What is a good food supplement for toddlers?

Question

My 18month old son is hardly eating and the doctor said that its the age where toddlers don't like texture but i would like to add a supplement to his milk that i know will give him nutrition on days that he refuses to eat food.

Answer 1

My two year old stopped eating all fruit and vegetables at exactly 18 months also. This is when I started giving him a daily vitamin. I went to the health food store and got Gummi Vites. They are made for toddlers and older kids. They look and taste just like gummi bears. You can give him up to two a day, but I only give my son one a day. Just make sure nothing you give him has an iron supplement in it. Most kids vitamins don't have iron, but check labels to make sure. You can always ask your doctor to recommend a vitamin supplement too.
I made sure to let my son know it wasn't candy and it was a vitamin, which he learned how to say right away. He enjoys taking one every morning with breakfast and he sings, "Vitamin, one a day!"
I also started giving him a carrot and apple juice blend (freshly squeezed) from the health food store, or you can juice it yourself, to get some sort of vegetable in him. At 27 months old, he still refuses all veggies and will now only eat dried fruit. It's frustrating, but I keep offering him fresh fruits when I eat them, and I can only hope he grows out of this weird faze.
I also offer Ovaltine in the afternoon as a treat, which he loves. Has tons more nutrients in it than chocolate milk and it tastes just the same. You could also make him fruit smoothies at home. Just don't let him see what you put in it. As soon as my son sees the fruit go in, he won't drink it, but if he doesn't he thinks it's one of daddy's ice cream smoothies and he drinks it up! You have to out smart them on a daily basis. They are little, but they are tricky! :-)

Good luck!!

Answer 2

My son is 2 and a very pick eater. But he still nurses, so i know he is getting nutrition. When he drinks milk from a cup (oat or rice or soy not cow) I add some organic coconut milk. it has good fats in it and some omega 3s too. you could add protein powder if that is your concern.

Does he like smoothies? Strawberries and bananas in the blender with a little ice or milk and some avocado is a might healthy supplement! And tasty too.

This may also sound weird, but let him have an age appropriate hand in food prep may go a long way. We made muffins the other day (totally healthy maple-oat sweetened only with 1/2 cup maple syrup for the whole batch) and the simple act of holding the spoon with him and letting him stir it gave him such pride that he begs to eat "my muffin" several times a day.

Answer 3

I saw where someone suggested Pediasure. Not a bad recommendation but I like organic products better. If you and your peds think this type of supplement is okay to use on the days he won't eat, an organic option is Baby's Only Organic Toddler formula. Hope this helps.

Answer 4

I have an 18 month old little boy also... and I've tried nutrapals... and pediasure... he loves them both... or there is this flavored powder that you can add to his milk... I can't think of it's name... but it's pretty good and has a lot of vitimins... it's pretty inexpensive also... you might want to try that, you can get it at your local grocery store, or even take him shopping with you and let him have a hand in picking out what he eats... or try going to a buffet and giving him a large variety of things to at least try... whether he eats them or not is up to him... but it's worth a shot...

Answer 5

At this age, my daughter and I were going to the salad bar, and I let her choose anything she wanted. In the high chair, she would pick and choose, and it didn't matter to me if she finished or made a mess. She is now the healthiest eater I have ever seen!

Try a different feeding approach - my daughter also used to get too full from too much milk. There is calcium and protein in many other foods - beans, eggs, diced ham, greens and cheese.

Good luck!

Answer 6

Nobody should be eating packaged or processed foods. They are full of sugars, salts, preservatives and fillers. You should make all of your baby foods in the blender using foods from the earth. You may think you turned out fine if you at packaged and processed foods, but it s not the same now. There is so much competition for store shelf space, that they have to make their products cheaper in order to compete, and that means more chemicals and fillers. Your main job in life is to give your body what it needs, not what is just convenient.

Answer 7

I have a niece who is 3 yrs old who loves vegetables, fruits, and breaded items. Though she refuses to eat any meat products. Her brother who is 5 yrs old refuses to eat vegetables and fruits. Though he will eat meat & breaded items. The opposite of what your going through.

Years ago I read an article on children who refuse to eat. They suggested to bake vegetables in your baking products such as cake mixes & brownies. Try it. Good Luck~

Answer 8

Glyconutrients may be the most important supplement ever for kids and adults. Glyconutrients are the 8 essential monosaccharides that your cells use to grow glyco forms that your cells use to communicate. We are missing most glycos from our moden diet. http://glycoinformation.com is a good source for information about glyconutrients.

Answer 9

Formula or breastmilk.

Seriously the World Health Organization says to breastfeed until AT LEAST age two, so explain to me why a formula fed baby shoudn't get formula until at least that age. Cow's milk isn't anywhere near as nutritious as formula, and formula isn't near as good as breastmilk. Almost all formula make a formula for up to age 24 months, some make one for up to age 3years.

"SWITCHING TO MILK
I've been feeding my baby iron-fortified formula. When is it okay to switch to whole cow's milk? Research comparing cow's milk and formula-fed infants during the first year of life has shown that cow's milk is irritating to the intestines of a tiny infant, causing infants to lose a tiny bit of blood in their stools, contributing to iron deficiency anemia. There is very little iron in cow's milk anyway, and the iron that is there is poorly absorbed. Concern about iron-deficiency anemia has led the American Academy of Pediatrics, backed by solid research, to discourage the use of cow's milk in children under one year of age. One of America's top pediatric hematologists (blood specialist), the late Dr. Frank Oski , Professor and Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics at Johns Hopkin University (and co-author of a book entitled: Don't Drink Your Milk) advised parents to be cautious and not rush into the use of cow's milk, even during the second year of life. At present it would seem prudent to continue giving your baby iron-fortified formula during the second year of life and very gradually wean him to dairy products, beginning with yogurt. If your toddler generally has a balanced diet and routine hemoglobin tests show that he is not even close to being anemic, then switch from formula to whole milk sometime during the second year, but don't be in a hurry"
http://www.askdrsears.com/html/0/T000100.asp#T031014

Answer 10

Fruits are described as ripened flower ovaries which produce seeds.