Helping toddlers eat more than one type of food

You are right, I have had lots of questions like yours. That's because what your daughter is going through is very typical toddler 'picky eater' behaviour. Small children are neophobic - they have a fear of new foods. To some extent, it is understandable. It seems this is an adaptive behaviour for them. It is a way of avoiding potentially toxic foods. To a certain degree you have to learn to live with this characteristic, but there are many positive things you can do to help overcome it. In the long run, the wider variety your daughter has in her diet, the healthier she is likely to be, since she is more likely to get the nutrients she needs.

Firstly, it is helpful to know that research has shown that toddlers need several (ten or more) encounters with a new food before they are willing to eat it. Familiarity is the key. Tasting the food is important during those times, but if your daughter is gagging, then perhaps you will just have to stick with letting the food sit on her plate or in the serving bowl. Continue to encourage her to take a tiny taste. Also, let her know that she can spit it out if she finds it horrible. So, in your strategy to get your daughter to eat a wider variety of foods, serve foods often that you would like her to eat. Children do eventually outgrow this stage. It just takes patience and understanding on your part.

Secondly, you also need to know that toddlers do not eat much and they do not eat consistent amounts from meal to meal. A morning totally devoid of food may be followed by a 'good' dinner. Despite seemingly huge variations in consumption, toddlers tend to eat a consistent amount of calories from day to day.