# 1 year old suddenly rejecting food she used to love (almost all of it!)



## DaisyMay (Aug 17, 2008)

My baby just turned one and has been a great eater ever since she started on solids. She ate purees to start with but was more keen on feeding herself so has been eating all sorts for months now. Her favourites were beans (black-eyed and black) rice, egg, cheese, fruit, sweet potato chunks, courgette...she also ate all sorts of other veggies, usually combined with rice or pasta, also fish.

But now all of a sudden she won't eat any of that stuff. She'll put a piece of food in and then spit it out in disgust and spend a couple of seconds scraping her tongue off with her hand then go nuts if I try to get her to try another taste. Same thing if I give her something on a spoon. It's not just vague disinterest, or not really hungry it's like "yuk! what is this gross stuff you're giving me!?" I wouldn't worry if it was just some stuff but it's almost everything and stuff she would eat every day a couple of weeks ago.

She'll still eat avocado, cheese, sandwiches (cheese or PB), cereal and fruit, but that's about it. I've tried new tastes too in case she's getting bored, but that didn't go down any better. She is teething off and on, but that's not new - also I don't see why she would still eat the above but reject anything else if it were teeth-related.

Anyone else been through anything similar? Any suggestions? Do baby's taste or sensory appreciation suddenly change around this time?


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## ambimama11 (Aug 13, 2011)

I'm going through the same exact thing as you are! I'm sorry, no advice or suggestions over here but just letting you know that it happens to others too. My DD is 14 months old and her diet consists of selected fruits, quesadillas, turkey and cheese sandwiches, cheese strings, yogurt, whole grain cereal and that's about it. No veggies, meat, chicken, or fish! Drinks water and whole milk, and some coconut water every once in a while. I worry about how she doesn't really have a balanced diet. People tell me that it's a phase and that she's healthy and thriving so it's ok. But it doesn't make me feel ok; we've been stuck at this phase for the past 3 months and I just don't see it passing anytime soon!

I'm curious to see the suggestions of other mamas regarding this matter.


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## brneyedmama (Oct 18, 2011)

totally normal -we've been dealing with this for months! Once you get used to it it's ok, but can be very frustrating -certainly keeps you on your toes. I've just learned to have a revolving list of options and follow her cues. One week she'll consume blueberries like they're going out of style, and the next two months she wont even look at them. She was on this huge mandarin orange kick for almost 8 weeks, she couldn't shove them in fast enough. So I went to Costco and stalked up, and of course now she completely refuses them. Anyway, I wouldn't worry at all, just another phase to deal with.


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## skycheattraffic (Apr 16, 2012)

My 14 month old goes through cycles where her favorites are yesterday's news. Literally she will demolish an avocado on Monday and want nothing to do with it on tuesday. There are days when all she wants is meat and others where it's fruit or nothing. If she tries something and isn't feeling it then a second offering just gets her angry so I move on and offer something different. Spoon feeding is pretty much over. She wants to do it herself. I load up a spoon and hand it to her and she gets it in her mouth happily. This age is prime for imitation and trying out independence. My advice is to go with the flow and have lots of choices available. Don't push much beyond a first taste if baby isn't liking it. Try it again tomorrow instead. It helped for me to involve her in feeding by letting her control the spoon some of the time; just bring bibs and extra spoons when out and about. She will not eat anything I have set aside for her; food comes off mommy's plate or she won't give it the time of day. She still tolerates sippy cups when she's in the stroller or walking around playing but if she sees me with a glass or a water bottle, she wants to drink out of it too.

Teething for us brings out the worst. She loves frozen peas as a snack and adores ice water when it's hot or she's teething.

I like the way one mom put it to me: my role is to offer a varied, balanced diet so it's available for her. She chooses what she will eat and as she matures, she will go at her own pace. There are breastfed kids who eat very little actual food at this age and are still learning and exploring. If baby breastfeeds or takes **** milk reliably then it's not so important that they hit every food group consistently at this age. Young toddlers are often picky eaters and this will pass. Of course follow your instincts though. If you are seriously concerned, then ask the doctor about it. Hope that helps


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## evabea (Mar 26, 2010)

Same thing happened here, by 14 months DD ate almost none of her favorites at 8 months. She gave up most fruits and veggies and turned to starches and dairy and some protein, then gave up cheese for awhile. She'll often do smoothies full of kale and blueberries etc--something novel for her.

I also let her play with her food from the beginning, sometimes meals were all play. Sometimes she just needed to splash some water around before starting to eat.

This link came up on FB today, reinforced that it's not about food, but about parenting and building healthy food relationships.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/may/28/carlos-gonzalez-doctor-parents-break-rules?newsfeed=true


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## Bird Girl (Mar 12, 2007)

Ah, yes, the air diet. Totally normal. Don't obsess about what she's eating--this is the age at which it's best to just put a spoonful of whatever you're eating down on the tray or table and let her do what she will. Of course, it give you extra incentive to eat the things that you want her to eat--but ultimately, that's the only way to get her to eat healthily anyway. Murphy's law states that anytime you have a special portion of something you really enjoy, she will gobble all of it, but anything you go out of your way to buy or fix for her will be rejected with a vengeance!

This too, will pass.


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## DaisyMay (Aug 17, 2008)

Thanks for the replies - good to know it's not just us! Who knew an only-just-one year old with an otherwise sweet and pleasing nature could suddenly be so stubborn and willful about food with no warning?! I've found this week that when she's really really hungry she'll be more likely to eat at least a few mouthfuls of what she's offered before starting with spitting out and protesting. Also if I put food on her table one spoonful at a time, rather than a larger amount, that seems to help


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