Focusing on Fussy Eaters
“Last night I made three meals for my son and he would not even take one bite! What am I going to do with my fussy kid?”
This was the start of a conversation I had with an exasperated mom. The little boy was extremely finicky. Mom was at the end of the line, not knowing what else to do to get her child to eat.
Fussy eaters can be aggravating and worrisome. Food is fuel. Good choices are necessary for growth. So what do we do with those picky eaters? Try these ideas to help your finicky eater and improve mealtime at your house.
• Make one meal for the whole family. Becoming a short order cook on the whim of a fussy eater is not beneficial for the child and will leave the parent frazzled. Kids are not entitled to choosing a dinner selection that’s different from the family every night.
• Have a “One Bite Rule”. Whether a food is new to the child or not a favorite, encourage kids to try something new and to give others a second, third or seventh chance. It may take a number of times to develop a taste for certain foods.
• Involve children in meal preparation. When a child is part of the process, he learns kitchen “how-tos” and sees the work involved in making healthy meals. Truly, it’s harder not to take a bite when a kid can say, “I helped!”
• Choose colorful foods. Make the meal a feast for the eyes and the palate.
• Vary the preparation. If cooked carrots tend to wrinkle your daughter’s nose, try serving them raw with spinach dip.
• Give foods a new, fun name. My sister’s kids called broccoli “trees” for years! My kids thought it was cool and followed their aunt’s suggestion.
• Get in the habit of offering healthy choices for the whole family, Mom and Dad included. When only good choices are available, any option will be a good one!
• Drink milk and water. Soda pop is not a good choice, period. There’s too much sugar, tummies get filled too quickly, calcium and phosphorus are lost, and the risk of dental decay is higher. All good reasons to skip soft drinks completely.
• Last resort, bread and butter. For those determined little rascals, bread with butter is a final option. Or when my boys were not interested in dinner, Scott and I would tell them, “Breakfast is in the morning.” Kids will not starve overnight. If they are really hungry, they will eat something on the dinner table.
• Close the kitchen. If snacks are an option before bedtime, children don’t need to eat dinner.
• As always, be a good role model. Try new foods and give foods you haven’t liked in the past a chance. Just smile and swallow one bite!
Enjoy mealtime together, as a family!
Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you.
Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.
Genesis 9:3
© 2013 Becky Danielson. All rights reserved.
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