How Do You Get a Picky 1-Year Old to Eat?

I 14 month old has decided as well that veggies are not for him so I have to trick him. He is at the point where he will only eat what he see us eat and then he thinks it must be good. I made beef stew and put carrotts, peas, corn, onions and such in there and because you simmer the stew so long the veggies get so soft and break up that it mixes with broth and almost is undetectable but they are in there, he loves it. I also do the same with baking chicken in the oven in cream of chicken soup then adding veggie and rice. Feed him when you eat and see if he watches you eat maybe he will do the same. You have to get creative and out think them.
Also good luck on number 2.

If he loves cheese, try melting some and pour it over the vegetables. My 2 yr old still only eats vegetables out of the baby food jars, or if I mash it....but I let her since thats the way that she eats them.

My 20-month old has always been a picky eater. He's not a big veggie fan but I sometimes mix it in with tortellini (he'll eat anything in pasta sauce). I also do the Veggie corn dogs (Morningstar or Trader Joe's brand). Trader Joe's also has mini-quiches that are a big hit since they have lots of cheese in them, too. Pizza is also a good option since the veggies are buried with other stuff. Or sometimes I'll add steamed broccoli to his mac and cheese. Doesn't seem to mind it that way. And when all else fails, he LOVES Veggie Booty, veggie chips, and snap pea crisps. A lot of kids like to dip so you may want to try dipping them in ranch dressing or something. Good luck!

I've had luck with 2 things. Sometimes they will see a commercial for what they eat, and they get excited because they know what it is. That way when you go to the store, you play like a memory game..."Remember we ate that & saw it on t.v.?". The 2nd thing is, I let them help me shop. I would go to the spot where I'd like them to get food from (let's say fruits & veggies) and we'd talk about colors. We'd talk about what colors things were and sort of make a game of it. When they seemed excited, we'd pick a fruit. My kids LOVE bananas, oranges, apples.....even just plain old fruit cups with the syrup drained out. (less mess!!) Then I let them pick out what they'd like to taste. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

It might be hard and frustrating at first, but give it time. Not only will he like the game aspect, but he'll be learning, and it'll help make grocery shopping a little less painful. good luck :)

My daughter goes hot and cold with food. Sometimes she is a fan and sometimes not so much. One thing that I accidentally discovered is that everything is better with dip. She doesn't even care what kind of dip - ketchup, cheese, ranch dressing, whatever!

On a different note - not to worry - I asked one of the peds. in our practice what to do with a kid that won't eat anything but Cheerios (she was on that kick for a while too) and he said, "stop giving her Cheerios". I must have gotten a freaked out look on my face because then he said, "the bottom line is this - children that have 2 working arms and that are not neurologically impaired will not starve to death". Now, I am not a fan of letting kids go until they will eat anything because they are just plain starving, but when she is refusing everything, I remember what he said and I don't get so worried.

Good luck!
Jessica

Although my kids have been good eaters, I've heard if you keep introducing foods, over and over, that they will eventually try them. Will he eat off of a spoon? What if you dip the cheese in something like sweet potatoes and spoon it in? Hang in there! He will eventually eat more things!

Hey M.,

I know, so frustrating! My daughter usually eats really well, but sometimes she is very picky and it is nerve wrecking! This could just be a phase. In the meantime, my trick with veggies is to steam them, then mix them with Olive Oil and parmasean cheese. She ate a whole huge bowl of peas tonight because I doctored them up! She also loves broccoli served this way!!Also, have you ever tried giving him a veggie burger?? My daughter loves them, especially the garden veggie kind by morningstar. They can just pick it up and go to town!

Good luck! hope this helps!

M.,

I have one who is now 9 and still as picky as ever. I can't get him to eat anything...he doesn't eat any meat, or vegetables. Even the doctor has been unable to help, he eats peanut butter and jelly like it's going out of style, he eats apples, lots of milk, dry cereal, pancakes and that's about it...other than of course he would never turn down french fries or junk food. I have tried to out wait him (with the thought that if I refuse to let him have anything else he will eat....3 days later I couldn't take it anymore...this was the doctors suggestion) at this point I have decided that I just have to deal with it. He takes a multi vitamin daily and I give him his peanut butter and jelly! I was extremely picky as a kid and would gag and throw up if I was forced to eat. Sometimes you just have to wait for them to outgrow it. Best of luck!