What to Expect from Toddlers at the Table

It’s common for toddlers to eat less than they did as babies. The rate of growth is slower in toddlerhood than in infancy, meaning they grow less quickly. Toddlers are also more efficient at eating and drinking compared to infancy. The combination results in a child who is less hungry and less motivated to try new foods. Toddlers are also busy practicing new skills like walking, running, and jumping, and they have shorter attention spans to endure leisurely meals.

As a toddler’s growth rate slows, there may be days where your toddler barely eats anything, followed by days where they eat more than the adults in the home. This is normal. Try not to focus on how much the child consumes daily, but rather, look at how much they eat throughout the week. Most healthy toddlers, if given a zero-pressure environment to eat, will not starve themselves.

Many parents start to worry during this growth and hunger slow-down and start pressuring the child to eat more or less food. Do not fall into this trap. It is well documented that pressure—even in the positive form of praising a child for eating—increases the risk of severe picky eating. ^{1 2 3} Nearly all children have the inherent ability to regulate their appetite from the moment they are born. Trust them to do so. Any encouraging, nudging, reminding, pressuring, bribing, or force-feeding will backfire and likely lead to more selective eating and even disordered eating.

While you may think you need to encourage your child or “get” them to eat, these attempts—while sometimes effective in the short term—almost always have negative consequences in the long term. If you must “get” your child to eat enough to grow or gain weight, this suggests a larger issue and may require an evaluation by your child's medical provider.

If you are not sure what foods and nutrients to offer your toddler at this age, see our Toddler Nutrient Cheat Sheet for a quick guide.