14mth old is hardly eating

[smileysmum]

Hi this is my 1st time on the bub hub forum. I have a 14mth old boy who lately is eating very little, yes his mollers have just come through but it seems to be going on forvever, how long do they go off their food for ?? mind you he is full of beans so he is getting his energy from somewhere.Its just so stressfull when he doesnt eat or should i say eats very little. Anyone out there going through the same thing as me would love any advice thks smileysmum.

[mummycloud]

Hi Smileysmum :)

Alot of kids go through phases where they eat hardly anything at all. All my kids have gone through it and they are all perfectly healthy.
As long as your bubs is lively I wouldn't worry. Children never let themselves starve unless they are VERY sick, and you would know if he was that sick.
Make sure he is drinking plenty but don't worry too much about the food, he is eating what his little body needs from the sounds of it :)

[Chickadee]

It's pretty common for toddlers to seem to live on air and the odd piece of toast with vegemite. I used to get very stressed over DD's lack of eatting. But she went to daycare and they always thought she ate well. When I stopped trying to make her eat and actually offered her less food, it all improved. Either I was less stressed or she actually ate more. This website from the Sick Kids Hospital in Toronto, Canada, helped me change my mind set: Appetite Slump in Toddlers (http://www.aboutkidshealth.ca/Article.asp?articleID=1702)

Don't worry if they only seem to want the same thing. Keep offering new things, but I try to make one meal a day something that's on the favorites list. Lots of finger foods too.

Also, breakfast is DD's biggest meal of the day. So encourage that. Typically she has at least 2 bowls of cereal OR 2 pieces of toast, milk and some fruit. And then all meals later in the day are smaller.

[smileysmum]

Thankyou for the reassurance that write up helped too !!! smileysmum

[Brenda]

Hi Smileysmum, I read somewhere once that kids learn very early on that it is their decision whether to eat or not. As parents it is not our job to make our children eat but to offer them food and they will eat when they want/need too. A toddler will not starve themselves, food just becomes secondary to other more interesting stuff that they are discovering. This makes me feel better if Jack has a day when he doesn't eat much. Doesnt stop me from following him around with half eaten sandwiches and bowls of yoghurt though, LOL.

[annsam]

Hi SmileysMum

My DS stopped eating about 4 weeks ago and then suddenly started again. Started stressing me out, I could not get much food at all into him. Give it a couple of weeks, dont stress and see how it goes.

[smileysmum]

thank you im glad im not alone !! will keep you posted on how he goes hoping it wont be long before he eats me out of house and home !!! smileysmum x