***Help*** 5 Yr Old Picky Eater

My son was nearly 10 pounds at birth but he's almost 10 years now and tall and lanky and in constant motion. I only wish my metabolism was still that good! As long as your doctor thinks he's perfectly healthy, just keep introducing different foods - finding that good balance so you don't overwhelm him. If you find a new food that YOU like...serve it again and soon! With summer coming and different fruits and vegetables around, try making smoothies. You'll get your yogurt-dairy in there and the fruit/veggies for the day. Throw some blueberries in the pancakes. Or try pureed, frozen juice pops. Have him help you cook. Making Stir-fry can be fun. Chicken fajitas can be served buffet-style and is fun too. His food choices really don't look that terrible as long as it's not a lot of processed food or fruit drinks. And we have always made it a rule to try one "tiny" bite of everything! And, although it may be tempting sometimes, try not to ever get in the habit of making a separate "different meal for your son. My kids know, every night, that they have to eat "What's on the menu!" Good luck!

Hang in there B.. It may take years to get a well balanced meal on his plate, but you'll get there. My son is almost 8 and he is still quite picky, but MUCH better than he was when he was 5.
We have somehting called "a no thank you bite." In our home I put a tiny (and I mean tiny) bit of whatever we are eating at dinner that he "refuses" to eat. I tell him that he must take one "no thank you bite" before being aloud to say he doesn't like it. so one night he'll have to take a bite of scallopped potato or another night it might be pork chops. Well, over time he has widened his menu and this Easter he actually asked for more ham and given the choice he ate extra carrots over the green beans.
I always served one healthy thing at mealtime that I know the kids would eat - that really meant corn a lot, but I also would have chicken, rice, etc. My son needed to taste all of the items, but then he could choose to eat a whole plate of corn and bread if he polietly said "no thank you" to the other items. Eventually, he started eating more and more of the foods he used to say no thank you to. Our next battle with him will be eating fruit - he hates it - ugg! Oh well, one thing at a time.
J.

Hi B.,

My daughter will be six in April and her personal menu is limited too. She'll eat chicken nuggets, carrots, apples, french fries, bread, pizza and corn on the cob. She only drinks water and the occasional milk. Oh, and she LOVES chocolate, but I limit desserts. In fact, she's not allowed dessert until she eats healthy food. It's a compromise.

Her pediatrician said that as long as she's eating something healthy on a regular basis that it's okay. She's not suffering and she does lots of sports. She just hates the taste of many foods.

I don't get on her case too much because I was just as picky as a child. Apparantly I once went a whole week refusing to eat anything but hot dogs (gross!). But now I love vegetables and fruit. I think it's something that some of us just have to grow into.

I think that hiding healthy foods into his normal foods will just make him mad. I know I would get really angry at my mom when she did that. Once I threw up on her when I found out what was in my food. That was the last time she tried it.

Just continue to ask him to try new things. One pea or one piece of rice. Take it slow and always let him sample from your plate in case he's feeling adventurous. There's nothing worse than pressure to eat food you think you hate.

Ask your pediatrician what they think about his nutrition. If your peds thinks it's okay, then it probably is. He'll make it through life. My brother hated mushrooms until he started dating his now wife. She convinced him to try them and now he'll eat them. :)

Best of luck! I know it's frustrating. I was the picky kid and now I have a picky daughter. :)

M.

Hi B.. I help parents with these issues since I have a Masters in Holistic Nutrition and often do Health Presentations for local parenting groups. One of the keys is to be consistent and persistent. Keep offering foods over and over. It can take up to 15 tries for your son to actually try and food and another 15 for him to actually eat it. So, you could go a whole month in giving him peas and at the end of the month he will eat them. In other words, don't give up. Be a good example - eat the foods you want him to eat. And, don't give in to him and what he wants. He will eventually learn that if he is hungry, he will have to eat what is offered to him.

I have some handout on this topic if you are interested. Let me know and I can send them your way. Email me at ____@____.com, and let me you would like it and I will gladly send it your way.

I know this can be frustrating. Just hang in there. All the stuff I read is that kids will eventually eat when they need to, and they will get what they need over time.

HTH. :D