Daughter Doesnt Eat Breaksfast

Maybe you need to shake things up. I wasn't feeling good last week and my 4 yr old wanted leftover chicken and Mac and cheese for breakfast I wasn't in the mood to argue and hey we eat breakfast foods for dinner so leftover chicken and mac and cheese for breakfast it was and you know what my picky barely eats eater ate everything and even wanted more.

I always stick with no snacks in-between meals if they don't eat good so good for you. If she is going to be starting school this fall you might want o pick her up some breakfast protein shakes so she at least has something in her belly

Since it is healthiest to eat when hungry and stop when full why not allow her to eat a healthy breakfast or snack when SHE is hungry? By insisting she eat on a schedule you set you are teaching her to ignore her body cues. I personally cannot eat when I first wake. It makes me nauseous to even think about eating early in the morning. I have 4 kids. Some eat early others do not. I don't force it. For school days the non breakfast eaters take a healthy snack. Their class all offered a time before lunch when they could snack but even if they didn't I would have arranged it with their teacher.

PLEASE DO NOT USE SLIM FAST or ENSURE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!!!!! Don't so that to your daughter.
I recommend www.BestBreakfastEver.com to my clients. It is REAL food with NO preservatives, NO additives, NO unnatural sugars AND my own kids, and nieces and nephews (some as young as 4 months) are ALL eating it everyday.
PLEASE READ THE LABELS!
PLEASE ask me, I have been helping moms feed their families right for over 15 years. PLEASE connect with me.

Just try serving breakfast a little later. A lot of us (myself and my youngest included) just don't feel like eating first thing in the morning. I need to be up for an hour or two before I start to get hungry.
It is hard for my daughter because she hates eating before she gets on the bus in the morning. But at school they have a morning snack (about an hour and a half after school starts) so she eats something then, and again at lunch.

Have you tried non traditional breakfast foods? My tummy always takes a while to "settle" in the mornings. If I eat too early or too heavy I sometimes feel a bit nauseated. My mother used to offer rice and pasta in the mornings. I seemed to be able to handle that better. This morning my kids asked for the veggie spaghetti we had for dinner. Why not? It's full of veggies and they were eating with no complaints. We also usually don't have breakfast until we have been up for at least an hour.

My kids are like that, like me. I cannot eat for at least an hour after I get up, usually more like 2. I am just not hungry and nothing appeals to me. My girls especially are like that and will eat about 2 hours later. I am fine with that but they do have to clean up. With school l starting, I make cereal bars so they have something to snack on until they do have their lunch. They can eat it between classes or save it for afternoon. They go to lunch at 10:30 or 11 and don't leave school until 3:10.
Honestly,. when they were ounger, I got really frustrated with it but even if they did eat it was a really small amount and not their fault they are not hungry. Sometimes it takes time for your stomach to wake up.

Wow, she's 5 and you're letting her be in charge. Sorry, but that is what it sounds like when I read your note. She must eat breakfast, whether she wants to or not. It doesn't have to be big, but it has to be something. The body needs it to function properly. I would take away something, give consequences, etc., until she changes. You are the parent. You must do what is best for your child, even when they don't agree with you. Be tougher on this one, find something she likes, and make her eat. Sorry. Maybe a Carnation Instant Breakfast, or something like a smoothie, would do the trick.

My five-year-old daughter hates to eat breakfast, too. What has worked though, and this sounds strange, is giving her Slim Fasts. She saw mine one day and wanted a sip. Now, she has one of those every morning. They're full of vitamins and protein so I figure they're giving her the boost she needs to start the day off right. Not thrilled with the sugar content, but I figure it's better than her leaving in the morning with nothing in her stomach.

Usually, I'd just agree with you and leave it at that, however I used to have trouble eating in the early morning too! It seems that (with breakfast) eating it is more a matter of habit than anything else. Have you tried letting her choose her own cereal or maybe just having a yoghurt or a fruit? At first, really small portions. My 15 year old daughter also skips breakfast if I don't have a quick snack she can grab "on the run"! Maybe if you offer your child 2 healthy options (eg a soft-boiled egg & soldiers or a "smoothie") she'll be more likely to eat it cos she chose it. Good luck! :)

I completely understand.
My mom went through this with my sister.
Here's my thinking:
some people are morning people
some are night people
therefore they either like to eat in the morning and eat more before noon
while evening folks like to tank up in the evening.
While I agree, it is important to start your day with something in your stomach, I wouldn't withold snacks as that is when she is hungry.
I say let her have a wholesome snack when she is hungry later in the evening.
Having said that, how about trying something different for breakfast like homemade banana smoothie, different cereal, egg burrito ( probably won't want this but a suggestion), shake, toast w/peanut butter, sliced fruit of her choosing, quesadilla, warm oatmeal w/dried cranberries/little bit of brown sugar etc
* Find what she enjoys eating.
* Don't offer breakfast as SOON as she gets up.....most likely not hungry yet.
* Offer something she likes two hours after waking maybe (try waiting different lengths of time in order to find her "hunger time". I know with me I like to eat in the morning but not as soon as I jump out of bed)
* Don't punish for NOT eating breakfast as she will associate an "uncomfortable, uneasy, unhappy" feeling w/eating. Try coming at it different ways.
I know it's frustrating but keep working "around and with it" and you will come to a great compromise: she will eat and mom will be happy knowing she is getting her nutrients/energy for the day.

Mine aren't hungry when they get out of bed, neither am I. I have to be up and moving a good hour or so before I put food in me.
Serve it a little later.

Better yet, teach her how to make her own. PAncakes can be frozen and microwaved or toasted. Eggs are super easy to scramble. Kindergartners can learn to make them.
Oatmeal can be made in the microwave.
Keep cereals around.
Cut fruit up that she will eat or keep grapes around.
Yes breakfast is the most important meal of the day, it will also cause undo stress if you force her to eat. Which I see you are not.
My mom used to force eggs on me until I was in 8th grade to this day I won't touch an egg. I don't even know what they taste like anymore.

You are on the right road. Food issues are always a NO-WIN situation. My advice is to offer her a variety of foods in small amounts. Give her a reasonable amount of time to finish. If she doesn't eat, do not put any energy on the issue. Simply remind her that there will not be food available until lunch. Give her ONE opportunity to change her mind and then say in a cheery voice, "OK sweetie, you can go play now.". Food issues are often more about control than about nutrition or hunger. Take the energy off it and she will some around.
LL

Get her up earlier so she has plenty of time to wake up before you offer food. What works in my house is to give two choices, not do you want breakfast or what do you want for breakfast but do you want cereal or oatmeal?

I think it's a good solution. If she doesn't want to take it then fine. It's so hard for me to force breakfast b/c I am SO not a breakfast eater. I hear all the time most important meal of the day, but I am simply not hungry and most foods make me gag first thing in the morning. If I do eat breakfast it's only a piece of fruit or something like a piece of toast. Perhaps she has a weak stomach in the morning and needs a light meal. Idk what you cook for breakfast, but be open minded... I need to wake up for a while before I can eat. Good luck! :-)

I can't eat first thing when I get up and neither can either of my kids.
Before school, my kids always just had a light breakfast, maybe oatmeal and toast or fruit and yogurt. They just weren't hungry and I didn't make a deal of it because I eat lunch and dinner. I just pick and peck for breakfast.
Breakfast is SUPPOSED to be the most important meal of the day, but my body just doesn't work that way and I have a girl and a boy 10 years apart. Neither of them were big breakfast eaters. My daughter is now 24 and my son just turned 16.
We don't hit the floor hungry and wanting to eat.
A lot of people are that way.
When your daughter starts school, she may not be hungry for lunch if she eats a big breakfast so you just kind of have to figure out the routine of all that. She just might not be a morning eater but really do well at lunch and dinner.

Just another perspective.
Best wishes.

You are handling it perfectly. She's old enough to understand. She'll start getting hungry before lunch and realize she needs to eat breakfast. Just don't give in and give her snacks. Unless it's raw broccoli. Hee hee.

My son is the same way-and so was I, so I'm not sure he will ever change!

I drink a protein shake every morning-I just can't seem to stomach 'eating' before 9am...can't explain it. So I encourage him to do the same-I can at least get him to do that with a smoothie or shake or whatever. We call it 'shake milk". :)

You're smart, very smart, not to let this turn into a power struggle! You're right now to push her too hard just now. But I agree with you -- breakfast is very important (that's why schools often say "make sure your child eats good breakfast" on all the items we get about upcoming testing, field day, any special event etc. at school).

Keep up the "No morning snacks, you will have to wait until lunch" thing you're doing. Yes, some kids just are not into breakfast. But especially when she starts all-day school (assuming she's not in school yet) you'll need to get something into her even if she is never a big breakfast person.

Have you tried offering new and different items? Is she used to maybe a certain, set list of things -- cereals or eggs -- and if so, would it help to say, today you can have cereal OR yogurt and fruit, or today you can have eggs and toast OR....seriously, if her favorite snack is raw carrots and grapes and a piece of cheese, why not have that as breakfast? I'm not saying run a restaurant and let her "order" whatever she wants; I don't believe in that. But you could try giving her foods that are beyond the traditional breakfast foods -- there is no rule that you can't have carrrots and cheese for breakfast, or a PB sandwich. It might even help if you sit down and eat that sandwich or whatever as your own breakfast next to her!

I'm surprised that her kindergarten doesn't have a morning snack-- a lot of kids eat early around 6:30am and they get hungry way before lunch-- esp. little kids... maybe ask her teacher if they can eat a snack during morning playground? that's what my daughter's school does.... i would NOT like to teach a class of hungry five year olds :)

anyway-- my girls eat "breakfast"" in the car-- bad, I know, but they are not hungry right when they get up, and i want them to eat a little something. basically, they drink a glass of milk (in a covered cup, or sippy type cup to head off spills) and they munch on cereal in a baggie, or a banana or grapes, or a slice of bread w peanut butter or nutella folded over, a healthy but yummy mini muffin, a cereal bar, a hard boiled egg, a cheese stick and multigrain crackers, a yogurt stick or drink, applesauce, etc. try to think of something fun and appealing and healthy-ish that she would like to eat. As pp said, it doesn't have to be a traditional breakfast type food.

the good thing is they are little so they don't need a huge breakfast, esp if she can eat a quick morning snack at school...

and she might be one of those people who doesn't need much in the morning,,,,

good luck :)