Do/did you feed toddlers... (Full Version)

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MissInnocent -> Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 4:11:59 PM)

For parents here, have you fed toddlers regular size hamburgers, pizza, beef stew and country gravy? Those are the only things I can think of at the moment that my mother and I were questioning my brother and his fiancee feeding their grandson. Oh yeah and caffiene (no wonder the child stays up till 1-2 in the morning). If the answer to any is yes please be specific about the age. Thanks.



macokjc -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 4:20:48 PM)

That's a wide open question - but I'll try. No to the caffeine. Now, as we had more children, what they ate at what age may change based on the older children. For instance - my two oldest would never have had soda at age 3, but my youngest sometimes will get it when my older children have it as a rare treat.

I nursed my children until age one- and then they ate very small portions of what we ate starting at 1 1/2 - 2 years old. (If it was child friendly. If it was spicy, like chili, or hard for them to eat, like taco salad, then they would eat baby food.) So, they probably did have hamburgers and pizza a few times, but cut up into bite size pieces and definitely child size portions. The carrots and potatoes on beef stew are probably good and easy for a toddler, but if it's from a can, I can only imagine it's high in sodium.



Jenny-Fair -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 4:21:14 PM)

Regardless of what I fed my child, I don't think I would appreciate family interference.



pbaribeault -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 4:31:02 PM)

"Toddler" in my mind ranges from just-walking (what? 14 months?) to more than 3 years old. My 3 year old eats all those things all the time. At 14 months, she did not. In between, she must have started to eat them... not sure on the timing. We had pizza at her 3rd birthday, so we must have known she liked it from when she was 2. Hmmm.

What, exactly are you concerned about? Chewing ability? Fat? Salt? I'm not sure what's wrong with what you've listed.

We are just now letting her start to have caffeine in more than minuscule amounts -- more than a tiny piece of chocolate cake, more than a half-inch of iced tea... both treats and occasional.

None the less, I also think that unless the child is at some significant risk, what your family members choose is up to them. You are only going to make waves if you choose to discuss this or present your opinion.



Zhi -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 5:01:55 PM)

My daughter had basically all her teeth, very early (full front set at 9 months, all molars at 12 months). As such, she really really likes to bite things. So, at 18 months now, while we wouldn't give her an entire hamburger (messiness reasons), we would certainly give her a cut-off portion of a hamburger that she could bite (maybe a third of the burger), which she thoroughly enjoys picking up and biting into. She gets an entire slice of pizza, which she picks bits off of to munch, then when she's done picking she picks the whole thing up and starts biting into the crust like we do. I certainly would never let her have anything large without supervision (just in case of choking, which she hasn't had an issue with but you never know, but I suppose that's true of any food). She occassionally gets a sip or two of soda or tea (though I only drink decaf myself so even then she rarely gets caffiene), and very VERY rarely (when we're on the road and we want to keep her amused) she will get her own little cup of Sprite with a straw, because straws are apparently awesome (she doesn't even notice that we drank at least half of the sprite before giving it to her. hee). Chocolate cake, brownies, candy, is okay in reasonable portions, though it's an occassional treat (just as it is for her daddy and I). Stew she's had from a very early age... I make it myself so it's not like I don't know what's in it, pre-biting-stage I would just mash the various ingredients. I don't know why anyone would consider potato, carrot, and small bits of beef to be bad even for a young child... as long as it's not too hot temperature or spice wise (I would make it rather under-seasoned and then hubby and I would season our own bowls further). We try to eat a good variety of things and whatever we eat, she eats, pretty much. Snacks are usually a slice of colby jack cheese, half a banana, a few crackers, some grapes, that sort of thing (not all at the same time of course). At this point she's a very curious eater, and she's even decided she likes chips and salsa (dipping is FUN!) when we occassionally have that.

Mostly whatever we're eating I try to make sure that it isn't too hot (I've already run the allergen list and she's not allergic to anything), at which point she can decide whether she likes it or not. She's quite skinny (and very very tall) for her age, so I'm not too concerned about her weight (other than that she might be TOO skinny, but it's mostly because she never stops running around unless she's asleep).

She was never really impressed with baby food. Neither was I, frankly, so I gave up on it early. It's just pureed, nasty tasting, and often preservative-laden versions of the stuff we're eating anyway. I guess I'm kind of confused about what's wrong with the list also... while that certainly shouldn't be the ONLY thing a child ever eats, I really don't know what could be particularly scary about having some hamburger or some pizza. Even when given too much, they usually lose interest once they're full.



Auben -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 5:28:50 PM)

Caffeine? No. Everything else? Yes.

Unless it's honey or nut based my children over the age of 1 tend to eat what we eat...just in smaller portions.



MissInnocent -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 5:30:25 PM)

Thanks for the answers. I guess my thing on the beef stew was more a thought of does he chew the meat properly. My mom makes it so it's not majorly salty. He's actually kinda cute eating it. Zhi, you mentioned bite-size portions on the burger, he actually asked her Mammaw to cut it into 4. Again adorable. The thing that got me was him having a troubled tummy and yet they gave him the gravy and cereal and we were thinking (no one said anything to them it was just questions that popped into both my mother and my mind and then after they left we had a minor discussion and she talked about what she did and didn't let us eat at that age) "geez no wonder he's pooping so much." And BBQ came up in a discussion and it was said he would eat it. Wasn't something we had but something that was being served at a place they thought about going but the baby and bro's fiancee stayed with us instead of going with my bro. I was like my goodness even I have issues with BBQ at my age. Then again I have a sensitive tummy. Anyways, thanks again for the answers.



MissInnocent -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 5:34:19 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Auben

Caffeine? No. Everything else? Yes.

Unless it's honey or nut based my children over the age of 1 tend to eat what we eat...just in smaller portions.


That's another question...well more questions! What's the deal with peanut butter? I have read anywhere between ages 1 and 5. Is peanuts the only "nut" (cause really they are a bean) to worry about or is it all? Yeah they also let our little man eat almonds and peanuts, can't believe I forgot that in the first post. And honey and chocolate, I've heard 1 and 2..which is it before you can give em that? BTW our little man is going on 2 and 1/2.



Jenny-Fair -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 5:37:31 PM)

At two and a half, my kids had everything but soda. And that was just because we never drank it.



isaacsmom -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 5:45:36 PM)

quote:

Regardless of what I fed my child, I don't think I would appreciate family interference.

Yeah, same here, LOL.

My children eat everything I eat. Different children handle things better at different ages. My kids still didn't have many teeth at a year old. I did give them hamburgers, stew, gravy, etc., I just made sure it was in small enough bits for them to eat. My daughter, at 19 months, eats everything (peanuts, strawberries, meats, soups, vegetables, you name it) and has for quite some time. She's not prone to allergies, but some children are, and can't handles the peanuts/strawberries, etc. However, anything acidic (like grapes or tomatoes) really messes with her little tummy so I really limit those. Her brother handled those things just fine. By 2 1/2, my son was definitely eating everything he wanted (he's 3 1/2 now).

It really does vary from child to child.

Caffeine -- my kids don't consume it, but then again, neither do I.



Zhi -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 5:53:43 PM)

quote:

That's another question...well more questions! What's the deal with peanut butter? I have read anywhere between ages 1 and 5. Is peanuts the only "nut" (cause really they are a bean) to worry about or is it all? Yeah they also let our little man eat almonds and peanuts, can't believe I forgot that in the first post. And honey and chocolate, I've heard 1 and 2..which is it before you can give em that? BTW our little man is going on 2 and 1/2.

Peanuts are one of the most likely foods to cause a potentially fatal allergic reaction (which is still really really unlikely). That's why you put it off. Since we have basically no food allergies in our family history, we went ahead and tried early on (around 10-11 months) because the pediatrician was concerned that she wasn't putting on weight quickly enough and thought peanut butter might be a good way to encourage her to eat (as you know, children love peanut butter). We followed proscribed procedures: Have infants benadryl in the house to buy time if there's an allergic reaction, be ready to go to the hospital immediately if necessary. Then put a small dab on the edge of the child's lip and wait 15-20 minutes to see if there's any topical reaction. If not, you let them eat a small amount, carefully monitoring respiration.

Chocolate and tree nuts are similarly suggested to be put off for allergic reaction reasons.

Honey is a little different, honey can contain botulism spores that can cause issues for young children. Last I checked, recommended age is at least 1 year old (because their digestive system should be advanced enough at that point to be able to handle it like adults do). Recommended age on peanut products is about 3 years, but if there are no known allergies in the family, as long as you follow procedures, it should be fine... and once you know they're not allergic, then basically there's no reason not to let them have peanut butter (it's nutritious).



PrincessDonna -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 6:08:26 PM)

My kids eat whatever we eat from about a year on. My youngest two (3.5 and 1.5) split a cheeseburger when we go through a drive thru...and the 1.5 year old eats his whole then. At home, I usually cut his food, but not if it is soft.

As for the BBQ, I would think if it was bothering the child, someone would notice that and not feed him that next time. We're all sensitive to different things and sometimes you can't know ahead of time. My little guy can't have much citrus without getting diarrhea, and NO chocolate at all.

Caffeine...no. My kids bounce enough as it is.[8|]



zoebob -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 6:23:33 PM)

By a year my kids ate what we did...unless it ws too spicy. Although my DD ate french fries dipped in hot wing sauce (and we got them hot) at a year old.

My ds was gumming and chewing up little pieces of steak or pork chop at 9 months old. As for the meat in stew, well, when I make stew the meat is so tender it hardly needs chewing. I guess I don't have a problem with a kid eating those foods, except for the soda.



MissInnocent -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 6:23:36 PM)

Learned something new. I didn't know grapes were considered acidic or strawberries had to be put off.



Mrs.X -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 6:34:54 PM)

My 2.5 year old who is the size of a 4 year cannot eat a whole piece of pizza or whole cheeseburger. But, he does eat all those things you listed, just in small portions.

Edited to add: He doesn't have caffiene except when I give him a sip of my coffee now and then.



NotDoneYet -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/11/2008 6:44:52 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: MissInnocent

For parents here, have you fed toddlers regular size hamburgers, pizza, beef stew and country gravy? Those are the only things I can think of at the moment that my mother and I were questioning my brother and his fiancee feeding their grandson. Oh yeah and caffiene (no wonder the child stays up till 1-2 in the morning). If the answer to any is yes please be specific about the age. Thanks.


I pretty much got rid of the "baby food" by the time my kids had their first molars (18 months or so). I'll never forget my then 6month old son chowing down on a kids' meal hamburger and fries though...that kid would (and still will) eat anything that isn't moving (and massive quantites thereof). My now youngest...who was 20 months old when we got her was eating all table food, but not a full "adult" portion...she still doesn't at 3 and a half...but that's just her. She's our picky one...

No caffiene thought...I REALLY want my kids in bed by 8 (the little ones still at home).

I wouldn't sweat it...all kids are different...some eat table food at young ages, some are still eating jarred stuff at 3. AND...if they want to deal with a kid that stays up until 1-2 am, well, let them! As long as he's getting enough sleep total, it's not a big deal if he goes to bed at 8pm or 1am. When my (now X) husband worked 3rd shift, my kids stayed up until about 3 am...it's the way our life was then...we all pretty much slept at the same time, and were able to have family time until the X went to work at 11 pm. Whatever works for your family is what works for your family...

NDY



locomom -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/12/2008 2:05:29 AM)

At two, my dd refused to eat fast food. She still doesn't like it at age 20 yo. She did like hot and sour soup when we went to a Chinese restaurant. By age 3 she would order for herself! She generally ate what we ate or a modified version of it. She never liked stuff off the kid's menu particularly. She ate a lot. Now when she is home from college, she still chows down for several days before slowing down. Since she is 5' 2" and 100 lbs, she eats whatever, whenever. She wouldn't eat baby food from a jar beyond the first 3 months of it. She still doesn't like canned food. Generally no caffeine except for chocolate sometimes.

I expected others to follow my directions on food when she was young, because she had problems with some foods. It really made me angry when some extended family members made it into a power game and disregarded what we said.



lexie -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/12/2008 8:34:40 AM)

quote:

My 2.5 year old who is the size of a 4 year cannot eat a whole piece of pizza


LOL...my 1.5 year old who is the size of a 2.5 year old can! All kids are different!

By a year, we stopped with the baby foods but were still careful about how we served things. We started peanut butter shortly before a year because there is no family history and she accidentally ate a peanut when she was 8 months old and didn't have a problem

Dd will eat pizza or chicken nuggets in moderation (as a rare treat). I'm pretty careful about the content of the food she is eating. But again, every baby is different. When Dd turned 1.5 she took some jerk chicken from Dh's plate and started eating. We were shocked because even my husband found it spicy, and she just ate away.

As for caffeine, that's a no. No pop. She may get a few sips of my tea in the morning but that's it. I don't like having that much caffeine in my body so I can't imagine it in my daughter's body.



3cappuccinosmom -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/12/2008 8:46:27 AM)

quote:

For parents here, have you fed toddlers regular size hamburgers, pizza, beef stew and country gravy?


Well, I would feed them those things. However, I can't see a toddler managing adult-sized portions of those kinds of food unless they were force-fed. [&:] Now, my three year old can down three bowls of spaghetti, but he only does that a few times a month. Other times he barely eats anything. Up to two years old, my children don't usually eat more than a few bites of anything at one time.



creationtalk -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/12/2008 9:17:43 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Jenny-Fair

Regardless of what I fed my child, I don't think I would appreciate family interference.


Ditto to that.

No to caffeine. I try to limit his caffeine intake now, but his father doesn't feel the same...

My son refused baby food entirely. He had teeth young, so he could chew stuff. I remember pealing crawfish as fast as I could while he gobbled them up; he couldn't have been more than 2 years at the time.



Georgia-Peach -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/12/2008 9:37:54 AM)

I wouldn't appreciate family interference concerning what my child ate either.

But, yes my toddler does eat pizza, hamburgers, and beef stew. On a regular basis no, but he does consume those items. By a year old Hunter was on regular table food (and still nursing), no baby food. He would get smaller portions of what we were eating. He still does not eat chili when we do though because the spice upsets his tummy. So, he gets rice with butter and cheese w/ cornbread. He is eating basically the same as us just with out the chili part on his rice.

Caffeine - No, he does not get things that have caffeine in them. Not to say he has not had a sip or two when my hubby/myself have a coke. But, it is not something that is kept in the house we only get that at restaurants. My sweet tea is caffeine free, but not sugar free [;)]

I think if hamburgers, pizza, and junk food are a regular part of a child's diet then it is bad for them. They are growing and need good, healthy foods to help them grow strong. Can I be honest though I don't know what would be wrong with beef stew unless it is different then what I am use to beef stew being. It has meat and vegetables in it so I don't know how that could be unhealthy.



lexie -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/12/2008 10:54:42 AM)

quote:

I wouldn't appreciate family interference concerning what my child ate either.


I got it but the other way around. I was, and still am to a degree, very much a health nut when it came to what my daughter was eating. My in laws were concerned that I was depriving him the fun of eating stuff, like junk food. They let their children have it from early on, so apparently I should as well.

In my opinion, unless the child has a weight problem or malnourishment because of what the parents are feeding them, then the rest of the family should stay out of it. A casual mention wouldn't be bad if you think the eating habits could lead to problems in the future but it's not really your business to make a big deal out of it.

We did this once with family members. My husband did this once with family members. He just said to them one day that their children eat too much junk food and that the parents should look at changing their attitudes towards eating meals. Once he said it, he left it at that, didn't bother to interfere, and we just made sure that when the kids were at our house they ate balanced meals and they understood the rules about eating at our house. Other family members in the past have berated the parents about the way their children eat, and believe me, that didn't help any.
quote:

I wouldn't appreciate family interference concerning what my child ate either.



revbob4God -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/12/2008 11:50:15 AM)

I believe parents know best what they should feed their children, I mean after all, they are around them constantly. I become irritated though, with people who have some fad diet that sounds ridiculous that they just have to try and sell you on.



MissInnocent -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/12/2008 6:08:58 PM)

Some of you already touched on this but I want to open it to everyone...what if instead of "maybe you shouldn't feed him/her that" you got told you SHOULD be feeding the child something you didn't want them to eat? I don't nes. mean junk food, just anything that you don't normally feed them or don't feel is a good idea for a young tummy?



NotDoneYet -> RE: Do/did you feed toddlers... (8/12/2008 7:03:21 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: MissInnocent

Some of you already touched on this but I want to open it to everyone...what if instead of "maybe you shouldn't feed him/her that" you got told you SHOULD be feeding the child something you didn't want them to eat? I don't nes. mean junk food, just anything that you don't normally feed them or don't feel is a good idea for a young tummy?


My mom and I argue CONSTANTLY about that...my mom lives with us so it can be difficult. So, I told her that I would not permit the children to spend time with her if she kept disregarding what I had said...so far so good...I do expect my wishes to be respected.

NDY



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