Yes, I have a picky eater. And yes, I hate the term "picky eater" but that's what he is. He is almost 4 and my only child *spoiled rotten* lol HIs diet consists of any kind of chicken (chicken legs in particular), hot dogs, french fries, and fruit. He will not touch a single vegetable, not even corn anymore. I realize I played a large role in his eating style, but now I need to know how to fix it. It used to be if I put something on his plate he didn't like, he would cry. Now he just ignores it. I want my child to be one of those that will eat salads, string cheese, heck even a hamburger! He hates ground beef, pasta, rice, cheese etc. So how do I get him to try something? Do I bribe him? I don't want to force him to eat it. I've tried putting a spoonful of something up to his mouth to just get him to stick out his tongue and taste it but nope, the mouth is like sealed with super glue or something. I have no clue how to get him to expand his palate. Please help!
Just keep offering him new things with a combo of what he will eat...I make my girls take a no thank you bite before they leave the table. If they dont like it that is fine, but that way they see what it tastes like BEFORE they say yuck!
Let him "help" cook. helping can be he cuts one potato with a safety knife (they sell them for pumpkin carving) adds the carrots you sliced or stirs the bowl or tosses the salad. you pour the rice into the measuring cup and hand it to him and he pours it into the pot ..... I made meatballs the other night and he washed his hands, rolled one meatball, washed his hands and was done, but he ate some meatballs!!!
i agree when my daughter was around 1 I started letting her help cook and anything she made tasted awesome in her opinion, and now she eats a wide variety of food...sure she has some veggies she'd prefer not to eat, or some tastes she doesn;t enjoy but for the mostpart she eats a lot///J. nothing too spicy
I want to encourage you to be the one in charge and to let your child know this lovingly and consistently. Studies have shown that children actually like having clear boundaries for their actions. They find security and affirmation of their worth when parents lovingly enforce those boundaries for the good of their children. I have four children ages 3 to 8. I do give my kids choices and try to make foods they like. But, whether or not they like the food, my kids know they must eat reasonable portions of entre and veggies or suffer consequences. It's understood they will get no snacks or treats until their meal is eaten. When they delay too long or refuse to eat, I save their leftovers and give it to them at their next snack or meal until they finish it. My son once missed out on his favorite meal because he was eating his leftovers while everyone else got the yummy food. He decided not to risk missing out again and has been finishing his food. Not only did he develop a good behavor, but there was character development involved in that decision too. He observed the future blessings that came from doing right and chose to forego immediate gratification in order to obtain them.
Lest I sound like too much of a meanie, I do let my kids season "yucky" foods any way they like, within reason, to make them more palatable for themselves. They have added ketchup, salad dressing, mayonnaise, butter, cheese, croutons, french fried onions, bacon bits, Cheerios, just to name a few. (My children tend to be on the smaller side of average, so I don't mind the extra calories.) Sometimes they get a bite of something they like after they reach a milestone, like 1 bite bread after each 3 bites veggies. I play games with them too. Examples: "Here comes the train. Open the tunnel." (for my Thomas fan) or "Better eat that bite before the pesky penguin gets it first." (I look away. Kids eat behind my back. I pretend to be surprised and concerned that the "penguin" is eating all their food.) I will resort to feeding them when necessary. No super glued mouths allowed at our house. There are consequences for that as well.
The key to effective authority is love. I always talk about how good the food is and that I love my kids and want them to have that good food to help them grow healthy and happy. With this consistent treatment, my children have learned to like a wide variety of foods and will eat salad without complaining--most of the time. Hope this helps. Best wishes to you and your family. :o)
What I did with 3 year old triplets, one 5 year old, and one 7 year old was tell them their taste buds change all the time. It isn't fair to not let your taste buds try new things, is it? That is really sad for them. They might love corn and you aren't even letting them try it! Try one bite and see if they like it this time.
Have you tried to introduce new foods in a fun way. Does he like pizza? You can make pizza and "decorate" it with foods that you want him to eat. And if he doesn't like cheese, you can just use a light amount of cheese or no cheese at all. If he helps make dinner, he will probably want to try foods along the way. It may take some time, but he will come around.
I would start by feeding him the same (healthy) meals you and DH are eating. I would put the food on your plate, DH's plate and your son's plate. That's it, at the end of the meal clear normally.
There is some good research evidence that bribery actually causes children to be less accepting of the food they were bribed to eat. Also that simple repetition (offering a new food over and over) is very effective. However the median number of times a new food must be offered before it is reliably consumed is between 12 and 16 - most parents give up way before that.
Taking him to the farmer's market and letting him pick out new foods is helpful. So is letting him help cook meals. Threes can use a salad knife (plastic) to cut soft veggies, tear lettuce, mix things in a bowl and measure (with help of course).
