22Mo Old Daughter Will Only Eat Certain Foods

Hi S.,
I know what you are going through my daughter who is only 14mos old will not eat anything besides chicken nuggets from Micky D's which is not healthy at all! And she will only eat some form a pasta once in a while. But sometimes they will love to eat one thing for a whole mos and than they will try other things. I brought my sit up to the doctor and she told me that, that is normal behavior. My other daughter who is 3 was also on a cereal and pb&j kick for a whole month straight after a while they will get sick of eating the same thing over and over again. I would just wait it out and let her eat those thing eventually she will get sick of them and will want to try different things. Well I hope I gave you some help. Good luck!

A.

You should present to her a healthy variety of foods and let her know this is what she has to choose from. You may begin by offering her one food you know she likes, accompanied by other healthy foods. You should leave the chips and cookies out of her diet for the most part, offering her crackers, baked chips, vanilla wafers, and graham crackers as alternatives. Food jags are normal at this age, but catering to them will prevent her from expanding her diet later.

Although it is easier said than done, what every child needs is the stability of eating at the table with their parents to start the path of healthy eating and living, and a sense of belonging. *Keep her at the table, each time she leaves put her back in her chair. She will get the idea that she has to sit. It may take a while and become tiring and a bit irritating, but Parenthood is the hardest most exhausting job for a reason... :>) Stay patient and stay with it....

First off, get rid of the cookies and other junk foods that have distracted your daughter. Keep the goods foods coming. Make her plates with the foods you want her to eat, or if she is capable (and it sounds that she is...) have her put a spoonful of each of the foods you are serving on her own plate. This sense of accomplishment may jumpstart the success.

REMEMBER she is watching Mommy and Daddy, so you have to set the example of what to eat for healthy living.

Good Luck, and it sounds like you are wonderful parents!

Hi,
My son, who is 26 months, started doing the same thing a few months ago - he will only eat certain foods - not many of them healthy. I bought the book "Deceptively Delicious" by Jessica Seinfeld, and it has some great recipes in it showing ways to add veggies into your foods so they can be more nutritious. It is a bit time-consuming to make a lot of her recipes, but I've found that its principles are easy to use on your own. For example, I roast butternut squash, puree it, and mix it into my son's macaroni and cheese, his toasted cheese samdwiches, and even spaghetti sauce. He wouldn't eat toasted cheese before but he will now.
There;s a good recipe for chocolate chip cookies which has no refined sugar and has chickpeas in it which are very tasty. And my son also loved the oatmeal mixed with pumpkin.
I still try to feed him more healthy things, and sometimes he'll eat them and sometimes not. Good luck!

Hi S..
The two's can be difficult as children develope a sense of who they are.
Children learn what we teach them ans they eat what they have learned to eat, until they become hungry.
I don't think food should become a struggle or a main focus in your relationship to the child and she has POWER over you by playing food control games.
Good nutrition is important so I agree with eliminating the junk foods.
At this age they can get into food ruts...my son wanted broccoli, lamb chops and of all things liverwurst!
Continue to offer oatmeal for breakfast...it's a good thing, perhap add a fruit with it.
Is she snacking in between meals and not hungry at mealtimes? Is she physically active to work up an appetite?

I suggest you continue to prepare balanced meals and offer to her what you are eating. You can cut sandwiches in fancy shapes with cookie cutters, make faces with veggies, add grated veggies to disguise them.

Yogurt, cheeses, even ice cream on occasion are all good ways of hgetting milk in. I have added cream chees into scrambled sggs for kids who were fussy eaters. They loved them!

She will eat when she is hungry. YOU KNOW what is best for her. Hang in there and be her MOM. She will learn good choices from YOU.
Justine

she will get over it just give her what she will eat and dont worry ..if shes at a good weight just wait for it to pass

Sounds like you have your hands full with the little one. Unfortunately it also sounds like she is ruling your world and she knows it so she is testing your patience.

Start introducing the foolds that she loved back into her diet and take away the foods that she will only eat until she starts eating the necessary food that she is supposed to eat.

Children like testing parent's patience all of the time. This goes on forever if you let it. Only you can take control of the situation and let her know who is boss. Try to tell her that she will eat i.e., the grilled cheese and then she might be able to have cookies afterwards for dessert.

Keep her to eating breakfast in the am, sandwich or lunch food for lunch with a healthy snack.

Introducing new foods to a toddler is exasperating in many aspects, but like I said make eating fun. Try different shapes and textures of food. See if that will help.

Good luck!

A. C.

Hey, S.! It's so awesome you care about your daughter's nutrition! 2 is a challenging age, but you're still the only person in charge of what she eats. She hasn't had enough time with you being FIRM about her options to understand that you really mean it yet. Once she understands that what you serve is what she eats, she'll get used to it. Don't give in! She won't starve herself to death. Give her small bits of her favorite things AFTER she's eaten what she needs to eat. Don't let her boss you around! Don't give he the favorites if she doesn't eat the meals you need her to eat-at last a decent portion. If she forces you to only give her treats, she won't be the healthy child she is now forever. My whole family has large numbers of children and NEVER offers alternatives to the set menu. All the kids eat what they are given because they've never known any other way. My two year old eats what I give her because she's never had a choice. We have no struggles and food time is fun time, we play together while she eats. She;s the only kid I know who loves fruits and vegetables. Your daughter won't remember the struggles from age 22 months-be sure they don't continue! Don't let her train you!!!! Good luck!

Personally, I think the way you were going is good. She will like to eat the foods if they are continued to be presented to her. I had a friend who told me early on this trick, and I find it to be what worked for us. Give her a little bit of each thing to eat (what you are eating, don't make a special meal just for her), and when she has had everything, then she can ask for seconds on her favorites. If the child doesn't want to eat what is there, then she isn't hungry, and you can tell her that. I went through this with my first son, where I had made him special meals (now I will make him whatever sandwich he wants as that is easy and doesn't require me to be a short order cook but put other things on the plate like fruit, yogurt, etc.) but stopped being a caterer when my friend told me this trick. That way the kid does get some of their favorite stuff, and they can choose if they want more, then they eat the other stuff.
I find this takes the "battle" out of the equation. You don't want this to become a battle of the wills. As you can see, she won because you caved (sorry, but let's face it, they will only work harder if they know we will cave), so she sees it as a battle. You present the meal and eat yours yourself. She is free to eat or not eat. If she eats it all, she gets seconds, if not, she wasn't really hungry. And she may say "but I'm hungry", and if so you can tell her "well, then eat, your dinner is there." If she doesn't eat, that's fine. She really will not starve. Eventually she will eat. Try not to let her see you stressed about her eating, because this will again play into the battle theme.
I wish you luck and bon appetite! (by the way, my kids are both TERRIFIC eaters at ages 6 and 8, though with some veggies like kale or brussel sprouts I will keep to this formula)

Hi! My kids are a little fickle with eating too so I've discovered that cookie cutters aren't just for cookies anymore!

Now, we cut most food (the ones that can be cut) into shapes they choose. It takes two seconds and if you have the plastic cutters your daughter can do it herself. My kids get such a kick out of the whole process they can't wait to eat.

Good luck with everything but I think it's mostly a stage. I think we get more bored with serving the same food than they get of eating it!!

I know this is different but a friend of mine had a son who would not eat solid foods. Period. He would only nurse and he was well over a year old. He was in the 90th percentile weight when her pediatrition told her that he would start eating only when she allowed him to get hungry. By the time he started eating solid foods he had dropped down really far - I think it was 45th percentile - before he started to eat. I was impressed thinking how hard it would have been to do that. But you can't really argue that he can continue with solid foods indeffinately!

With my kids we've agreed that that I'll offer them only foods that I would be happy for them to eat. Whatever I fix for the family, that is what they may have. They are not required to eat it, but they may not have anything else until the next meal at which time they again are welcome to eat what I've fixed for the family. They've never starved (c: and they haven't had trouble sleeping on an empty stomach either which was a concern I've had. They both eat really well overall.

Oh, with some things, like green beans or salad that they don't really like, we'll give three beans to the three year old that she has to eat, and two beans to the two year old. That way since it corresponds to their age their is some fun pride that helps them face it willingly. And of course no desert if you don't finish your dinner!

Hi S., Picky eaters can be a pain the the behind! I went through and am still fighting picky eating with my youngest and she just turned 11! All I can tell you to do is to keep offering her different foods. I require my kids to at least eat one bite of whatever I fix for dinner. If they don't like it they can make a pb&j but they get no bedtime snack that night. I too have a hard time sticking to this rule, sometimes it just doesn't feel worth the struggle! But when I do stick to it I have found surprising success! It's funny when your child suddenly realizes that they like something they have turned their nose up at before!

Sit down with your hubby and make a plan and whatever you two decide to do stick with it no matter what...I made the mistake of caving in too many times with my youngest which is why I think I am still working on this issue. Good luck!

My son I think is her long lost twin. He only eats oatmeal, sausage, pancakes & pb&j..sometimes cereal....and of course chips & cookies, but I try to limit that. I actually ended up giving up trying. I would try to make him different foods, but he would refuse them and just be hungry. He eats oatmeal for all three meals every single day. He also is at a very healthy weight, etc. I would just make sure that she's eating something. You can give vitamins to make sure that she's getting some nutritional things that she needs. Good luck! I can't wait until this "phase" is over!!

what you are experiencing is not at all uncommon. Kids just do this. It's good that her weight and health are fine, that's the important thing to remember. When my daughter did this, I just kept offering a couple things on her plate at every meal: the favorite, the thing I wanted to her to eat, and something new or neutral. So even a breakfast meal might be cereal (preferred), egg (eats sometimes), and a warm and appetizing small serving of grilled cheese (your example of what you "wanted" her to eat). She had to get used to seeing it. But she didn't have to eat it. I didn't make a big huge deal about it, because believe me, if you do, you could be in for a real battle that's not really necessary. Just be consistent, praise her for trying, stay neutral if she doesn't touch it, keep on presenting a variety of foods, and hang in there, enjoying her good health and her good weight.

I would ask the Dr about it I'm sure you have.

She might have food allergies and be avoiding things which instinctively give her tummy aches.
It could be more serious. Sometimes eating only certain soft food can be a sign of early autism, but if she is talking some and otherwise normal I would not worry about that.

I used to grind up meat and vegatables and mix them into pancakes ( put on a little maple syrup) to get my son to eat a more balanced diet at that age. It seemed to work. I know one kid who would eat nothing but peanut butter sandwiches for a whole year!!!!At least it was protein.

Blessings and prayers Nan

S., this is quite common and 4 months is nothing. I think your daughter has a pretty good variety. I can remember my son would only eat cereal and hot dogs w/ketchup. This went on for about a year. She will come around all by herself.

I feel your pain, but I have chosen to *try* not to stress about it. Both of my boys will only eat certain things & they usually don't deviate from that. The 3 yr old gets a vitamin & they both get nutripals drink(chocolate) in the morning. They are both a bit underweight & can used the extra vitamins/calories.

I would just give her what she likes & try to offer something new every once in a while. Good luck.

FWIW, both of my boys don't like grilled cheese & will only eat maybe ham/cheese & also pb & j. It is very frustrating...

I'm a lot older than you but I had one that age who would only eat vienna sausage, canned green beans and pickled beets at every meal! That last for almost a year. Then she started eating what everyone was eating. She's now almost 41, healthy, happy and a fabulous cook. Many kids around that age eat next to nothing. If they are healthy, growing and weigh the in the correct range,don't sweat it, you have plenty of other things to worry about. If you're still worried put a call in to your doctor.

Hi S.,

You definitely have a lot of responses to your dilema, and those responses differ in how to address the situation. Goes to show that with just about everything in parenting you pick your battles, go with your gutt instinct, and be lovingly persistant. All you can do is keep presenting a balanced diet--again and again and again.

Eliminate the chips as well as the cookies with trans fats. The sneakychef.com has some good, free recipies (you can buy the full book too) to assist with getting fruits and veggies into her diet. To save time from making the purees they mention, I buy Earth's Best babyfood or organic Gerber babyfood and put that into meatloaf, pasta sauce, etc.

Juicy Juice also has a Harvest juice that is a little more expensive but it provides fruits and veggies in the juice that tastes good! My two boys (3yrs and 17mos) prefer the grape flavor.

Overall, don't worry, her development is right on track, she's taking vitamins, so just keep the routine of dinner--sitting at the table as a family, talking about your day (even though she's 22mos, you can ask her questions and talk about your day too).

I would suggest not getting too upset about what she's eating or trying to force her to eat, which you've already learned doesn't work any way so why create that stress for yourself -- or her? What we do with our two boys is offer choices so that they have a little bit of a say in what they eat, wear, play with, what color sippy cup they get etc., but it's a choice between two things that we're fine with. "Do you want oatmeal or pancakes for breakfast?" This way they feel they have a little power and it isn't me saying, "you will eat this because I'm the mommy and I say so." Life is all about choices so help them start early on. :)

Hope this has helped. Good luck!

try pediasure which is a nutritional supplement. i think they come in different flavors. if she does not like milk try soy milk,it comes in vanilla flavor and tastes pretty good. it has the benefits of regular milk but healthy becuase it is lactose free but still provides calcium. she is she likes yogurt-they have one out for babies and toddlers by stoneyfield farms called yobaby. it is especially for infants and toddlers. try macaroni and cheese and spaghettios. keep trying you will find something she likes.

Hi S.

My son is 3 and eats a very limited menu of foods. I have learned that food battles are not worth fighting, toddlers have limited control over their lives and bodies and they very well know they can control what food they put in their mouth. Offer as much fruit and veggies that you can along with her other foods that she eats and one day, she will eventually try something else, until then don't sweat it unless your pediatrician thinks there is a problem.

We had a similar problem when my oldest was about the same age. He had a very limited number of things he would eat. One thing he really LOVED was roast duck. So we started having roast duck all the time: roast (beef) duck, roast (pork chop) duck, roast (fried chicken) duck... Same thing with my younger son and trying different kinds of lunch meat -- he insisted that he "only" liked bologna, so I offered him different kinds of bologna (ham, turkey, etc.) He learned to like all kinds of deli meats that way. (One day a year or so later he told me he wanted a sandwich with that kind of bologna that has the red thing on the edge!)

I guess it was a power struggle and as long as they felt they were in control of what they ate they were ok with it. Hope it works for you, too!

I have a 28 month old girl who is going thru the same thing. I honestly wouldn't worry about it too much. Keep offering her the food that your family is eating. I put a plate/bowl down in front of my daughter with food on it and she can choose to eat or not. Eventually she will start eating again.
(My daughter completely stopped beef, chicken & fish for about 5 months....she is just starting to eat it again.) As long as she is healthy and she is eating something, I wouldn't turn it into a showdown! Best of luck to you.