10 Strategies to Help Make Your Child A Good Eater
I have been a huge fan of Food Network for many years now; and if you know me, then this, I am sure does not come as a surprise. Giada DeLaurentiis is definitely one of my all time favorite celebrity chefs. I have had the pleasure of meeting her in person and she is absolutely lovely, warm, and friendly. Aside from enjoying watching her cook and her recipes, I recall watching her shows, even before I had children, and admiring how her young daughter Jade would be on the show trying the food her mother was making. Giada always exuded such passion and enthusiasm for the food she was making, and that enthusiasm clearly encouraged her daughter to want to sample her mother’s yummy creations.
Growing up my parents never served us “kid food”. Every night at dinner, we were served on dinner plates and our meal was the same meal that my parents were eating - my husband was raised the same way. Now, to be honest there were often battles over finishing broccoli, and I would be lying if I didn’t say some crying, gagging, and sneakily spitting vegetables into my napkin weren’t at times involved. However, overall my brother and I were great eaters and have grown up to be quite the food enthusiasts.
I know you aren’t here for long winded tales from my childhood, so I am condensing down a list of tips that have worked for my husband and I when it comes to encouraging our children to try, enjoy, and appreciate all kinds of food.
Full disclosure, my kids (who are ages 7, 6 year old twins, and 2), have all gone through “good eating” and “not so good eating” phases, but overall I’d say they are all great/non-picky eaters.
ENTHUSIASM: From the time your kids are very young, show a lot of enthusiasm for food. Just like Giada! When preparing something, say things like “oh my goodness, this looks amaaazing, I can’t wait to try this”. Basically, over dramatize a little. Kids like to be entertained, much like commercials, sometimes you’ve just got to sell it to them! For me it’s really not even dramatization, our family naturally gets very excited about food.
PREPARATION: Have your child/children be part of the process, have them help you cook and prepare the food. Often times, if it is something they created, they will be proud of it and want to try it. Sampling the food they helped make just becomes part of the process, so they don’t just think of it as something “Mommy is MAKING me eat.”
TOGETHERNESS: If possible, eat at least one meal a day all together. If the kids are seeing you model scooping certain foods on your plate, and everyone eating the same foods all together, it becomes part of the routine. Children thrive off of routines, whether it is sleep training or eating, they will do better when clear expectations and routines are established.
PRESENTATION: I have found that how food is presented to my kids makes a big impact on how well they eat. First, when it comes to their lunches for school, I use a bento style lunchbox. It has all different compartments, versus putting their food in a bunch of separate plastic baggies. All of their teachers have always commented that their lunches look great in those lunchboxes, and it is true the food looks more appetizing, and is more accessible than it is in the baggies. I also sometimes serve them what they call “fancy lunch” when we are at home. If you follow my Instastories, you have seen our “fancy lunch”, which is basically a charcuterie board. I put fruits, veggies, meats, cheeses, nuts etc, and the presentation looks great and they eat it up, both literally and figuratively. If you want to serve your kids healthy snacks, ice cube trays with each slot having a bunch of little healthy snack options, also makes it more fun for kids. This strategy works very well for toddlers. If you make the meal colorful and appetizing looking, they are also more inclined to go for it.
PASS ON THE KIDS MENU: I inherited this strategy from my parents. They never ordered us food off of the kids menu at restaurants. Even if they did, I would often skip my own meal and want to eat whatever my parents were having, I have found the same thing has happened when I order my children kids meals. Anyone else notice that no matter what you put in front of them, they still want to climb in your lap and eat off your plate? That’s good, let them. We seldom order items off of the kids menu. Only con is, instead of a hot dog your child may be requesting a lobster roll, so try this strategy with caution!
LIMIT OPTIONS: I put out what I make for dinner and that is it. If they don’t want to eat all of the vegetable, then they can have more meat, or rice, etc. I have never given them the option of having something else like a peanut butter sandwich, or a yogurt, cheese stick, etc for dinner. Dinner is dinner, and that’s it.
AVOID FORCE: We don’t force our kids to finish dinner or eat anything, we don’t want them to associate eating with “a battle”. We simply say, this is what you have to eat for dinner and if you don’t eat this, there will be nothing else. As far as lunch goes, we say if you do not eat lunch, you will not eat snacks or anything else until dinnertime. Once they see their siblings who have eaten, having their dessert, they often finish their meal on their own accord.
APPRECIATION: My husband always says a prayer before every meal, and even if we do not do it with him, before bed we always acknowledge how fortunate we are for our family, our food, etc. We try to teach our children, that the food we have is something to be grateful for.
VARIETY: Just like adults, kids get sick of the same old thing. I try to switch up recipes and meals so that they are constantly trying a variety of different foods. If they are exposed to all kinds of foods from early on, they are more likely to develop a pallet for it as time goes on. On the contrary, if they are eating the same rotation of Dino nuggets, and peanut butter sandwiches, of course they are going to have a hard time branching out. The more variety, the better.
REGRESSION IS NORMAL: Every one of my four children has gone through a phase of eating really well, to all of a sudden getting more picky. Our pediatrician confirmed that this is very normal and often goes along with growth spurts. Our son Declan was for a long time our best eater, lately he has not been eating as much and can be picky sometimes. Greyson, our oldest is the opposite right now. Don’t get discouraged as this is normal, again, just stay consistent with your expectations and it will work out.
But what if my kids are a little older and are picky and used to eating a different meal as my spouse and I? I say it is never too late to start a new routine. Consider having a family meeting first and talk about how important it is to be strong and healthy and since they are getting older now, it is time to start eating like big girls and/or boys. Start with a dinner with foods they like, and maybe add one new thing and have them try a few bites. If they don’t eat dinner, nothing until breakfast, this is not abuse, your child will not starve (as long as they have eaten other food during the day obviously), it will be OK. You may have to deal with some whining and crying initially but once they get used to the new routine, they will come around.
I am not claiming to be a parenting expert, and this may not work for you and your family. I am sharing what has worked really well for us, and if you are struggling with picky eaters and are looking for some tips, perhaps some of these strategies may work for you.
And for the record, I have a cousin who was and still is the world’s pickiest eater (not kidding, its a big family joke). Despite this pickiness he is a very successful engineer and living a happy and fulfilled life. So parent’s don’t beat yourself up too much, there is no such thing as perfect parenting, you’re doing a great job and it will be okay!
xo,
Nicole
