I'm sick of these dietitians and their "solutions" for picky eaters. I have a few children who are picky and it is agonizing. They are not just toddlers either, they're 14, 13, and 11. Today, my 11 and 14 year-olds actually PEALED their pancakes because the normal browning on the pancake outside was too much for them and they would eat it. You can imagine what was left of their pancake after peeling both sides.
We had the rule for a while where if you didn't eat what was for dinner, you didn't eat. All you had to do was put it in your mouth and spit it out and that would be acceptable. Well, two of the children didn't eat dinner for two years. A nutritionist told us we couldn't do that anymore.
So. What are some of these solutions that doctors suggest?
Make Food Fun: Make Shapes and such.
Doesn't work! They don't give a crap that it's in another shape! They see right through that. All my children have even when they were 2 or 3.
Let Them Cook
That doesn't work! We even put them in cooking classes at the rec center, still wouldn't eat what they cooked.
Be Sneaky, Hide Good Foods in What They Eat
Tried that, when they found out that something was in there (because they could taste the difference) they stopped eating that food altogether because they didn't trust us anymore. Also, it is hard to hide stuff in hot dogs, chicken nuggets and pizza.
Don't Let Them Eat an Hour Before Dinner
So they come to the table hungry. Well, when you have children to sneak and steal food all day, (snacks/sugar) it's hard to have them be hungry. We don't notice they're going out to the garage to steal food. We haven't yet invested in something to lock up ALL the food in the house. It's not real easy to do that anyway. Who wants to live like that? "Honey, I need the key so I can get the bread out!"
Require one bite or at least put it in their mouth and spit it out.
We tried that with the children. They would sit there and stare at the food for hours. One day my 14yo son, when being forced to try eggs, he sat at the table from 9am to 2pm and when he was told on penalty of grounding he better get it done, he gagged and threw them up.
Of my three oldest here is the list of foods each will eat:
No Fruits, No Salad (although I don't like salad myself), no vegetables.
I fully admit that I am probably the hereditary owner of their pickiness. I don't like Salad, Mayonnaise-based items, some vegetables. I get that but on those things I have tried them and don't like the taste. With these boys they will not try anything.. But I still eat way way more than these children.
I have heard once of a mother who did something extreme to break her child of pickiness. She served him something for lunch, he wouldn't eat it. Gave the same thing for dinner. He wouldn't eat it, she continued to serve the same meal to him for three days while he only had water to drink when he refused. On the third day, he ate the food out of pure hunger and that "broke" him of the picky behavior. I would think that I would be reported for child abuse if I did that mostly because I know that my children would stretch that out to 7 or 8 days.
I am at a loss. We're looking for counseling help again in the fall. We're going to get to the bottom of the fear these children have. I don't know how long it will take but we gotta persevere.
We had the rule for a while where if you didn't eat what was for dinner, you didn't eat. All you had to do was put it in your mouth and spit it out and that would be acceptable. Well, two of the children didn't eat dinner for two years. A nutritionist told us we couldn't do that anymore.
So. What are some of these solutions that doctors suggest?
Make Food Fun: Make Shapes and such.
Doesn't work! They don't give a crap that it's in another shape! They see right through that. All my children have even when they were 2 or 3.
Let Them Cook
That doesn't work! We even put them in cooking classes at the rec center, still wouldn't eat what they cooked.
Be Sneaky, Hide Good Foods in What They Eat
Tried that, when they found out that something was in there (because they could taste the difference) they stopped eating that food altogether because they didn't trust us anymore. Also, it is hard to hide stuff in hot dogs, chicken nuggets and pizza.
Don't Let Them Eat an Hour Before Dinner
So they come to the table hungry. Well, when you have children to sneak and steal food all day, (snacks/sugar) it's hard to have them be hungry. We don't notice they're going out to the garage to steal food. We haven't yet invested in something to lock up ALL the food in the house. It's not real easy to do that anyway. Who wants to live like that? "Honey, I need the key so I can get the bread out!"
Require one bite or at least put it in their mouth and spit it out.
We tried that with the children. They would sit there and stare at the food for hours. One day my 14yo son, when being forced to try eggs, he sat at the table from 9am to 2pm and when he was told on penalty of grounding he better get it done, he gagged and threw them up.
Of my three oldest here is the list of foods each will eat:
| Meal | 14yo | 12yo | 11yo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Breakfast | Oatmeal Sugar Cereals Life Cereal Pancakes (peels off brown on sides to get the bits on the inside) Turkey Bacon |
Pancakes Some sugar cereals Turkey Bacon Biscuits |
Frosted Flakes Fruit Loops Pancakes (peels off brown sides like oldest) |
| Lunch | Chicken Nuggets if from Fast Food French Fries Peanut Butter Sandwich Ramen Noodles Plain pasta w/butter String Cheese Maybe a Sugardale Hot Dog if forced (no other brand) |
Peanut Butter sandwich if forced to. Ravioli Pizza (usually peels off cheese) Pasta with Parmesan Plain Bread |
Chicken Patties (Must be Tyson Chicken Patties) Bread Sugardale Hot Dogs (no other brand) Pizza with no cheese. Will take sausage as topping. |
| Dinner | Rice (sticky rice not minute rice) Rotisserie Chicken (Breast only, must peel off all flavor and only eat INSIDE meat. Taco Shells with cheddar cheese in it (no meat) |
Tacos with cheese and hot sauce Mac & cheese |
NOTHING unless having a lunch item for dinner. |
No Fruits, No Salad (although I don't like salad myself), no vegetables.
I fully admit that I am probably the hereditary owner of their pickiness. I don't like Salad, Mayonnaise-based items, some vegetables. I get that but on those things I have tried them and don't like the taste. With these boys they will not try anything.. But I still eat way way more than these children.
I have heard once of a mother who did something extreme to break her child of pickiness. She served him something for lunch, he wouldn't eat it. Gave the same thing for dinner. He wouldn't eat it, she continued to serve the same meal to him for three days while he only had water to drink when he refused. On the third day, he ate the food out of pure hunger and that "broke" him of the picky behavior. I would think that I would be reported for child abuse if I did that mostly because I know that my children would stretch that out to 7 or 8 days.
I am at a loss. We're looking for counseling help again in the fall. We're going to get to the bottom of the fear these children have. I don't know how long it will take but we gotta persevere.
