My child has very little appetite

[Gladys]

My youngest child is almost 4 years old. She eats only soft food for meals and seldom eats solid food. She has very little appetite and always asks for milk. I try to prepare healthy food and make it look attractive to her and I make sure it tastes good but she eats only very little. How do I boost her appetite?

[mom2many]

The picky eating stage seems to be pretty common at around that age. Chances are that she is filling up on milk. If you are giving her cow's milk I would suggest switching to skim so that she is not getting as much filling from the milk. If you are opposed to that, try giving her water or very watered down juice as a substitute, particularly around mealtime. You may also want to consider giving her a children's vitamin, as it will help to make up for some of the nutrients she is missing out on and may help to increase her appetite as well.

[ljmarsden]

Hi Gladys,

This is very common in young children.

Have you thought about involving your daughter in the food preparation to make the whole experience seem fun to her? I've also heard that not focussing too much on what a child is and isn't eating at mealtimes takes the pressure of them - often they will then relax and start to eat more food. Some children also need a long time to eat their meals and will appear to have finished halfway through the meal and then start eating again after a break.

Let us know if any of these ideas help at all.