Author Topic: Getting a toddler to eat  (Read 2218 times)

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Offline Anders45

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Getting a toddler to eat
« on: May 15, 2016, 19:30:19 pm »
What can I do to get my toddler to eat dinner? He never wants to eat dinner. I'll put below what a typical day looks like. OH, and we are just starting to wean him off of his night bottle (the only one we give him right now) because it is no longer aiding in his bedtime ritual...

breakfast at 7:30 eggs, mush, pancake, and instant carnation breakfast drink (for calories cause he is small for his age)

snack at 9:30 fruit and yogurt

lunch 1 (after his nap) peanut butter and honey on wheat bread, fruit, frozen peas, crackers

snack at 3:30-4:00 ish crackers (he normally won't eat anything I give him during this snack time, even though he acts famished...).

dinner at 6 whatever we are eating: lasagna, spaghetti, corn chowder, etc... He will eat crackers and salsa, sometimes noodles from the spaghetti, corn, cooked carrots... but this is all very conditional on his mood. Sometimes he'll eat really well, but most of the time he'll eat a bite and then refuse everything else.

He's been getting 9 ounces of milk at 7 for bedtime, but we are slowly reducing the amount of milk in his bottles at night. I also let him drink as much water and milk during the day that he wants (which usually ends up being just at eating times and only a couple swallows, unless it is a really hot day).

Anyways, your suggestions would be appreciated. I really need him to gain weight, but that is hard when he won't eat...

Offline Martini~

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #1 on: May 15, 2016, 21:48:10 pm »
I am just thinking Honey if he might not be so hungry after a snack maybe and big lunch (if you have to push him for this afternoon snack) and than doesn't want dinner. You haven't showed hours but my DS if eats at 12:30 his lunch (hot and usually a bigger portion), he usually needs almost no snack at 2:30/3:00 to eat his dinner at 5pm. And he is also small or his age. I mean maybe he doesn't need that much?
Second idea is that maybe he is a bit overtired at 6pm? How is your day in terms of sleep? Many kiddos won't eat much after 5pm.
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Offline Katet

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #2 on: May 15, 2016, 22:03:24 pm »
My DS2 seriously didn't eat dinner from 2yo to about 6yo, even now at 11yo he eats about 1/4 of what DS1 does, he eats A LOT early in the day & always has & that seems to be how his metabolism runs. He manages a very heavy sporting program on the way he eats, so I think it is metabolic for him.

I was told that from about 12mo it's about looking at food in a 24hour period rather than meal by meal & at 3yo he will eat when he is hungry, rather than because it is a meal time.
dc1 July 03, dc2 May 05

Offline nona

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #3 on: May 15, 2016, 22:33:08 pm »
how old is your toddler?

i would cut back on the milk during the day and at night. just allow a glass at meal times.

my DD (4) has never eaten much at dinner. she eats much more at lunch. i don't worry about it.

also, maybe make his snack something like veggies or fruit or rolled up deli meat  instead of crackers?

is there a concern about his weight from the doctor or are you just worried about it?
heather




Offline jessmum46

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #4 on: May 16, 2016, 11:45:54 am »
He look like he's getting plenty of food in the day as others have said, and I also agree with the suggestion to cut the afternoon snack and offer him dinner earlier.  Both mine are great eaters but neither eats well with dinner much later than 5pm.  At weekends we eat early together as a family, and in the week DH and I eat after the children are in bed.  I'm also wondering about his weight - what is worrying you so much about it?  Is he just a smaller child or is there medical concern about it?

Offline Anders45

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #5 on: May 19, 2016, 01:22:26 am »
He is really small for his age. And he won't eat meat. Getting him to eat veggies is tricky too. But I've cut out the afternoon snacks and bumped up dinner for them and he's still eating just a few bites but better than he was. And besides his night bottle he drinks 6 oz of milk tops during the day. Should I be giving him less (we are weaning off the night bottle right now, too). Also he wakes up at 6.30, snack at 9.30 sleeps from 11-1 lunch at 1.30 and dinner now at 5.30 asleep by 8.

Offline jessmum46

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #6 on: May 19, 2016, 07:03:19 am »
What I was getting at with his weight is really is he just small because he's small (there's always a range at every age, and small doesn't necessarily mean abnormal!) and growing consistently along one of the lower centiles, or is there a medical problem? As in not gaining at all/losing weight/crossing centiles? It does make quite a difference to the advice as for a small growing child I'd say carry on as you are, whereas a child who was not thriving would need medical input. Without knowing I don't think I or anyone else can suggest to you to cut out milk or any other calories.  Sorry I hope that makes sense? Happy to help if we can but need to know the full picture really :)

Offline Lolly

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #7 on: May 19, 2016, 07:14:59 am »
And besides his night bottle he drinks 6 oz of milk tops during the day.

Is that 6oz in total or 6oz at a time more than once per day? If it's 6oz at a time more than once per day I would say that the milk is cutting his appetite for solids and I would cut that back in favour of more higher calorie/fat food. If it's 6oz in total I would maybe serve that with his meals rather than in-between.

I agree with PP though - is he growing and sticking to his curve even if it's lower down the centiles or is he not sticking to a curve? My DS was a chunky baby, quite high up the centiles but by 10 months started sliding down. Now at 9.5 he is 25th gentile for height and about 9th for weight (he's just hit 56lbs ::)) but he's been there since he was about 18 months. He's one of the smallest in his class, but that's where he is genetically supposed to be. Nothing I feed him makes him gain weight any faster - and believe me I've tried :P ;D.

Laura


Offline Katet

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #8 on: May 19, 2016, 08:09:32 am »
As the PP said small for age isn't always an issue. My nephew is a whole year older than my DS2 but he's a lot smaller, but then my sister is 4 inches shorter than me & her DH is 6 inches shorter than my DH & he's been on the 10th Centile all along while my DS1 is on the 99%th for height all his life too & generally speaking my DS despite being bigger than his cousin eats a lot less, it's just the different metabolisms & looking at your list of food, I don't think my DS2 would have eaten that much as a toddler & yet he's not small.
dc1 July 03, dc2 May 05

Offline creations

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #9 on: May 19, 2016, 11:06:35 am »
Echoing previous posts, if he is small it is not an issue, if he is failing to thrive it is different.

breakfast at 7:30 eggs, mush, pancake, and instant carnation breakfast drink (for calories cause he is small for his age)
I know you said he doesn't eat meat, mine was not a meat eater either and I was always looking for proteins he would eat to ensure a portion or two for most days of the week.  But your LO is eating eggs and peanut butter so there are two portions of protein already in the day which is plenty for most children.
I was not familiar with the instant carnation drink so had a quick look, is this drink on advice from your medical professional?  It's just that I know how my DS was, if he was getting protein in a drink he wouldn't have also then been able to eat meat or fish or eggs in addition.  Mine had something like a self regulating appetite whereby if I increased his dairy solids he automatically reduced his milk intake, if I decreased his dairy solids he upped his milk intake, as though he knew exactly how much of that food group he needed for his natural body size. Mine is a petite boy, the 'worry' for me was he only took half his guidance milk amount when he was a baby but as I've just described he seemed to know exactly how much was the right amount for his own body needs and followed his centile line.  I know you are giving the carnation drink with good intentions to boost your LOs intake but perhaps it is having the opposite effect and filling him up so much he can't manage to take more of the 'real' food?

I know pps have said their LOs needed to eat closer to 5pm for dinner, mine had to be even earlier, 4pm then 4.30pm for his evening meal otherwise he ate one or two bites and stopped.


Offline nona

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #10 on: May 19, 2016, 15:55:33 pm »
how many months is he? i agree w/ pp. i would try to cut back on all liquids. i let my kids drink water in btwn meals and a very small cup of milk with meals.
heather




Offline Anders45

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #11 on: May 20, 2016, 05:18:04 am »
He is 18 months and drinks a total of 6 ounces of milk through the day. If I give him novel ways to drink water, he will sometimes drink water too. And he is barely in the 1st percentile, but he has stayed in that percentile fairly consistently. So should I not worry?

Offline creations

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #12 on: May 20, 2016, 07:08:34 am »
1st centile is still on the normal range of weights, the aim is not to have every child in the middle or top of those centiles but to monitor that a child continues to grow steadily within their centile range.  Moving a centile higher or lower is also considered normal, moving more than two centiles either way would be something to look into.  It looks to me like you have a petite child who has consistent with growth.
How is the length/height centile (they can be different)?


Offline nona

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #13 on: May 20, 2016, 12:19:55 pm »
what has your pedi said? 

i don't think that is a lot of milk!

my DD doesn't eat much meat either. is it all meat? eggs?
heather




Offline shoeaholicanon

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Re: Getting a toddler to eat
« Reply #14 on: May 27, 2016, 16:47:18 pm »
This is my child too and it's so frustrating. Some times he eats well, other times he has one or two bites and throws the remainder of food on the floor.
I've also read that the calories are a total for the day rather than per meal so if he has a big breakfast or lunch - which he usually eats very well at daycare - then he may just not need so much at dinner time if much at all. But man is it frustrating. Goes against everything we want for our child!

Having said that - I'm glad we're not the only ones and it seems to be normal. Now to get over it and not be so obsessed about it.... ??? ;D