18 Month Old Will Not Eat - Pearland,TX

rule out anything MEDICAL and then...
when she is hungry she will eat, if not she won't! I nothing medical is goin on....kids won't starve themself!
See a pedi...if all is ok, then feed her when she is hungry! as a mom of a ton, i will warn you against becoming a short order cook!
best luck!

I had 11 kids. I also had that little problem, as long as the baby drinks water,milk or juice the baby will be fine. She or he will eat.

Hello. I had a 12 month old that just one day stopped eating and about wasted away. After many doctors we finally were forced to put a G-tube in. She is now 20 months and is fantastic. She still will eat very little by mouth. We are in therepy to try to get her to like eating again. The doctors have ruled it "food aversion". I just wanted to let you know, we have been there and it is so frustrating. Does she have constipation issues at all?

I am surprised no one has recommended this yet, so I will. My 2 year old son is what I call a "busy body". He would rather play than eat and I especially have trouble getting him to sit down in the mornings for breakfast. So I started making him smoothies, you can call them milkshakes if it is more enticing for her! :)
I use whole milk, a little bit of Nesquik (or just a chocolate Pediasure type drink), one banana, a spoon of peanut butter (omit this if you need to) and a couple spoons of dry quick cooking oatmeal (serves as a thickener) all blended up until nice and smooth. I give it to him on ice in a cup with a lid and straw. This way I know he is getting some nutrition even when I can't get him to sit and eat.
He absolutely LOVES them and gets excited when I tell him it is smoothie time!

L.,
4 words: Texas Children's Grow Clinic. They have a team of professionals who can and will evaluate your child from multiple dimensions. If you need a referral from your pediatrician so insurance will cover it, then get it. My daughter is a low weight child at 4 years of age. She is healthy, but thin and doing very well I might add. So, their expertise will at least give you comfort in having a goal for what you need to do, if anything at all.

Best wishes.

My nephew is about 18-20 months old and he too stopped eating. We tried everything we could think of and what others suggested. We took him to the family dr. here and he just said give it another week. Well, we took him to another dr. and he found out that he was SEVERLY compacted. They couldn't finish the upper or lower GI thing they wanted to do. They gave him stool softeners and some other meds. Its been about a month and we are still trying to get it all out. He will eat alittle but still not much. The dr. said if he does not improve by next month he will have to do surgery.

I really think you should ask about that and rule it out. I hope thats not what is wrong and its just something small. Lots of Luck and GOD Bless! :)

Although it could be general toddler food pickiness, might also be from feeling some gum discomfort... the molars and I-teeth come in around 18 months. Those were much harder on my daughter (and me!) than when her front teeth came in.

All of my kids went thru this at one time or another. Just feed her what she WILL eat and OFTEN. Also, try Boost or Pediasure to drink. She won't starve to death, but if you get really worried, then call your pediatrician. I hope it gets better!

S.

I went through this with my son, who is now 10, and healthy. His pediatrician told me to leave finger foods out for him, and he'd pick at them and eat when he was hungry, which he did. Kids brainds are programmed to eat when they are hungry, and to not eat when they are not. She will be fine. But if you are really concerned, talk to the doctor as he/she is the only one who can give you medically sound advice.

Hi L. -

I have gone through this with my third son, who is naturally thin as it is. I know what you are saying - it is disturbing to a mom to see their baby getting thin. But these little one's will go through growth spurts and eating a lot, then a little - give her a few days. My son usually will start eating again after a few days of not eating. His body is just doing what it needs to do - I wouldn't worry about it unless this goes on for longer than 5-6 days and she is looking lethargic - make sure you give her plenty of fluids to counter-balance. And, some kids want to snack more than have meals at these ages - maybe you could see if there are healthy, little snacks she might want instead.

Good luck!
Alli

Ditto to everything said already. My son was the same way. He lost 1.5 pounds from 15 to just shy of 18 mon. check up. We fed him pediasure INSTEAD of milk by doctors request and tried to feed him anything and everything he might eat.

If you are still having problems by 2 yr. checkup, my doctor is wanting to do a metabolic test when we take blood anyway at 2 years just to make sure everything is okay. So, you could have the test done just to make sure everything is in order.

(My little one is on the VERY SMALL side anyway and we are just ruling out anything else.)

Good luck!
B.

We just went thru this w/ our now 23 mo. old son!! I can commiserate w/ your worries :) Our son wouldn't take Pedialyte, but took milk & ate in small amounts. He too is on the small side to begin w/, born 1 month early & is just skinny genetically. I tried to stick with the healthy stuff, but it didn't always work. He would eat whole wheat bagels, cheerios, TONS of greens beans (he loved those), baked beans, applesauce, bananas & anything pasta. He would eat in small amounts-some meals only taking 1 or 2 bites, but would also eat 'heavier' later or the next day. I thought it was a growth spurt & our pediatrician agreed & said all kids go thru this stage!! If ever you're worried, just call the doctor-peace of mind is important too ;) You're doing great! Good luck & God Bless!

My daughter did the same thing but she didn't lose weight. It was concerning that she wasn't eating any meat or vegetables. I continued to give her the same food we ate. At the middle of dinner I would pull up my chair in front of her and pick off her plate and eat and incourage her to eat. She would take a bite of her veggie and then give me a bite. It works sometimes. We cleared out the house a couple months ago for ourselves so she don't have a choice to eat junk food. SHe is allowed to eat whatever she sees now. I give her stuff to dip her food in so she will eat (ranch, ketchup, bbq sauce, gravy, cheese).

Smoothies are the way to go. My son did the same thing, but LOVED his "Straw-baby Shakes" :) I would put in frozen strawberries & frozen blueberries w/ soy milk (he can't have dairy) & a banana to thicken things up + a scoop of PROTEIN POWDER. If you go to Whole Foods or even People's Pharmacy they have a protein pwdr that is specifically for Toddlers. He out grew this & loves the chicken nuggets shaped like dinosaurs now :)

Most likely it's a stage. My son is now almost 7 and still has stages like that. He may want nothing but vegetables or nothing but meat. When he was younger I went with the stage and tried to accomodate him although I would still make him eat a little or whatever else was on his plate to make sure he got all of the food groups. When they are at that age the eat what their body tells them to. She may be low in a certain nutrient. Try putting different vegetables in front of her same with meats. Also one of my rules has always been that you have to try everything at least once and if you didn't like it you didn't have to eat it. Pay attention to what it is that she is eating a lot of because it may be what her body needs right now. If it is a stage then she will even out after her body is back in balance. She'll do this many times as she's growing. Chicken nuggets and green beans were really popular when my son was around this age.
Good Luck
M.

Hey L., sometimes babies do that. Make sure she is getting her whole milk. It usually means that she will hit a growing spurt. Just don't worry they are very smart they will start eating soon.

All children go thru the stages of growing and eating. My son would take one little nibble and say he was done. Some people say let them eat what they want,(junk food) at least they are eating. But that is a bad habit to get the child into. She will eat, just be patient. When she is about to grow more, eating will come back!! Try adding food color to her mashed potatoes, make them blue, make macaroni and cheese red. My kids thought it was cool and eat!!

Well, have you talked this over with her pediatrician? If you can get her to drink maybe you can give her some pediasure. That way you know she is at least getting the essentials. Or maybe you can introduce new foods to her. Good luck.

Call her pediatrician.

We went through that with my grandson, who is now 2. Somedays he ate very little. (Still has those days). We just let him have whatever he would eat during those days. Chips, etc. Now we are expermiting with other foods and he is doing better. He thinks it is great fun to use a spoon and fork so that entices him to eat a little more. He loves tator tots, chicken patties, fries, etc. I figure the more balanced meal will come in time. He is growing taller but not actually losing weight. Not gaining but for now that's ok.

My son was the same way. At times he still is. I had to ask the doctors. He was not eating and he was picky. My doctor said that he would eat when he was hungry. Then at night if he had not eaten all day to give him Pedi Sure once a day if he was not eating. He loved them. But I would always make him sit down and I would offer him what we eat and made eating fun. We would make sound effects that it was so good and that it was yummy! Etc. Fianally now he eats all day! I found out that Ketcup makes anything good for him. He love to dip things. I let him feed himself. Even if it is a mess. It is ok because he is eating. From one day to the next he is still eating new things. One day he hates greenbeans and as of last night he loves them. I always offer it to him. But the doctors said they will eat if they are hungry enough. It is hard to do, but a child will not go hungry by choice. Good Luck!

If you have really noticed her losing weight, then I would take her to the doctor. I think it's so scary when they don't eat. Good luck!

Weigh her to confirm if she is or isn't losing weight. And DEFINITELY take her to the doctor to make sure he/she is in the loop, then if this continues too long you're all on the same page. I'd bet money the doctor will say it's a stage, but at least it will be documented as to when the stage started and how much she weighed at the time just in case.

If you're worried enough to ask about it, you're worried enough to bother the doctor!

You should take her to the doctor, especially if she is getting to skinny.

I'm sure its just a phase. My daughter would go through periods where she would eat everything in the fridge and other times (that lasted a while) where I could only get her to eat a few bites at each meal. I am a firm believer in letting kids eat when they are hungry and not forcing the issue. If we teach our children to eat when they are not hungry and ignore their hunger cues, we are setting them up for a lifetime of over eating leading to obesity.

Continue to offer small portions of whatever you are serving at each meal. If she is hungry she will eat. Just be sure you are offering her healthy choices so she is getting the nutrients she needs.