Mum issues silicone plate warning after toddler son stopped eating for weeks

A mum has taken to social media urging parents to be cautious of how they use silicone plates when feeding their children.

Ashley Stewart uses her social media to share 'realistic meal ideas' and information about 'all things toddler food'.

While she often shares helpful quick and healthy lunches and snack recipes, the mum has also used her platform to highlight a recent realisation she had when using a silicone plate to feed her toddler.

Stewart - who goes by @reallittlemeals on Instagram - revealed that her toddler recently 'stopped eating' for 'a few weeks' and 'started eating horribly'.

In the post, she explains: "He would take a few bites and then not want anymore. I tried everything, but he wouldn’t eat!!

"Then one day I took a bite of the leftover food off his plate and I had to spit it out.

"It tasted SO BADLY of soap. No wonder he wasn’t eating."

Stewart initially 'switched' which plate she used for her toddler - which saw him 'immediately start eating again' - but wanted to figure out how she could carry on using the handy silicone plates.

Noting everyone 'should know this' if they use silicone plates, the mum explained that the best way to 'fix' the problem of plates tasting of soap is to 'bake silicone plates in the oven at 250 F for one hour to remove soap buildup'.

In order to look after the plates better in the future and make sure they're still useable and safe, Stewart recommends using 'mild or unscented dish soap,' only putting the plates 'on top rack of [the] dishwasher' and not 'soak[ing] [the plates] in soapy water'.

"I would definitely recommend smelling/ licking your silicone plates to see if you're having the same problem. And then try those suggestions to help fix it," the mum added in a post to her story.

Stewart also appealed to other parents who follow her, questioning if anyone else has experienced the same problem and what their solution is - and her post has seen floods of mums take to the comment section.

One parent said: "Yes !!! I noticed this yesterday when my daughter refused to eat although she loved the food. I tasted it and it was awfull [sic]. I changed the plate and she ate everything!"

"I got these wonderful ceramic plates off Amazon that have a removable silicone grip around it (to help protect it from breaking)! Love that it doesn’t leave any aftertaste and it hasn’t been an issue at all with throwing or breaking! (I just keep my eye out haha)," another added.

A third commented: "We use an all natural soap and haven’t had any issues if that happens to help anyone."

And a final resolved: "I use stainless steel plates and cups for my kids. Best decision I ever made."