2 1/2 Will Not Eat

I have a 2 1/2 year old daughter also, she was a difficult one to feed too! We went through this a few months ago, but she never really threw up, just spit food out after chewing it. I worked with my pediatrician on it. It has certainly gotten better, one thing I can tell you is children are amazingly good at getting what their bodies need, even if it doesn't appear that way to mom. You know I also have another child who is 9 months old. I also stay at home with my children while my husband works full time. We should talk more sometime!

K.,
I am going thru the exact same thing w/ my 2 1/2 yr old son. Finally after almost 2 mo. of little or no eating everyday, we went to the dr. to be told it is perfectly normal. What I have done to help the situation is I keep a bowl of grapes on the table that he can snack on as needed, I got fruit snacks made w/ real juice(Welch's Fruit Snacks), Raisins, I give him a vitamin everyday, granola bars have also helped(he thinks they are candy bars) and he drinks lots of milk and calcium fortified juice or 100%Juice (Juicy Juice). These are a few things that are helping us, the dr. said it shall pass. I just hope he has not wasted away to anything when it does.(He is not losing weight) Try to take her to her fav. restrauant or have someone else sit and eat w/her sometimes grandma works for us. Good Luck!

Hi. I had this problem with my first, who's now 4 and a wonderful little eater. She eats just about anything now. And of course, I got her through it and am now going through the "no eating" phase with my son. I'm getting to the point where I was with my daughter and about to take the same action with him as I did with her. My doctor said that if there's something that they will eat, everytime you feed them, just give that particular food to them. My daughter only wanted to eat macaroni and cheese, so for a while she ate mac and cheese for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Honestly, I think what happens is that they get tired of eating just one thing, and it makes them want to try different things. After a while of doing this, I started letting her have bites of my meal if she wanted to, never forced her to, and after a while she started asking me for what I was eating. My son has been in this phase for about 6 months now, I should've already taken action, but it's hard to always make two meals, and I've just plain been lazy about it. It worked magically for my daughter though, so I'm going to give it a shot. My son only wants peanut butter, grilled cheese, or chicken nuggets, so he's going to eat those things exclusively for a while until he is ready on his own to try new things. You can figure out what their favorite fruits and veggies are and just incorporate them into their diets as well. He loves bananas, so that's good. I also have found that kids LOVE fresh squeezed fruit juices. I have a $30 juicer that I picked up and if I make fresh apple juice, they'll drink a whole 8 oz. glass of it. So, still try to incorporate healthy and nutritious things, but other than that, don't force them to try everything because it didn't work with my first, and is currently not working with my second. This way, mealtimes aren't a battle, and everyone is happy. It will become a stage if it works as well as with my daughter, so just give your child some time. I'm with you though! I'm starting with my son today!!!!! He's the same age as yours is.

You may want to take her to get checked. A girl I know has a daughter who is 3 now, and everytime she would feed rae anything, rae would throw up. It was awful. Needless to say, Rae had some sort of acid reflux thing, and rae spends a lot of time at Riley. So her not eating may be something deeper than just stuborness.

My daughter was the same way. She didn't throw up, more like gagged it back out before she would swallow. It won't last long. It happens after they go through an eating spurt to go with a growth spurt. Then all of a sudden it stops and it seems like they are not eating. Usually I would just ask her what she would like to eat. She loved canned peaches with Evaporated Milk in them. So I knew I could always get them and peanut butter in her. Just make sure she gets her vitamin and maybe switch to Whole milk while she is eating less. Soon she will start eating more. Then a lot more... Then very little. It's a cycle I've noticed with both my daughter and son. And their physician said that their eating will change when then go through growth periods. One snack my kids love are those whole wheat Sun Chips. So I don't feel as bad with them snacking on them. Also I could usually get them to eat some of my Nacho's. Which were your baked tortella (sp?) chips with crab meat & Colby Jack cheese over the top and pop it in the microwave for a minute or so. It's pretty cheap, quick and they think it's a snack even though it is actually good for them!

I have a few suggestions...

1) Kids want to eat what they see you eating. For example, your child won't eat her vegetables if she sees you refusing them too.

2) Have her help you cook. Kids love helping in the kitchen and can help prepare the meal in simple ways like stirring ingredients in a pot, setting the table, etc.

3) When a child asks what something on her plate is reply with something silly. Instead of peas say boogers. I know it's gross but it cracks kids up.

4) Positive reinforcement! When you child tries a new bite, no matter how small, cheer clap celebrate! They love the encouragement.

Some times at this age, they dont need as much to eat as we think. My 2 yr old is slowing way down on the eating. Its weird, she will eat like a pea and not eat again til the next day, other times she needs more. I know that when they are not growing, they dont need as much. Be consistant and patient at this age (easy to say, hard to do, I know). My son went thru a stage where he would make himself throw up to get out of doing something, I squashed that as quickly as I could. When he would do it, I told him he must be sick and sent him to bed. I fed him soup broth (like chicken noodle soup, but left out the noodles and chicken) and a cracker, making sure he understood that anything would upset his tummy even more. I made being sick not much fun at all. He decided that doing that wasnt as much fun as he thought it would be. If you think she is making herself do that, then try this, if you think its something else, ask your doctor to make sure she doesnt have something else. Good Luck!

I haven't read the toddler section yet, but maybe if you have a chance to get the book at the library, "Super Baby Foods" by Ruth Yaron has a toddler section that may shed some light on this behavior.

My now 3 1/2 year old went through a NON-eating period. She still doesn't eat somewhat. My problem came when grandpa gave her a pickle she didn't like. It was like she did trust what you were giving her. She has gotten better but still refuses to eat certain things. We just tell her she has to at least taste everything. Then she can have more of what she does like. Then her and daddy share a snack before bed. Ususally something she picks out.

I am a little concerned she is throwing up. I would recommed maybe having her looked at for that.

i would tell her no treats unless she eats dinner or lunch or what ever meal it is at the time. put as fall as her nutrional needs...try giving her pediasure...those nuta-shakes...they have all the daily amounts of vitamins and minerals she will need. if all fails...take her to the doctor because appetite loss can be a sign of an underlying problem. but from my experience with neices and nephews and friends kids...they all go through periods of not wanting to eat...especially if they know it bothers you.

I would consult a dr. if she is making herself throw up. Also look for a healthier snack than fruit snacks they are just glorified candy and are one of the biggest causes of cavities. At her age I wouldn't stress about making her eat dinner just find something she will eat and offer her that. You can work on getting her to eat dinner when she is a little older. Kids will starve themselves they have alot more willpower than adults. Your first course of action is to have a dr. check up be firm with the dr. that you want her checked out for any problems, then get a referal to a nutritionist she can work with you to find things that are healthy that your little one can snack on. R.

In my experience they kind of go through phases like this. My suggestion would be to offer her only dinner and nothing else. She will probably refuse or even throw up and even try harder but if you stick to it she will eat. She will not starve, trust me. Also you might take her to her doctor if you haven't already just to make sure everything is ok with her. This will make you feel better about her not eating because I know that I would worry that she was starving too.

my kids all did the same thing now that thier older they know they eat what is for dinner or they go to bed hungry. Let her pick dinner a few times a week that way she feels like a big girl making some big girl dinners it seemed to work for me. And tell her that if she is willing to help pick out dinner then she must eat what mommy picks

My four year old boy has tried that before, however he doesn't do the throwing up thing. What we've done and seems to work is make him eat four bites and if he thinks he's done then we put it in the fridge until he's hungry about 30 min later. Don't let her snack before meals, and take away the juice. that's what I've had to do with my boy and it's working so far. good luck with this, if it gets too bad(the throwing up) I might recommend seeing a doctor. they do say though that children don't have to have that much food in their stomachs because they aren't that big. However your correct if she is hungry enough for a snack after her meal she should be able to eat more healthy. maybe try a fruit insted. once she figures out your not gonna let her get away with this eating habbit, you can go back to letting her snack a little. We sometimes still have problems with my four year old eating, and thats when I put the food in the refrigerator. well I hope this helps. good luck, chris