How to Handle Picky Little Eaters

-

How to Handle Picky Little Eaters
As parents, we only want what’s best for our kids. It’s only natural for us to want our children to grow up as healthy and as happy as can be. Something you may not know is most families struggle with feeding time at the dinner table. So don’t worry, you’re not the only family with this problem.  Majority of children is what we call “picky eaters” and they are highly sensitive to what they decide to put in their mouths. This makes eating healthy a bit more challenging. This blog post is to provide some useful tips and tricks for getting your children to eat their full healthy plate of dinner.

                Be patient with new foods. Children often touch, smell and might even taste tiny bits of unfamiliar food before finding enjoyment from it.. It’s common for children to refuse foods because they don’t know what it is. If your child refuse to eat something, it does not mean they won’t ever enjoy it, it might just take some time for them to get use to. It might take kids 8-10 encounters with a food item until they start eating it with enjoyment. Try to avoid forcing your kids to eat something they doesn’t want to. Simply just ask to try one bit, and move on from it. Hopefully, becoming more familiar with foods will provoke them to eating more of those unfamiliar healthy foods. 

                Make it fun. As parents, we all know it's difficult to get our kids to eat those healthy veggies. Next time, try cutting the veggies into unique shapes or patterns. Serve a variety of different colored vegetables will make the plate look more satisfying and fun! If you find your kids using broccoli as race cars… that’s a good thing! Having a good relationship with veggie can spark an interest. And that little spark might give them temptation to eating that delicious broccoli.

                Set a good example. If you don’t already know it yet, you are your children’s biggest role model. They are super observant and witness your every action and decision. Therefore, if you want your kids to eat those veggies, you have to be their role model and educated them on the importance of consuming veggies.

                Be creative. Sometimes it’s not just the taste, but also the texture. Try experimenting with different recipes to incorporate those veggies into meals they love. I remember growing up my mother would always add peas to my mac and cheese bowl. I really didn’t mind it as long as I was able to eat my Craft Mac and Cheese. Little did I know my mom was just trying to get me to eat more veggies. Another example would be cauliflower crust pizza. Every kid loves pizza, and I can assure you they won’t even know the crust is made of cauliflower. Here’s an excellent recipe
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/katie-lee/cauliflower-pizza-crust-2651381

                Try your best to not get frustrated when little jimmy refuses to eat his green beans. Take a breath, it’s okay. Having your kids stray away from the picky eaters club will take some time and effort. Incorporating these 4 tricks might just make that time a whole lot shorter.

-AD

Comments

  1. ksu internsNovember 28, 2019 at 12:01 PM

    My 5 year old cousin is extremely sensitive to his environment (he's considered an orchid child) so large groups, loud noises, or the seem of his jeans can irritate him and initiate a reaction. Certain foods have the same effect, especially when considering the temperature, texture, or color. These are all very helpful tips for helping him become comfortable with new foods! -EL

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Are All Sugars Created Equal?

-
Image
Are All Sugars Created Equal?  I think one of the most confusing nutrition topics for people is sugar. With so many conflicting stories out there, it’s difficult to separate the facts from the fiction. Not to mention, the types of sugars are endless. How do we know what’s best for our bodies? White or brown sugar? Cane or raw? Should we just go with Stevia instead? Is it even okay to consume artificial sweeteners? Should we avoid foods with high amounts of natural sugar in them? Each answer only seems to lead to another question!  Let’s start off with distinguishing the purpose of sugar in the first place. Do our bodies even need it? The short answer is yes! Sugars are carbohydrates (what we commonly call “carbs”), one of the three main macronutrients that our bodies need for fuel to function and survive. One of the major ways to categorize sugar is by separating the “natural” sugars from the “added” sugars. Natural sugars are, well, naturally found in foods. They give us the energy th
Read more

Do you struggle with pre and post exercise nutrition?

-
Image
What should i eat before and after a workout? First things first…carbohydrates, proteins and fats are important for the body before  and after exercise. Exercising muscle preferentially uses carbohydrates from stored glycogen, but fats are also an important fuel source for energy production during exercise. Fats and carbohydrates are the two major fuel sources during exercise. Fats must be translocated and broken down from their storage form before they are used. Typically there is enough carbohydrate stored as muscle glycogen for exercise but as muscle glycogen stores decline, the skeletal muscle will then use some amino acids (basic components of all protein). More specifically, the amino acid leucine is used for energy.              It is important to consume an adequate amount of carbohydrates exercise to delay fatigue and minimize gastrointestinal distress. It is also important to consume enough fluids to prevent hypohydration. Now, lets talk about pre-exercise me
Read more