Why does my toddler refuse to eat anything I cook?
Toddlers suddenly reject home-cooked meals and hand their plates back full, leaving parents feeling miserable when mealtimes become a battle. This makes it impossible to rely on regular meal routines and leaves children eating only a very limited selection of foods.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Turning eating into a silly game where eating food makes a parent do funny actions
- 2Switching snacks to be more meal-like or eliminating snacks entirely
- 3Serving smaller portions according to the child's age
- 4Blending vegetables like broccoli and spinach into pasta sauce
- 5Ask the child to help get ingredients out and direct the process
- 6Let the child do pretty much everything themselves
- 7giving him a multivitamin
- 8incorporating fast food favorites like taco bell or kfc into healthier meals
- 9trying rotisserie chicken
In their words
Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.
“3y/o: No I wanted a grilled ham and cheese.”source ↗
“Okay, we’ve reached the point where my girl is handing her plate back full, no matter what I cook.”source ↗
“I just need help to get him to eat more.”source ↗
“I just want my kid to eat more and i am lost.”source ↗
“God it’s so miserable when they won’t eat.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 11Why is my teething puppy refusing to eat?
- 2Why does my kid come home from school with a full lunch?
- 10How to handle a toddler fighting diaper changes and teeth brushing
- 4Preschooler refusing to follow rules and leaving the classroom
- 3Why does my kindergartener hate reading and shut down?
- 3Why won't my baby nap anywhere except being held?