Hi! So my DD is 17 months old. She used to eat anything I would put in front of her. It was Great! Now she is sooo picky! The only things I can really get her to eat well is Mac & cheese, or any kind of pasta, yogurt, and deli meat, sweet breads and pears. She used to LOVE scrambled eggs but will bearly touch them now, same thing with oatmeal. I dont think it is a texture thing, because she will eat ANY sort of thing with sugar in it (desserts) no matter the texture. So what do you all think? I would like to get some more different kinds of food in her and more healthy stuff too! Any advice would be great! Thanks!
I always kept my toddler in the kitchen when I cooked, so he could smell the food before he had to eat it.
I also added butter and salt directly to some of his food (just a pinch). That's what they are there for...to season and taste food, as long as its in moderation.
Oh mommy, I feel your pain. It took me 4 and a half YEARS to figure this out. But you have to put down what you want her to eat. If she doesn't eat, then she doesn't eat. But she will very quickly figure out that she needs to eat and pick it up. Careful indulging too much on the pickiness as it will bite you in the rear later and you will have to crack down when she is older and MUCH more resistant to your "training!".
You can't get a picky child to eat and that's not your job. Your responsibility is to provide a variety of foods for her and she will eat what she needs when she wants to.
Simply present her with food, both old favorites and tastes of new foods and let her be. She will eat if she is hungry, so don't make it a big deal and get into a power struggle over food. Let her see you relaxed and happily enjoying your own food. That is something you can do.
Yes, stop giving her sweet foods.
Yes, it is that simple.
There are some exceptions but for the most part kids turn into picky eaters when parents give in. Yep. It's true.
If she "used to eat it" and now she won't and will only eat sweet foods, it's because as she like the sweet foods and refused the other foods you altered your behavior to allow her to eat the sweet foods and not the other foods.
So, alter it back. one serving of mac and cheese with the chicken. No more mac and cheese until she eats the chicken or carrots or whatever.
Don't buy sweet foods. You don't need them. You want them. Treat them as a treat for a special occasion. Not something she gets everyday.
You are allowing this to happen. You need to decide on the menu... I'm not saying you can't give her choices, just don't let her decide the menu.
For example, you can ask her if she wants mac and cheese or a peanut butter sandwich.
When you sit down to eat dinner as a family, she should be expected to eat the same meal that every one else eats.
When my kids were little, the basic rule was that they didn't have to eat what I offered... but....
They got NO other food until the next meal. They didn't have the option of making a sandwich or bowl of cereal.
They didn't push that limit too often... and they are all very good eaters, and are willing to try new things readily.
I was not a short order cook...I cooked what my hubby would eat (which was just about anything), and they were expected to eat what we ate.
If you don't have the sweet things around, she will get used to doing without them.
And... don't worry... she won't starve herself! We forget how small their stomach really is.... a couple of tablespoons of an entree' is really enough... especially if there are veggies and other things there, too. Just don't get in the habit of letting her fill herself up on milk, either.
i would suggest trying to remove the store bought sweet deserts and make more healthy ones, like oatmeal cookie bars with cranberries and oranges. also you can mix fruits in her yogurt. and with pasta i always make my own sauce and put all kinds of veggies in it. kids go through picky eating stages, my son went through a phase where all he wanted was bananas and eggs. keep offering the good stuff and she will get her tastes back.
She is asserting her newfound individuality. Keep up with the healthy options and it will get better. My son is 2 and is slowly coming out of it. He has a similar meal to ours every night. (like if we have chicken, his will have sauce on the side.) He has to have a small "no, thank you bite" of everything we have. To make his mac and cheese healthier, I squirt a little organic sweet potato puree in there when he's not looking. If he wants a snack between meals, he gets apple slices or string cheese.
What has helped alot is when I'm preparing food, I get out the step stool and he tastes the ingredients as he helps me dump them in. He is more invested in the process and 'trusts' the food more.
Hang in there- it does get better!
These are all great. My son loves them.
http://www.happyhealthymom.com/newsletters/Healthy-Family...
I ran into this will all 4 of my kids and all I did was continue to serve what I felt was a healthy well-rounded meal. They will always have preferences but I just didn't make a deal of it. You will see that she is just testing her place and will start picking up some of the foods she is resisting now just like she seemed ravenous before when in reality she just liked all the new things to explore. And don't worry that they are not getting enough to eat. Kids do not let themselves starve believe me. Maybe like at lunch, give her the veggie first, after eating just a little bit then add the mac and cheese. The less of a deal you make of it the less of a pain about it she will be. They love to work us.
Good luck!
Please keep in mind that your daughter is just a baby and may not want to taste or even like food that the adults like. All you can is try, and consider that she may still be too young and may not wish to take a taste---and at that age they do not yet understand cause and effect---so punishing or saying it is good for you may not work until about 3 years of age. All you do is keep trying, and try putting some sliced and loose fruits/berries in a bowl and watch as they disappear. However for soe Kid friendly recipes see the cookbook
Love More Feed Less as there are lots of tips for getting fussy eaters to eat, including recipe variations for parents who wish to raise healthy kids with affordable ease.
there are only 2 things you need to know about feeding a toddler - they will eat when they are hungry, and you don't have any control over it. she's being "picky" because she's enjoying the control she has. don't try to convince her to eat, even by offering a different option. she gets what she gets. either she'll eat it, or she'll wait until next meal. WHICH WON'T HURT HER AT ALL. promise :) just keep feeding her whatever you planned to feed her, and LET it be her choice to eat it or not. it is, anyway. this is one battle not worth fighting :) if you keep offering healthy options you'll be surprised at how open she'll be to trying them, once you take the battle out.
