A Solution For Moms Of Picky Eaters
Lounge By NEWTODECORATING Updated 11 Sep 2006 , 7:00pm by LukeRubyJoy
Oh my goodness-- my son is not usually a picky eater, with the exception of it has to be "homemade" food, No beans and weinees, mac and cheese for him! uggghh Anyway, he has decided to go through a small picky stage. But I discovered he will eat ANYTHING with a shake or two of cake sprinkles on it 
He gets to pick the color and come on how much sugar can really be in two shakes of the container. Be warned -and this is the really fun part for my son- you get some really crazy looking stuff to eat. We are learning secondary colors too You know blue cake sprinkles and yellow apple sauce makes green, red and blue sprinkles on sliced banana make purple...... we are having fun, learning, and I am getting him to eat different things.
AHhhh Thats so sweet of you.
What a great mommie you are. 
Well we are both a work in progress. He promises every day to try to be a good boy and I promise every day to try and be a good mom.
Well we are both a work in progress. He promises every day to try to be a good boy and I promise every day to try and be a good mom.
Ohhh...That has got to be the SWEETEST thing that I have EVER herd. 
:::tearing up a little:::
Good for you...........
NEWTODECORATING, Thank you so much for the great tip. My 4 year old son is VERY picky on what he eats, with the exception of curly fries from Arbys. He loves sprinkles and I am going to try this and see if it works. It would be so nice to make supper and have him actually eat a little of everything on his plate instead of only eating one thing. The only rule we have is that you don't have to eat every bite on your plate but you do have to try at least one bite of everything. It has been so bad that I have dreaded making supper because I knew it was going to be a fight to get him to eat. Thanks Again!!
Good for you!! As long as you can get a hold of this now, the problem won't be so big later!! My son is 7 now and an extremely picky eater!!! He'll eat pepperoni pizza, spaghetti w/ butter (sometimes w/ meat sauce), and french fries (if I would let him eat that every day!) He brings his lunch to school and will only eat crackers and drink water. Sometimes I can bribe him to eat some string cheese, but that doesn't always work. I used to try and hide fruits or veggies in the foods he would eat, but then he'd know right away and wouldn't eat the rest of the day. I've tried making milk shakes and putting bananas or strawberries in it - nope, he tastes that and won't drink anything I make him. for the rest of that day. He'll go and get his own water from the bathroom sink.
I know it's a big control issue, and he's winning, but I just don't know how to fix this. His doctor says he'll grow out of it and keep trying to get him to eat other foods - it's just exasperating!!!!!
OH Kittiescakes: I am sooo sorry for your food issues. I have two kids who have pretty limited diets, but not quite that bad! Is it a texture thing? Or a color thing? Only red or white/tan for instance? I know a boy who only eats yellow. Not too many yellow things out there, ya know.
My daughter, for lunch everyday eats salami, bologna, pepperoni, 1 piece of american cheese and some sort of cheese-it or pretzel. No bread though, can't make a salami and cheese sandwich...no way. And always "ice-cold water with 2 ice cubes please Mom!" She's funny. She'll probably live to be 100 with all the preservatives and nitrites inside her!
In my life (btwn work and personal) I have heard SO many different strategies for getting nutrition into kids.
NEWTODECORATING: BTW, I don't know if you know this or not, maybe for a treat you could buy the 'kid's quisine' that has the little pizza in it. It comes with parm. cheese that changes to all different colors when you sprinkle it on. My son didn't like the taste of parm., yours may.
Since he is 7 I guess you have tried a ton of stuff. I have done work with feeding clinic here and have heard tons of stuff. I don't want to bore you with them, but it anyone wants to know, just let me know. 
I know how you feel with the picky eaters... my HUSBAND is the pickiest eater EVER! I can honestly name everything he eats and he eats NO meat, veggies or fruit... figure THAT out! His mom let him eat whatever he wanted when he was 3 and he was never forced... ugh! Now, my son is going to eat everything and I'll make sure of it. I can't wait to cook for him because right now it's only cooking for one in this household. DH always eats a pizza day (only cheese) or spaghetti (no meat or veggies in it), mozzarella sticks, grilled cheese, macaroni and cheese, pancakes, scrambled eggs, certain types of cereal, cool ranch doritos, bean & bacon soup, yellow cake with NO frosting (and I'm a cake decorator so this STINKS!), vanilla ice cream or toast with peanut butter on top... that's it! I'm not even stretching the truth at all... he's 23 years old, in perfect health and it drives me bonkers. We can't go out to a steak joint to eat because he won't eat anything! Ugh!
OH Kittiescakes: I am sooo sorry for your food issues. I have two kids who have pretty limited diets, but not quite that bad! Is it a texture thing? Or a color thing? Only red or white/tan for instance? I know a boy who only eats yellow. Not too many yellow things out there, ya know.
I wish it was a texture thing!! He's been picky all his life!!! As a newborn it took almost 2 weeks for him to finally latch on properly to nurse!!!! He won't eat candy, cookies or cake. Can you imagine, a kid who won't eat sweets?!? At school, their afternoon treat is ice cream. He's the only one in class who just drinks water instead. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining about that - I just wish I could get him to try other things. He drinks chocolate milk or water - lots of water. No juices whatsoever. He'll have a soda once in a while, but it can only be brown like Coke or Dr. Pepper. He is an active kid and sleeps well, though.
My 5 yr old daughter, on the other hand, eats really well. She's willing to try anything and if she doesn't like it, she won't eat it. No big deal! All I can say, is try to get the good habits started early. It is so hard to change once they start to get a little older!! I hope my son at 23 will be eating other foods!!!!!
I have a teenage son who would not eat meat. He would take a bite of spagetti and spit out the hamburger. But he has out grown that. He is not really a salad kid though. Except for fruit salads he would live on them. He isn't a big boy but is very active. My 7 yr old daughter is a good eater. She is very active as well. But she doesn't eat to much at a time. She eats about every 2 hours except when she is a sleep. She isn't into meat as much either. So my kids aren't to bad. Kids can grow out of things though. I know for myself I don't like cremy things like pudding or yogurt. I didn't like lettuce salads when I was growing up but love them now. Wish you luck
Kittiescakes: Do you think you could provide the school with a little snack that is appropriate for both him and the school? Like a pudding cup or Jello or yogurt, or something like that? even maybe peanut butter or handy-snacks?
Is he hungry, or does he eat enough of the things that he actually likes? Is he on the growth chart? And what's with all the thirst, doctors say no big deal, not diabetic or anything like that?
Sorry for all the ??, I'm trying to think of things. I am sure you are a wonderful mom, and I am not, in any way, questioning your practices (believe me). With my kids I have had to use many what people would say are unorthodox measures
My 4 yr old is so picky that if I put sprinkles on his food he would probably carefully pick off each and every one and still leave the food. I give him what he wants for lunch but then at dinner we make him take some bites of what we are eating but he rarely finishes. Then he is hungry later and so I end up giving in and giving him a banana or something. But he'd eat junk like chips all day long if I let him. Crazy!
On the other hand, his older brother eats anything and everything, including salad, broccoli, and fruit. He doesn't like cookies most of the time.
I have to buy husky pants for the older brother and slims for the 4 yr old, and the toddler coming up looks like he's headed for the slims too although he's not quite as picky.
Kittiescakes: Do you think you could provide the school with a little snack that is appropriate for both him and the school? Like a pudding cup or Jello or yogurt, or something like that? even maybe peanut butter or handy-snacks?
Is he hungry, or does he eat enough of the things that he actually likes? Is he on the growth chart? And what's with all the thirst, doctors say no big deal, not diabetic or anything like that?
Sorry for all the ??, I'm trying to think of things. I am sure you are a wonderful mom, and I am not, in any way, questioning your practices (believe me). With my kids I have had to use many what people would say are unorthodox measures
I'll take any help I can get, so I appreciate the questions!!! His school does allow him to bring something else for a snack, so I send him with a granola bar with chocolate chips in it. He calls it a "chocolate bar", but the only time he'll eat one of those is when he's really hungry. I ask him everday if he wants money for ice cream and he says no he just wants to save his money. Not sure where that one came from?!? Popcorn is ine snack he will eat, but he doesn't want to bring it to school. I'm sure he has issues of being different, so rather than bring a different snack, he'd rather do without.
And when I say he drinks lots of water, it's not anything out of the norm. He's not thirsty all the time. I just don't let him have choco milk the whole day, mainly with meals, so he usually has a bottle of water with him.
As for being hungry, he fills up on what he likes. And when he's full he stops eating. He's at the 80 percentile for height and 90 percentile for weight. So, he's definitely above average for kids his age and can stand to lose 5-10 lbs. He is active, but I'm sure that excess weight comes from all the carbs he eats. Starting this week, I'm setting up an exercise routine for the whole family using either the treadmill, Gazelle, or Total Gym. The kids love using them, so I want them to see how important exercise is now, so they continue to do it as adults. I just need to get him to understand why fruits and vegetables are important for his body too.
Every blue moon he'll eat a few Tbs of peanut butter or some rice, but absolutely no fruits or veggies. Bribery only works so far. He gets to the point if he really doesn't want to eat something, he'll throw it up. I know it's his way of controlling the situation.
If you have any suggestions, I would really appreciate it!! I feel like I've done everything. My cousin's son is also a picky eater. Somethimes she'll put the food out and if he won't eat it, then he goes hungry. So, for the next meal, she'll put the same thing out and will continue to do that for every meal until he eats it. I have not done that before. My son's gone hungry before, but I don't think that tactic is the way to go.
If you have any suggestions, I would really appreciate it!! I feel like I've done everything. My cousin's son is also a picky eater. Somethimes she'll put the food out and if he won't eat it, then he goes hungry. So, for the next meal, she'll put the same thing out and will continue to do that for every meal until he eats it. I have not done that before. My son's gone hungry before, but I don't think that tactic is the way to go.
My dad did this to me as a kid and I went three days without eating. 
With our picky eater we just say if he doesn't eat his food that's fine, but he doesn't get anything until the next meal. We try to stick to it but sometimes we give in and give him something before bed so he can sleep. He struggles with acid reflux so I don't want his tummy hurting. He's also fairly thin so its ok if I give him peanut butter or chocolate milk.
We don't push cleaning plates here since our non-picky eater is slightly overweight and if he is full, I would definately rather him stop eating. For the younger one, he gets to stop eating but most of the time he has to wait for the next meal to get to eat again. That way he's hopefully hungry enough to eat what he's served. We do make him take at least a few bites each meal though, and I try to give him something he likes for breakfast and lunch.
With my kids, when they are hungry they eat. This isn't necessarily during 'adult meal time' right now. It is unfortunate, but I would rather they eat when they are hungry than develop a bad relationship with mealtime and food. I know I am an emotional eater, esp. when upset....oh you skinned your knee, have a cookie when I was little has turned into serious emotional/stress eating for me as an adult. I would prefer they have a 'healthy relationship with healthy food.' I also refuse to try and make them eat. I will not let it be a power struggle. The following has worked for us.
So, what has happened is that during the school year, they come home and they are starving....so, I give them their big dinner at about 4:30-4:45. That way, they have 'dessert' or a little snack during the adult dinner.
The other thing I have is a meal chart. We have index cards with all the things that they will eat. All chosen by them. On Sunday we will choose what day we will eat what thing, and put it into a pocket (what I bought was an over the door CD holder from the dollar store). It has 20 pockets, and holds the index cards right over the door in our kitchen. So, when they come home, it is not a struggle of "what do you want to eat?". We look at the chart, see what today is, and they are happy to do that. Then, we also did snacks. We have a healthy and a not-so-healthy snack (all on different colored cards). They move the card to 'finished' once they have eaten it. Of course sometimes they want more...that is a bonus snack, and OF COURSE they can have it....they are skinny...and whenever they initiate more eating....that's a GOOD THING.
When they ask for something different than is in the slot, we will sometimes switch it out if they do a chore or something like that. But, it takes the pressure off me "not feeding them what they want". They have picked it and put it in the slot, so it's off me. It also makes them feel in control (while providing all choices that I approve of anyway). I try to have them as involved as I can. (they are 6 and 7) They helped draw pictures of the foods on the cards and helped to write the names (so they also learn how to read!). I pick one day that is an "eat out" day. We normally pick pizza on that day. Then, during our adult dinner, we have "taste it" time, which they don't necessarily have to participate in. But many times, they do, and then they can have more if they want it. We add to the cards when they really decide they like the new thing. We also remove cards for a bit if they get overused.
My 7 year old son, isn't a bad eater necessarily, but he only eats a bit at a time, therefore wants to eat every few hours. I normally use a timer to let him know when he can eat again. I sometimes think it is out of bordom, so I try and delay it. He also would prefer to eat 4 bites of 7 different things. This is why we have the different cards. Only so many cards per day. And, say, he has a more limited palate, you could have the 'peanut butter' card everyday, but once it is moved, oh well, too bad, time for the apple. Also, I will tell him you can have peanut butter, only if I can melt it with apple. So, he has to eat the apple to have the peanut butter. I know many would just eat the p.b. and leave the apple, but in this instance, I would sit with him and "help" him or take the peanut butter away until he finishes the apple slice.
Another thing that worked when they were younger was putting them in front of the tv (not often, only when we were exhausted). Then, they would watch, and SIT STILL, and eat (without thinking about it). We could sit at a different table in the same room, eat our own food, not yell, and perhaps have a bit of a conversation.
Alright....sorry that was a lot of information. I'll try and shut up now (although that's not like me )
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