax is "My Child Won't Eat!: How to Prevent and Solve the Problem" (La Leche League International Book) by Carlos Gonzalez. It makes a lot of sense to me, and I also disagree with any type of forcing with respect to eating! Finally, offering 3 meals at regular times has helped but I NEVER pressure, and always have lots of grazing snacks between meals (leave out cheerios, soy milk, dried fruit, crackers). I used to make 20 things per meal, but it has helped to offer only 2 or 3 things max at a meal -- if he doesn't eat it shrug your shoulders, kiss him on the cheek and let him go! Sorry this response is so long, but boy do I identify with your angst! Good luck. :-)

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First I would check with your pediatrician. Our TINY girl doesn't eat much, is super picky and has always been off the weight charts on the small end. It's meant for lots of weight checks and stressful meals. Toddlers are picky eaters by nature and even ones who might have eaten great before, slow down a lot and might not want old favorites. They also are great at wanting one main thing for days and then all of a sudden not wanting anything to do with that same food.

Things that have worked for us is:
- Stop catering to what they want. Now I just make one dinner - she can eat or not. We let her know it's fine if she doesn't like something and praise her for trying new foods. After a few times of having a meal, she usually will try things.
- At lunch or breakfast either make the same thing as everyone else or give him a choice of TWO items. Don't let him dictate what to eat, but do give him a choice.
- We aim for 1 pediasure a day but only give it after a afternoon snack or with a meal. I don't give it for early snacks because it's the hardest to get our little girl to eat much lunch.
- Limit milk (and any other drinks with calories). No more than 16-18 oz. per day. Our little girl would rather drink her calories over eating them most days.
- Rewards - we still have to bring out the bribery big-guns from time to time. Such as a dessert after dinner or a fun "surprise" activity (such as making an art project, going to the park, etc.). We try not to do that every day, but sometime you just need to say "5 more bites and you get a surprise." The main thing is that you don't give in for only 3 bites or tantrums. Sometimes they really aren't very hungry and you want to let them know that's fine.

Good luck! I know how completely frustrating it can be. :-)

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Hi S.,
I just want to "second" another person's suggestion about making smoothies. My ped also told us to give our LITTLE guy (now 15 months old) smoothies and to add a little protein powder, plus lots of good fruits and I also add a small handful of fresh baby spinich (or frozen if I'm out of fresh), shredded carrots and fortified Rice Milk (all from Trader Joe's). He LOVES them!! I use cups I found at Target called "Take-n-Toss". They come with straws, the lids are incredibly secure and we only have a little mess when he takes the straw out and some will drip on the floor or his shirt. I don't toss the cups though. I wash and reuse. I put a little dish soap on a pipecleaner to clean the straws. Good luck!

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There is a great book called "How to Get Your Child to Eat, But Not Too Much" that helped me get through this stage with my son. I highly recommend it. The big thing that I took away from the book is that it was my job to provide healthy meals and snacks at regular intervals and it was his job to eat (or not). I couldn't force him. This perspective helped take the stress out of mealtimes. In the end I discovered that some meals he would eat a ton and other times he would not.

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S.,

It does seem common for toddlers to be selective about when, what, and how much they will eat. Unfortunately, a hungry toddler is about as much fun as a tired one, so it's in a parent's best interest to make sure our kids are well nourished. All of the other ideas are good ones as well, but I would make one suggestion. Does your son like milkshakes, ice cream, smoothies or sorbets? If so, that can be a great way to make sure he's taking in many good things. Based on whichever of the above list of thicknesses he prefers, throw some goodies in the blender. Vary them by serving them with either a spoon or straw, or even frozen into a popsicle mold. Almost anything goes! Try bananas, melon, berries, oranges, peaches/nectarines, mangoes, grapes, kiwis, etc. Vary the flavor and nutrition by using either milk, yogurt or any 100% juice. I always throw in a handful of veggies--spinach, zuchinni, carrots, or frozen peas are all good choices. Adding a dollop of cottage cheese or peanut butter boosts the protein count too. Experiment with combinations, such as banana, peanut butter, chocolate (ovaltine?); strawberry, orange, mango; blueberry, cantaloupe, peach...Adding sweetener isn't necessary and as long as you have a brightly colored fruit, the green veggy will blend in undetected. I would recommend serving these as his snacks and not try to market them as treats. When it is mealtime, put a small portion on his plate of whatever the rest of the family is eating. Smile if he eats it, but don't act like a circus clown; ignore it if he eats nothing. Kids are so good at "training" us parents to respond, aren't they?! This way, your son will be receiving optimum nutrition even if he doesn't eat, but he will also benefit from the socialization of normal, happy family mealtimes without the stress of food issues. Been there; wishing you luck!

I would check with the doctor just to be sure but it there are going to be times that you are going to wonder what keeps them alive as they are eating so little and other times they will eat you out of house and home! They do pretty much regulate themselves. I didn't ever keep a lot of junk food around so I knew that what food they did eat when they ate was good for them!

The only probelm with supplementing is that it can let them continue to not eat. If they feel full from milk and whey powder, then they will really not want to eat. Kids go through phases and they will definitley eat when they are hungry. Try not to get too upset about it and continue to offer good, well balanced meals and at some point she will eat all of it and surprise you. My two year old eats adult sized meals somedays and almost nothing others -- he is growing and healthy so we deal. Best of luck!

S., what proteins types does he NOT eat?

If he does not like meat, he may have an enzyme imbalance, perhaps a low hydrochloric acid production in his stomach. Bromelain, an enzyme might help with protein digestion.

A little whey protein powder in his milk would not hurt. Please pay attention to dosage for a child for both whey powder and bromelain, but unless you over do it, it should not be of any danger.

Furthermore, you might try vegetable combos to help him with his protein intake...rice and beans, etc. Chris RN

My children's Dr. always told me that it is not how much a child eats during a 24 hour period, like adults, but how much they eat during the week. They will regulate themselves. My second daughter was a very picky eater and I too was very concerned, but when I started watching what she ate during the week and not daily, it all made sense.

Hi S., My sons are 2 and 3. My oldest son refused to eat meat and still does. I give him pediasure. He loves it and I feel better that he is getting everything he needs.
J.

I have a 12 month old who doesn't eat well, either. At his 1 yr well child visit the doctor checked his iron level and found that he was quite anemic. Now, he is on an iron supplement and we're taking him back to check his level again in 6 weeks. The doctor said that low iron levels can affect their I.Q. So, I would strongly advise you to get his iron level checked (it's a quick finger prick) and if you do have to put him on an iron supplement make sure to ask the pharmacy to FLAVOR it because it tastes awful and my son gags whenever we give it to him. It basically tastes like your sucking on a quarter- gross! Hopefully your child is not anemic and good luck on getting your child to eat better!!

M. Lamb

Between my children and my niece and nephews we've had some very picky eaters. There's been several things we have tried and different things worked for different kids:
1. Having them help make the meal. My daughter will eat anything that she helped make, cereal, french toast, toast etc... even if it's not very edible. Your child is much younger than my daughter, but may be able to help you.
2. Slimfast or other drinks of that nature. Don't make it with skim, use whole milk. This helps to at least get the nutients in there.
3. Tell them the benifits. We used this on my nephew when he was 5 or 6 (which again is older) we'd tell him that oranges would help him not get sick, spinach would give him big muscles etc. We always made sure we were giving him the right information about foods too.
4. Make fun with food. There are all kinds of books you can get, or even out of your head to make fun food. Things like "Ants on a picnic" using raisens "walking" to your little tiny cut up pb&j sandwiches. Making funny faces out of different food etc.

OMG!!!! I have a 16 month old in the same boat!
I buy instant breakfast and mix it with whole milk for him. It gives him some extra calories and vitamins. He love the chocolate and strawberry. =]

I know where you are coming from with the lack of food in his diet. Hope this helps =]

If your son is a healthy height and weight he is eating enough and you can relax. This not eating much and being picky is very common at this age.

I think you can call the pediatrician and give them your son's measurements (height and weight) and they could look it up on a chart and tell you if his height and weight are within the normal range for his age.

I wouldn't worry too much S.! He is still probably figuring out food, and will eat better as he gets older. My advice would be to keep offering him different foods, and if he is hungry enough he will eat them. Otherwise, he is doing okay. Only satisfied kids can be picky:-)

Hey S.,

I have a 16mo old boy who is super picky too; I can't get him to eat meat. It can be very frustrating. It seems like he eats nothing, when I consulted my sons doc (which I recommend that’s why they are there) he said to add proteins in other ways, like high fat yogurts (Yo-Baby is great) they are full of protein too, also we added beans to his diet, took a bit but since he can self feed those he likes them. The important thing to remember is that he is still growing then you are okay, all children eat differently.

Good Luck,
T. S
www.hometoowork.com

I have a 20 month old and was just at the pediatrician. He told me that a child that age may pick at 2 meals a day and eat one good one and that was perfectly normal. You can try things like yogurt, cheese, garbanzo beans (or any other bean) and tofu chunks for protein sources too. The Super Baby Food book may give you some other good ideas.