2 year old being fussy

Make-it-3

If you BLW then I would continue to apply the same principles, ie keep it stress free - offer the same as what you eat (obvious try to include at least something you know they will like).

Babies and children have different nutritional needs to us, they are growing and use up tons of energy so its not surprising they prefer carbs to carrotts. We are the ones getting all worked up about 5-a-day etc and are they getting vitamins etc.

Look at what he eats over the course of a week not on individual days. You say he eats bread, pasta, fruit, yoghurt, cheese, milk - sounds pretty healthy to me.

nikki1520

My son is super fussy- we call him four meals Mason, as he rotates between 4 meals, and that's it. We've tried "try something new" challenges, where if he tried 4 new things then he got a prize, we've tried eat what you're given, but caved after 48 hours where he didn't eat anything. We now just give him what he likes and that's it - hopefully he'll grow out of it soon. Having taken him to the GP who had a look at him and said, "well, he's obviously healthy, so I wouldn't worry" thats exactly what we do. Fortunately he likes a lot of fruit - although the dentist told us off for that last week - you just can't win it seems !

fluffnutter

threemuttleys wrote: »

DS up til the last 2 months or so, had been a good eater. Even if he didnt like something, he would at least pick it up and have a go (baby led weaning)

BUT, the last 8 weeks or so, he has not been eating anything. (Bar, bread, pasta, rice, sweets, biscuits) He is drinking normally, and t'other end is regular enough.

Oh and I had a chat last night, and we have decided to go down the "if you dont eat it, you will get nothing (lunch) piece of fruit (dinner) route")

Am I going about this the right way?

He's your child of course, but I'd say not. Don't turn food into a battle-ground. He's eating bread, pasta, rice, sweets and biscuits. Sure, it's not a particularly balanced diet, but he's eating something. There's a world of difference between a picky eater (will eat but only from a very limited group of foods) and a poor eater (will eat very little). The first group normally thrives and comprises about 90% of small children!

Only worry if your child is listless or losing weight. Until then, do not draw attention to their eating habits. Food should not be a source of anxiety.

sassyblue

I think it's a stage they go through too. What l did its our little one was put a 'sharing bowl' on the table during meals (just extra veg or meat) that me and DH would take stuff from for our plate, eventually he would do the same.

I also used to say 'well done for trying something else', daft but it worked for him and don't overload his plate, just give him what he eats and one other thing you hope he picks at, he'll soon become interested again.

fawd1

OK, I may get slammed for this, but both of mine went through that phase, and I did exactly what you're doing. My eldest is quite a foodie so it didn't last for ages, but he suddenly decided he didn't like any vegetables, or rice, or anything that didn't have breadcrumbs on.

What I would do is serve food I knew he liked, with some vegetables. Then, I wouldn't let him have dessert or leave the table until he'd had one bite at least. I didn't shout or get angry, I'd just stay in the kitchen with him until he ate one bite. He's now back to eating everything. With my youngest, he has always been much more fussy so it was a little bit tougher (although helped by watching his big brother eat veg). The thing that really got him gobbling his food up was me pretending to eat it.

I would also really, really recommend cutting down on his milk. That is exactly what I did at my HV insistence when I was worried that my youngest didn't eat much. I was giving him 3 cups a day and she said if he loves milk and isn't that fussed about food, then he'll use milk to fill up if you let him. From then on, I've given him one cup in the morning and one in the evening and his appetite has shot up. He's just coming up to 2 and a half, so about the same stage as your LO. Could be worth trying. Give him one cup in the morning, none during the day, then one right before bed, but at least an hour and a half after food, so he can't use it as a substitute for a meal.