Toddler Won't Eat! - Mission,KS

Give him the milk after his dinner. It's pretty common for kids to fill up on it and so they don't want their food. When you do give him his milk, only put a small amount i his cup so he doesn't fill up. Tell him he can have more after he takes more bites of food.

I'm hardcore with my level of patience & consistency. While there is usually a "recovery time" after illness, once I believe we should be back on track.....I stand firm.

Allow him just a little bit of milk & insist on "4 bites before another drink". Keep at it....& your toddler will be back on track.

& please, please don't offer him special treats or rewards! If he's well, then it's time to get life going again......

If he's only been feeling better for a week, I wouldn't push too hard on the foods he'll eat. This age is typically very conservative about what foods, flavors and textures they are willing to eat anyway. And they tend to eat far less than parents can believe will sustain them. But toddlers often need very little food unless they are in an active growth spurt, and many nutritional researchers believe this eating-resistant stage is a way humanity developed to protect toddlers from eating dangerous plants, berries and spoiled food.

So make a point of visibly enjoying a variety of foods yourself (don't make too big a deal of it), and put only tiny amounts of a variety of foods in front of him at mealtimes. Use a large plate so the food looks like even less to him. Use a small glass for his milk to make it look like even more. Suggest that he eat just one/two bites of each food you offer, then allow him to drink his milk. It is actually pretty nourishing. Give him a daily multivitamin, and maybe a lemon-flavored fish oil so he gets plenty of Omega-3 oils for good brain and nervous-system development (Carlson makes a good one that my grandson likes).

Another strategy that many parents find helpful is to put out small, attractive plates of cut up fruit, whole-grain crackers and peanut butter or a yogurt-based dip, cut up omelet or other healthy foods for him to graze on during the day. Keep quantities small to avoid waste and keep him from feeling overwhelmed. You might also be able to poke occasional bites of food into his mouth while he's distracted playing.

It's fine for you to gently urge your son to try just one more bite of something, as long as this doesn't turn into a major power struggle. He may be a sketchy eater until about 4 or 5, and this really is pretty normal. My grandson is just suddenly turning into a hungry boy – he's just about to turn six. His parents could hardly believe how little he actually needed over the past few years, but he always had enough sustenance to play, grow, and sleep well.

Not that you should refuse to give him milk, but he's filling up on that instead of food which isn't good long term. I'd lay off the milk until he's eating some foods. Of course he's not going to eat more than a bite or two if milk is what he wants and what he gets if he howls for it. I'd make him a deal that he has to eat x amount of bites before his milk gets brought to the table.

Have you thought about a popsicle...or some kind of treat? Maybe get the healthy ones. When he asks for milk, maybe offer him a popsicle (I'm guessing he'll take it). Then, when he asks for milk the next time, offer him something healthy to eat with the promise of a popsicle to follow should he eat a few bites. Or, if he likes the milk, maybe the milk can be the reward.

I gave my daughter Carnation Instant Breakfast when she refused to eat. It will pass, you just need to be patient. Offer solid food at each meal and if he only takes a couple of bites then give him the Carnation Instant Breakfast shake. It will give him nutrients and fill him up more than plain milk.

Remember that you're the mom and even if he howls for milk you want him to eat food, so don't defeat yourself by giving in. My little guy went through this a few weeks ago, he wanted only milk when I knew he was able to eat again, so I told him he needed to eat 3 bites before he drank anything, and it was water during meals so as not to fill him up (milk is a solid food.) He cried, he whined, I stood firm (shaking inside the entire time, lol) and after about 4 days he was back on track.

Tonight he wanted yogurt for dinner, I knew it wasn't enough but would just fill him initially, and he cried and whined when I said no. I developed Bell's Palsy on Thanksgiving Day and he knows I'm not 100% and has been pushing his limits :-/ The ham and veggies weren't done yet, dinner was a little late, (it was a crazy day) and I suggested a peanut butter sandwich on whole wheat and he jumped at it : )

So try offering healthy foods your son likes, make him smoothies (fruit, yogurt, ice,) small sandwiches, offer water and milk in small shot-sized glasses (we get plastic ones for my dad to take his meds out of at dollar stores and they make perfect sized cups for toddler hands and hold less to spill) and ease him back to eating, standing firm on eating before his milk to balance his diet out.

Make him a smoothie with banana and milk and vanilla and other special things in it. It will fill him up and he'll drink it. It's a way to get food going again. Also try good quality Greek yogurt with honey or vanilla as it is soothing, full of milk and will fill him up. It's okay for breakfast or lunch. The Greek yogurt has enzymes in it that restart digestion.

Your going to have to let him understand that he MUST take a couple of bites before he can have a drink of milk or juice. That means you will be sitting with him and YES, there may be some howling...but you and he will get through it.

Blessings.....

This could be some phase, but in the meantime, you don't want your child to be nutritionally deficient, so make sure if he refuses to eat, give him Pediasure (its a drink/like a shake, your child will love it, you just tell him to drink this milkshake then if he doesn't eat). It will give him all the things he needs until this phase ends. My son had something similar happen years ago when he was little, we used the Pediasure for quite a while, eventually things turned around....

http://pediasure.com/kid-nutrition-products/kids-nutritio...

coupons for pediasure:

https://pediasure.com/coupons-registration?utm_source=goo...

I think it's normal too.
Same w/my son (he's 2 1/2), would rather drink milk, very light grazer & only his friends that are girls seem to eat better.
My friends w/boys have the same problem.
What do I do?
Promise to do something fun w/him just as soon as he eats.
Sometimes he'll have milk first thing in the morning then I'll make breakfast for all of us (eggs/hasbrowns/sausage or pancakse etc) then he'll either eat a few bites afterwards. Or sometimes I'll feed him some bites as he's distracted sitting w/us at the table, watching cartoons or speaking w/us.
He has a small tummy, small appetite & fast metabolism.
I keep small things out for him to graze on.
And.....sometimes when we are out running errands, I will treat ourselves to a local cafe for lunch: soup, salad or sandwich. And he loves eating that.
I know moms will say that's not good but I do what works for US!
I have a friend w/a 10 yr old son. He is light eater with a trim body & super fast metabolism.
So do what works for you and YOUR son!
Try different things (the healthy veggies/snacks on the table), trying
different foods, going out to eat once in awhile etc.
I don't go by a book or what others tell me he SHOULD be doing.
I talk to his ped & do what works for us.
Try not to worry too much and try diff little things! :)

Edit: also, sometimes I will let him have some milk then try an hr later w/some different types of foods.
His milk is his "security blanket" while some kids have their binky, favorite snuggle toy, thumb sucking etc. I would let him have the milk and supplement. He is still young.