QuestionI have a 11.5 month old toddler who is is refusing to eat anything but a couple of bites of whatever food is offered to him. He used to eat his jarred baby food fine up until 9 months when he refused it. The only thing he would accept was his baby oatmeal cereal. Now he is refusing to eat even that. He is breastfeeding but I still worry because he will not eat much of anything except baby crackers, but even those are not a lot. I have tried different brands of food, different flavors, table food, different feeding times, have stopped breastfeeding him in the hopes that hunger will make hime eat, but nothing works. Any suggestions would be wonderful since I worry about him losing weight and maybe developing bad eating habits in the future. Help!
Thanks
AnswerKids learn from observation. If you sit him down with you at dinner time or other meal times and don't force the issue of him eating, he might just watch you as you eat your meal. Offer him the same healthy foods you are eating but just cut up to baby size. It might not happen in a day, but he should start to eat. Teething hurts too, so check that and offer pain control prior to eating times if you think he is teething.
I worry more about lack of iron and vitamins especially vitamin D at this age. He needs those nutrients for proper growth and they are not found in breast milk in sufficient amounts at his age. Check with your doctor, he might need a vitamin supplement. Laura Kraemer,Slimkids.com
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