2 year old with food phobia

[tamirra]

Hi, i need help with ideas with food and the best way to deal with feeding my 2 year old grand-daughter as she has a food phobia and hardly eats anything, she is very under weight and wears mainly 6/9 month old clothes, so you can imagain how small she is for a 2 year old, any ideas, advice or help would be so much appreciated as we are all so worried, we have tried all the things we can possibly think off, she wont sit up at the table and eat with others, she wont eat when her friends at nursery eat, we leave food about the house hoping she will go and take it, we make games of it, we are at our wits end. Please help. Thank you

[tamirra]

Im a lot softer on my grandaughter than i was on my own children i must admit, but she is so tiny i just cant bring myself to be forceful, but i do understand what you mean. Thanks.

[cherrychapstick]

thanks for understanding ,i really thought i was going to get a nasty comment after i read that back just get your daughter to keep on at the doctors and health visitor and hopefully something is done soon

good luck to you and your family and i read that you wont be able to keep us posted but do try and pop back in from time to time it will help someone else in the same situation as yourself x

[tamirra]

Thanks Cherry all we can do is hope, there are so many little ones out there with this same problem, and not just little ones, big ones too once you delve into it more. Take care, and i wouldnt have shouted at you cos you are trying to help, not like others. x

[tigwig]

Hi I know exactly what you're going through, my daughter was the same. She started at 13 months old after becoming ill. This progressed to her only eating 3 types of food and refusing anything else. I tried everything and although she wasn't quite as bad as your grand daughter it was a terrible time but she did manage to grow with what she ate. She was 3 yrs old when she eventually started to try a tiny mouthful of different foods and this very slowly progressed to her eating more and more. My advice would be to keep on providing small amounts of what you do want her to eat then remove without fuss if she doesn't want them. There will be a time when eventually she will try something and when she does the praise you give will be enough to motivate her to do it again. It is just so stressful but this makes it worse. Try and remain completely calm and think she won't be like this forever, its just a phase and not just faddy eating as people used to tell me!

[tamirra]

Tigwig that sounds promising, i hope one day she will eat more, the day she eats a whole meal i will be such a happy nanny. Thank you. xx

[maggs1703]

all i can say to is my freind is in exactly the same position as you and she goes through exactly the same thing with her littel girl who is also 2yrs good luck

[society]

My nephew had similar problem and the doctor give him a tonic to stimulate his appetite. It worked very well, he put on weight and no longer have an eating problem.

[DIANED]

HI, I HAVE A 12 YR OLD SON, WHO HAS THE SAME PROBLEM AND VISITS THE DIETITION AND HAS LOW IRON LEVELS WITH AN ADVERSION TO MOST FOODS HE HAS BEEN THIS WAY SINCE ABOUT 1-2 YRS OLD TOO. I WAS TOLD TO USE A LADDER TECNIC (LET HER SMELL IT, HOLD IT, BITE IT, AND THEN EAT IT ON HER OWN TIME BUT TRY THIS AT LEAST 5-6 TIMES WITH THE SAME FOOD AND SEE IF SHE CAN GET USED TO IT., BUT IN THE MEANTIME JUST FEED HER UP ON THE FOOD SHE WILL EAT WITH A NEW FOOD INTRODUCED AT LEAST 1-2 WEEKLY. SHE MAY WELL START TO EAT DIFFERENTLY OR JUST EAT SMALL BITS OF OTHER FOODS BUT SHE COULD START TO EAT MORE THIS WAY. I HOPE TVICE HELPS AND SHE GETS THE HELP SHE NEEDS.