Set a routine
The fridge should be closed for business outside of regularly scheduled meals and snack times. The expectation that food is only offered at certain times of the day makes your picky eater more likely to take what you offer when you offer it. Establishing this sort of routine can create behavioral changes for your child and less stress for you.
Respect their appetite
It may feel like blatant defiance, but sometimes kids just aren’t hungry. It’s important to recognize their ability to self-regulate feelings of hunger and fullness. That prompt to “take one more bite” or “clean your plate” may compromise a lifetime of respect for mental cues to stop eating.
Recruit the other side
Get your picky eater to join your side of the fight. When grocery shopping, give them a voice in selecting fruits, vegetables and other nutritious foods they usually avoid. Consider planting a garden and involving them in the process of growing food from start to finish. Develop skills in time management while also teaching a fraction or two by letting them cook a meal with you. By allowing kids to embrace their autonomy, you may just get them to finally take a bite.
Get creative
Your picky eater is likely not getting their daily dose of fruits and veggies. While they may try a single green bean from your new garden (and then promptly spit it out), you’ll have to get creative to reach nutritional benchmarks. For breakfast, puree in extra fruit while making a deceptively sweet treat. For lunch, give them their all-time favorite—nuggets—with a plant-based twist. When snack time comes around, make gooey edible slime that’s rich in vitamin C.
Your picky eater is likely not getting their daily dose of fruits and veggies. While they may try a single green bean from your new garden (and then promptly spit it out), you’ll have to get creative to reach nutritional benchmarks. For breakfast, puree in extra fruit while making a deceptively sweet treat. For lunch, give them their all-time favorite—nuggets—with a plant-based twist [hyperlink recipe “Tricking Picky Eaters: Crispy Veggie Nuggets”]. When snack time comes around, make gooey edible slime that’s rich in vitamin C.
Set an example
Finally, be the kind of eater you want your kid to be. Try your old foe Brussels sprouts in a new and exciting way. Swap your usual morning Pop-Tarts with a protein-rich option. Kids tend to mimic our behaviors (for better or worse), so make your diet a reflection of what is best for them.
Some days, it won’t be worth the fight. That’s okay! The process of bringing up a healthy and happy kid is a long one, and sometimes a box of mac n cheese will do. Just remember, you can probably sneak carrots into that Easy Mac somehow.
Finally, be the kind of eater you want your kid to be. Try your old foe Brussels sprouts in a new and exciting way [hyperlink recipe “Smashed Brussel Sprouts”]. Swap your usual morning Pop-Tarts with a protein-rich option [hyperlink recipe “Sweet Potato Breakfast Hash”]. Kids tend to mimic our behaviors (for better or worse), so make your diet a reflection of what is best for them.
Some days, it won’t be worth the fight. That’s okay! The process of bringing up a healthy and happy kid is a long one, and sometimes a box of mac n cheese will do. Just remember, you can probably sneak carrots into that Easy Mac somehow.
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