19mth old refusing dinner and lunch-help

[alisonben]

hi,

my 19mth old has refused his dinner and lunch for the last 2.5weeks, i've tried evrything ie:his favourites etc but he just turns away

he is surving on very little amount of snacks like a rice cake or raisins, he is drinking his 2 bottles of milk but that is about it, i'm so worried he is not a huge baby and cannot afford to lose weight!

I'm not sure if he is teething, he won't let me look in his mouth his nappies are ok so i don't think it is an upset stomach.

Please is this normal at his age, is it a phase? what should i do? i'm also having to deal with numerous amount of nw's and bad naps and am not sure if this is all linked?

TIA

Alison xxx

[linfran]

DS is 22mo and every so often goes on hunger strikes.  These last a few days and then he eats all round him again.  I figure if he's not waking hungry at night and still producing wet nappies he can't be that bad. Plus, if they're having snacks, sometimes I think they eat more than you actually realise.  I try not to make a fuss about mealtimes otherwise he just realises it's another button he can press to wind me up!

As for teething, has he red cheeks or runny nose, nappy rash, anything like that?  My friends little girl did something similar to your lo and wouldn't let her mum near her mouth - when she did mange it she discovered she had mouth ulcers - a dollop of teething gel made all the difference!

Needless to say if you're worried or he seems out of sorts never does any harm to get him checked over, just to ease your mind apart from anything else.

[alisonben]

Hi Linfran,

Thanks for replying

the only thing that worries me is that his hunger strike has been going on for 2.5weeks and unfortunatly we have been battling NW's for the past few weeks as well, i kinda figured maybe the 2 were linked.  But no matter what i do he won't eat

he doesn't seem to have any obvious signs of teething except he is dribbling more then usual maybe it is his teeth, but does it go on for this long?

*sigh* i just don't know what is wrong with him, he can't afford to lose any weight

should i just keep offering him stuff in the hope that he will start eating again, and at what point is the hunger strike gone on for too long?

Thankyou once again for your reply

[linfran]

Is he eating anything at night when he wakes and is he waking at the same time (which would suggest a habit?)

Was there anything out of the ordinary going on (however small) when he started his "strike"?  Sometimes certain events or incidents can trigger weird stuff (ds is going through a very understandable clingy phase having been bitten in nursery about three weeks ago - this is a kid who normally tells you no when you ask for a hug!).

As I said, if you're worried ask your dr to take a look but I would at least try and get liquids into him to keep him hydrated (even yoghurt or custard can help).

One other thing I was wondering, how do mealtimes go, is he eating by himself or is it a family occasion?  Sometimes with ds you can get more into him when there are others eating as well to encourage him, even if it's only me and dh, it makes him feel like a grownup.

I'm sure you've already thought of that so forgive me if I sound a bit patronising!

Have a lovely Christmas (what's left of it)!

[magda1461]

alison...how much milk is he drinking? this could be ur problem...filling up on too much milk and not wanting his meals..i would honestly cut out the snacks for at least a couple of days..these are also fillers and if he refuses eatingn main meals then this could be a cause too.
otherwise u could go the opposite way and feed him evry 2-3hrs on snacky food....cooked carrot fingers, meatballs, toast bites etc....at least u know he will eat these whilst getting all the necessary nutrients......
let us know how u get on...
also do u let him eat on his own with his own cutlery..i have noticed DD 19mths will only eat if i let her do it! very frustrating but at least she eats! and she is getting so much better at it!

[Shdef]

I remember posting in the "what did your toddler eat today section at that age"

B: cheese sandwich and an apple
L: refused
S: yoghurt
D: refused

...

It's so annoying but normal 

[alisonben]

hello ladies,

sorry for the delay in replying, we have been visiting family

well it seems he is now wanting to eat again he had a bit of a stomach bug over xmas and boxing day where he didn't touch a thing and had bad nappies, but then after them 2 days he started eating again

I don't get it, maybe it was a phase, but it did go on for a while, i can stop worrying for now

Thank you all again for you help

[linfran]

Sometimes those bugs can work on them for a while before you actually realise what's going on!

But great to hear he's back on form.

[irish3680]

Does he get snacks at all during the day? Ella always had a pm snack, but about a month ago started refusing dinner. So I cut out the pm snack, she doesn't miss it or ask for it and now eats dinner great. I think her appetite decreased and didn't need the snack anymore.