why won't my baby eat

[Shuv007]

Please help my 14 month old girl will not eat anything she just says no and pushes it aay. She is already small for her age and the hospital are watching her  but I eed some good recipes that kids like. My son is nearly 4 and is not a problem. PLease help

[netibiza]

Try not to worry - most kids go through this stage - as a pediatrician once told me "no child will deliberately starve itself" so if the hospital is keeping an eye on her  all should be well - try making pretty patterns with food esp veg and faces .  Also play Thomas the Tank or suchlike ie a spoon of food is a train coming into the tunnel (her mouth).

[madnbad]

try giving her finger food things she can eat herself they usually like experimenting and some often goes were it should

[ursula62]

My sister used to make fun food, e.g. she would puree broccoli and peas in with mashed potato and make "alien mash". Or she would pile the mash in the centre of the plate and stick a bit of broccoli in the top as a tree, and make gravy rivers and sausage bridges over the rivers.

As madnbad says, finger food is good too.

Let her take as long as she needs to eat the meal. Try not to hassle her or she will work out that not eating is a way of controlling you.

Try not to worry too much, and don't offer her anything between meals as this will make things worse.

You could also try reducing the amount of milk so that she will eat more solids, but make sure you discuss any changes with the health visitor/hospital before doing anything drastic.