At the age of two, your baby is on the way to enjoying a diet quite similar to yours.At least, you hope so, right?
This period marks the pivotal moment in your toddler’s feeding life. At this point, you should now be considering the variety of flavors you should be introducing to your toddler.
This is a great way of helping our kids develop a taste for healthy foods. At this age, your kid should be able to eat three meals a day plus two extra servings of snacks. Why not introduce some awesome kitchen toy ideas to help them understand food a bit more?
In this post, we will take a look at some key areas concerning why your 2-year-old refuses to eat anything and how to get your toddler to eat a variety of foods.
Reasons Why your 2 Year Old Refuses To Eat Anything
Toddlers being picky or fussy about eating or not wanting to eat entirely is not something out of the blue. In fact, it is completely normal for kids at that age, but it can be very frustrating!
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At this age, your kid is exploring the available options, backing up their pickiness with their newfound ability to say no to whatever you are feeding them. It is common for picky eaters to avoid any vegetable foods and to like tasty ones generally.
They can be triggered by shying away from certain foods because of their smell or appearance.
2. Your kid is probably feeling pressured
Some recent studies have proven that kids who feel pressured to take an additional bite or pressured into finishing their food are more likely to be troublesome to try out new foods offered to them, increasing the kid’s chances of developing poor feeding habits.
Understand the more you pressure your kid to eat, the more they will refuse to eat anything!
If you think your toddler has a food allergy, it is important to take them to see a clinical expert. Your friends and family will be quick to offer advice, but my tip is to totally ignore that in favor of the advice from a medical professional!
The problem could sometimes be that your kid is filled up with something else other than what you are trying to feed them.
If you notice that the baby becomes troublesome while eating, it may be time to look at the bigger picture and find out what he is feeding on to make them uninterested in what you are offering.
If they are filled up on snacks, their appetite during meal times will definitely be curtailed.
5. Your toddler is highly distracted
Kids are easily distracted by anything around them, including their toys and TV.
Therefore, if you are employing the distraction technique to lure your kid into taking a bite, you may be actually doing more harm than good.
Distractions are not good when you want to feed your toddler effectively.
How You Get Your 2 Year Old to Eat a Variety of Foods
Trying a new meal or a variety of meals for your toddler could prove more of an uphill task than you might have earlier anticipated.
This does not have to be overly so because here are some tips that should get you started.
1. Give your toddler time to get hungry
If you notice that it is becoming challenging for your kid to try out new foods, try pulling back some snacks and let them feel a bit starved but not so much. At this point, your toddler would almost eat anything to get rid of the hunger.
This is the opportune time to sneak in a new meal in the form of an appetizer and watch them dig in.
2. Offer new foods in smaller portions
A child could easily disregard anything unfamiliar to them, especially if it is offered in huge portions.
Try breaking down what you want your kid to try into smaller portions. For instance, if you want him to try out some yogurt, start with just a spoonful first.
3. Do not push it
Just like adults, some toddlers will definitely push back if they feel pushed.
Be smart about it and let your kid decide how much to it while you decide what he will eat. If they push back, let it rest for a bit.
Please don’t get frustrated when they do not want to eat some things.
4. Consistency is key
Introducing new food to a toddler should be considered a long-term objective. Your toddler may take up to 15 tries to actually get used to or accept what you are offering.
Keep setting the table with more fruits and vegetables and watch them try them out without you even mentioning it.
Kids are not dumb. Although, sometimes they do dumb things, right?
Keeping it simple and expecting that they will eat will probably blow up in your face.
It would be unwise to underestimate your kid’s palate.
Switch it up a little bit, especially when serving vegetables. Adding a bit of flavor to your offering might be just the gateway to enabling your kid to learn to eat plain meals. Let them decide what they like.
FAQs
Is it normal for a toddler to not want to eat?
Yes. it is quite normal for toddlers to not want to eat or eat just small quantities of food. This should not frustrate you. There are many underlying reasons why your toddler doesn’t want to it eat and this article will help you narrow down to the specifics.
Why do toddlers lose their appetite?
At this age, toddlers do not really need a lot of food since they are not growing as fast as they were before thus need fewer calories. In most cases, this might seem like an indication of a poor appetite. However, you should have a keen eye to watch out for any out-of-the-blue conditions that might prove otherwise and take immediate action.
Why are kids picky eaters?
Toddlers can become picky eaters for a number of reasons and more often than not thus habit arises from parents trying too much by rewarding, bribing or punishing their kids for their eating behaviors.
Conclusion
If you have a 2-year old that is refusing to eat anything, then I am certain these tips will help you win this battle!
You should never take it to heart if your toddler proves to be a challenge during meal times! Just find the right way to help your kid eat healthily.
