Eating becoming difficult

[Mrs Doddy]

My daughter is starting to become really difficult about eating and it's driving me crazy. She will take a few mouthfuls of breakfast and then say she doesn't want it, sometimes she will ask for something else - I don't want her to be fussy so I stand my ground and say she can't have anything else till she finishes what she asks for - she is very stubborn and will often go without

Is this the right thing to do ? She's 4

 

[tallybee]

If it's something she has asked for and never rejected before then yeah I'd stand ground and say that's what she's getting, it could well be she's just trying to exercise some control by demanding different meals. In my house it's a 'if you're hungry you'll eat what you're given' rule and they're thriving healthy kids who eat most things.

 

[RachA]

I agree.
If she refuses to eat it all and doesn't ask for anything else then she's probably not hungry. If she asks for something different then I wouldn't give it to her. The only exception to this would be if she'd never had the food before and genuinely didn't like it.

 

[Mrs Doddy]

It's always what she likes - she will eat half then ask for something else she's driving me mad

 

[RachA]

It's always what she likes - she will eat half then ask for something else she's driving me mad

I would definitely say no then and say if she's still hungry then she can finish what she already has.

Out of interest - does she chane her mind if she sees someone else eating something different or doesn't it matter? The reason I ask is because Esther will ask for Weetabix and she loves them. However if someone else in the family has toast she will then change her mind and refuse he cereal. OH and I have stopped eating toast while she is still eating her cereal and she never asks for toast.

 

[hattiehippo]

It's always what she likes - she will eat half then ask for something else she's driving me mad

My DS is very similar. He'll get half way through a meal he likes and then ask how much does he have to eat before he can have something else. I usually set him a target like 5 more mouthfuls and then if he's still hungry he can have something else. Often he'll then just eat the whole meal anyway.

I do insist he at least tries something if he asks for it...he's awful at saying he wants something and then changing his mind.