I need some help with my 2yr old?

Question

My 2yr old little girl is refusing to eat. She is a very fuzzy eater and a picker. She only eats a little bit at a time and she refuses to eat her vegetables no matter how I do them. I know she loves macaroni cheese so tonight I am planning on mixing some minced steak and mashed vegies in gravy and putting it into the macaroni pasta. I just don't know what to do if she refuses that as well. Does anyone else have any ideas please.

Answer 1

My advice is not to make an issue of eating. When my daughter was 3, she hardly ate anything, and would become very obstinate.  I went to my pediatrician who assured me that no child had ever starved herself to death in the presence of food and that I needed to stop making this a control issue.  He advised me to keep lots of healthy snack foods around the house, readily available all day.  My daughter would snack on a few almonds, or three pieces of apple dunked in peanut butter, or a piece of cheese.  She still barely ate at meal times, but as soon as I stopped nagging/pushing/bribing her, she stopped being so defiant about it.  Gradually, she began to eat a bit with us at meals, as she wanted to be a "big girl".  

She is now 22 years old, beautiful, fit, healthy and gourmet cook!!

Answer 2

Yes I do have some ideas.  My girl friend used to complain about her son being a picky eater but when she came over, she'd have a dozen different kinds of snacks that she would let him choose from.  Then when it was time for dinner, the kid wasn't hungry.  Duh.

DO NOT give her anything to eat for two hours prior to dinner.  If you do you will be defeating your purpose.  Just relax.  She is not going to starve.  Give her a little of everything and if she doesn't eat it, throw it away or wrap it up until later.  Don't just give her certain food because she won't eat anything else.  She'll win that way.  Follow your gut and give her a variety of different foods.  How about some pineapple?  Most kids love fruits.  If they won't eat veggies, give them more fruit.  Not fruit juice but fruit.

Answer 3

Keep introducing new foods.  My son, now 8, was an extremely picky eater from the ages of 2-4.  He will still tell me he doesn't like certain things, but we do the "just try one bite" technique.  

Eventually they'll start to try things, and you'll get past the frustration of making a meal that doesn't get eaten.  Don't make the mistake of making the same thing all the time.  It will only keep them from trying new foods down the road.

Answer 4

I think you really need to talk to you pediatrician about this.  He or she will be able to help you determine if she is getting enough nutrients.  I know alot of picky eaters that are very healthy, but every child is different and it really depends on what they like to eat.

good luck...

Answer 5

Try squash in her macaroni and cheese, pureed squash because she still gets nutrients from the squash but she won't know it is there.  I know many parents that have to hide the veggies in food like that to sneak it in.  Also remember that her tummy is only the size of her fist so she won't eat as much as an adult does.  

Answer 6

Of course, offer new things all the time, but if you are really worried in the meantime try the V8 Fusion juice. It tastes like fruit juice but has veggies in it; my 2 year old loves it! We had to "bribe" our son today to try mac and cheese. We gave him a Hot Wheels car, and he loved the mac and cheese! So everyone was happy!!