Your toddler at 13 months: walking, refusing food, and testing everything

Where a 13-month-old is

Many are walking, wobbling and falling constantly; plenty are still cruising, and anything up to eighteen months is within the normal range. Climbing usually arrives with walking, which is what changes the house.

Language: a few clear words, a great deal of jargon that sounds like conversation, and understanding far ahead of speech — a thirteen-month-old follows simple instructions and points at what they want.

Play is imitation: sweeping, phoning, feeding a doll, stirring a pot. Give them a spoon and a bowl and they will work for twenty minutes.

The eating change

Growth slows sharply after the first birthday — a baby triples its birth weight in year one and adds only two or three kilos in year two. Less growth needs less fuel, so appetite drops. This is the single most misread change of the whole second year.

What to do: three meals and two snacks at fixed times, water in between, and nothing else. Cap milk at around 400-500 ml a day including curd — more than that fills a small stomach and blocks iron.

Serve small portions of family food, chopped and softened, and let them refuse. Your job is what and when; theirs is whether and how much. Force-feeding, screens at meals and chasing with a katori all reduce intake over time.

Still no added salt or sugar for a while yet, no chai, no whole nuts. Ghee in the food is good; a biscuit habit is not.

Safety, sleep and behaviour

A walking climbing toddler changes the hazard list: balcony grilles and furniture near railings, buckets of water, hot vessels on the floor, cleaning fluids stored low, and medicines in handbags. Our baby-proofing guide has the room-by-room list.

Sleep: about 11-14 hours in 24, usually two naps still. Most children are not ready to drop to one nap before around fourteen to eighteen months, and dropping it early produces a wretched late afternoon.

Behaviour: the first frustration tantrums, throwing food, and testing whether 'no' means no. Stay calm, keep the rule the same each time, and remember they cannot reason during a meltdown.

When to see a doctor

Same-day at any age: fast or laboured breathing, the chest sucking in, blue lips; a fit; a child who is floppy, drowsy or hard to wake; no urine for six to eight hours or signs of dehydration; a rash that does not fade when pressed; repeated forceful or green vomiting; blood in stool or vomit; a swollen tender abdomen; or a head injury with vomiting or drowsiness. Call 108 for breathing difficulty.

At 13 months specifically: not walking or bearing weight at all, no gestures such as pointing or waving, no words or word-like sounds, no response to their name, or no interest in interactive play.

And at any age, the loss of a skill a child already had — words, walking, waving, eye contact — needs an assessment rather than a wait.

This article is general information, not medical advice, and is no substitute for personal medical advice. For any decision about your or your child's health, please consult your doctor.

Frequently asked questions

Q: He has stopped eating almost everything. — Normal after the first birthday. Check the milk volume first; it is the usual culprit. Keep offering without pressure and judge by the week and the growth chart rather than the meal.

Q: When should I worry about walking? — Eighteen months is the usual line for assessment, provided the child is bearing weight and moving some way. Raise it earlier if you are concerned.

Q: Can he drink cow's milk now? — Yes, from twelve months, in a cup, capped at about 400-500 ml a day.

Q: How do I stop the throwing at meals? — Say it once calmly, end the meal when it continues, and offer the next meal at the usual time. It is an experiment, and the ending is what concludes it.