Photo by Martin Cathrae

After a lovely holiday hiatus, I am back, as promised, with part two in the series on feeding toddlers.  Today I’ll focus on kids who are choosy.  For this post I lean on professional experience.  We have no shortage of patients in our practice whom one could describe as “picky eaters” or who are sometimes diagnosed with “feeding problems”.  I have trouble with the diagnosis “feeding problems or mismanagement”, as it comes up in our electronic medical record.  Why?  Well, and this hopefully serves as a bit of comfort, toddlers who are picky eaters are pretty much the norm.  It is, in fact, an expected developmental stage.  If you have a toddler who refuses dinner, but then begs for chicken nuggets, this post is for you.  If you have a toddler who only takes two bites at each meal, and then runs off to play, this is for you.  If your child seems to refuse all vegies, this is for you.  If, on the other hand, you have a child with true “failure to thrive” or difficulty gaining weight and growing well, please consult with your pediatrician, as I won’t be addressing those problems here. Continue reading →