My toddler won't eat...

[midnight armadillo]

Our very energetic toddler has been refusing to eat much for days. He's 19 months old, and is getting his '2 year old' molars in the back. Motrin & Oragel keep him from chewing his fingers off, but we can't get him to eat. For example, a normal breakfast would be 6 oz of whole milk yogurt, a slice of whole wheat toast & butter, a bowl of blueberries, a cup of whole milk, and maybe some bites of me and my wife's food. Today he ate 2 spoonfuls of his favorite yogurt, two bites of waffle, and three bites of zucchini bread, and only drank water.

It's so frustrating since he's lost a bit of weight and is clearly hungry alot! He's always been in 90+th percentile for height and 50th for weight, so he's sort of tall and a bit on the skinny side, and doesn't have a lot of pudge to fall back on.

Is this just a passing phase, or should we be concerned? He still nurses but only at night to go to sleep, we've recently weaned him off nursing other than that. I'll post a pic later, he's super cute :-)

[wildeyed]

1. If they don't seem sick, I don't worry about the eating or lack of it.

And 2 spoonfuls of his favorite yogurt, two bites of waffle, and three bites of zucchini bread is actually pretty good for this age. Mine goes through phases where he only eats one type of food, like only fruit or something. But I have faith that he knows what his body needs and just kind of go with it. I don't give him junk, for the most part, so he has plenty of healthy choices.

My husband's mother forced him to eat when he was a toddler and in retaliation he developed stubborn, picky eating habits that are with him to this day.

Sounds like your guy is just having teething pain and will snap back after the teeth erupt. Have you tried cold stuff? Maybe whole fruit popsicles with a little yogurt stirred in? Sometimes the cold soothes the gums.

Good luck! My daughter was an easy teether, but hoo-boy, my son made up for that.

[The empressof all]

3. He will be fine

I agree, cold stuff is helpful for teething. Try mixing some frozen blueberries in with the yougurt (In a blender) for a fruit smoothie. When my daughter had her tonsils out she didn't eat for almost a week (other than a lick or two off a popsicle) She was still drinking and lost some weight but she's fine and healthy today.

As long as he's drinking and getting a little something he's fine. Children this age won't let themselves starve to death when they're toddlers.

[SoCalDem]

2. He'll be fine...

His mouth probably hurts a lot, and food is not what he wants right now.. As long as he's drinking water and eating a little bit, he should do ok. Frozen Fruit pops or "gatorade" popsicles might be in order too..

Think back to any dental surgery or toothache you might have had.. Did YOU want to eat?? :(

Does he like soup?? Chicken noodle or tomato soup might be something he might like..

That age is when they start to "go on food strikes" too.. All of mine did it.. One of mine "decided" that he liked ONLY a particular food, and HAD to have it every day, until he got tired of it..

Just offer him food, and don't ever force him to eat it.. He will NOT starve himself :)

When he's 15 and emptying the refrigerator almost daily, you will look back on this and laugh :)

[cally]

4. I agree with the others...just offer the food

and he will eat if he's hungry enough. As soon as the molars are out, he'll make up for it.

I burst out laughing when you posted his 'normal' breakfast. That is way more than either of my teen eats for breakfast. I can't remember what they ate at 19 months, but that seems way more than either ever ate. That's not a criticism, just that maybe his calorie intake may go down.

[fortyfeetunder]

5. Kids that age process foods efficiently

Don't be surprised at the lack of eating. Kids' bodies are extremely efficient in processing what they consume. My kid nursed when teething and ate marginally at that age.

Wait until they are older and become more vocal and picky about eating. It will get interesting.

[midnight armadillo]

6. Thanks for the reassurance

Well, tonight he wasn't going so I offered him some cheese...and he ate a QUARTER POUND of monterey jack, followed by a jar of diced fruit. That's the little guy we know :-)