do three year olds just not eat?

my son just wont eat

how long does this last.

 

my girls went into a barely eating (at least at home--they get two meals at preschool) around three and have just come out of it over the holidays--so that was only a couple of months, I hope you have good luck.

 

Will he eat muffins or cookies? If so you could try making some where you sneak in vegis and other nutritious stuff (just not too much--they can tell). Here's a place to start

 

I'm in the same boat. DS eats breakfast (eggs & sausage) but that's about it. He likes crackers, cereal, fruit & many other things, but unless it's his idea, he won't eat. He will sit at the table with us, but just stares at his food.
I'm not into forcing food, so I figure he'll eat when he's hungry. I just keep making a plate & setting it in front of him.

Ironically, I am far from a picky eater. My mom just asked us to try things every now & then. We were never forced to eat anything. My DH, on the other hand, is picky. His mom made him eat everything, even if he hated it & it gagged him. He even took his veggies like a pill especially peas..... swallowed them whole with a drink!!

 

We go through cycles...DS will eat so much and then very little. I am not too worried b'c I know he would eat if he was hungry. I think its a part of their growing. DD eats all the time and pretty much everything.

 

i have one who doesn't eat much...and what he does it is pretty much all white...apples, bananas, bread, crackers, chicken...all white

the other eats and eats and eats and eats and eats

no wonder they are 12 lbs apart!

 

No, they do not eat. BUT, somehow they grow! My oldest was 31lbs @2 y/o & 32lbs @ 3 y/o. Although, she grew 5.5".
Good luck,

 

my dd went from being a great independent eater to taking nearly an HOUR to finish what her brother finished in 15 min. She will sit with food in her mouth, now swallowing it, forever. We have had to discipline her for not swallowng her food and for not eating quickly. Seriously, my ds will eat his lunch, 2nds and dessert and will be well into playing before my dd has finished 1/2 of her food. I do help my ds a bit with picking up food with his utensil because he thinks he can't do it on his own. But even if I do that with my dd, she still will just sit there with a mouth full of food. And she has been a great independent eater, especially using a utensil. But now she gets distracted, she goofs off, she sits in a daze.....what gives???

This is one stage I hope passes quickly!

 

There was an article in the paper not long ago about a theory that the reason 3 year-olds "shrink" their diets at this age is that it's the age when the become much more mobile and independent and it's an evolutionary adaptation to keep them from going off in to the jungle and eating poisonous things.

I don't know how they do it, but they can survive on air and water! At least mine did....

 

Counterpoint.

My girls are little piggies.

I think they are food-obsessed like their mom.

 

QUOTE(PurpleNurple @ Jan 12 2008, 05:09 AM) [snapback]569094[/snapback]
my dd went from being a great independent eater to taking nearly an HOUR to finish what her brother finished in 15 min. She will sit with food in her mouth, now swallowing it, forever.


Our DD1 has always been a great eater, but it takes forever for her to eat. I think that she takes longer when the food is harder to eat, like meat. Maybe she's just lazy about chewing . Sometimes the last bites she takes she finishes up to an hour after she's been cleaned up. She's 3.5yrs, 37# 41". Really though, I'd rather her eat slowly and thoroughly...makes me laugh sometimes. If she's not done when we are ready to leave the table, we cover her plate and she can finish it when next we eat.