According to a recent study, nearly 2/3 of parents complain about their child’s eating habit. Picky eaters are normal and tend to get over it with age, but focusing too much on the problem doesn’t help with the issue. Here are a few tips that will help your child eat out of their lunch plate without worrying their food has touched.
1Don’t fuss: fussing about the number of times a child eats per day, or the amount of food ingested during lunch hour will not help with your picky eater. Monitor your child’s food intake per week rather than daily, just make sure they maintain a balanced diet that includes all food groups.
2Don’t push: don’t try to push a certain type of food (veggies for instance); let your child eat what they want to eat even if that means French fries for a whole week, they’ll get bored eventually.
3Offer praise: a prompt reward is necessary upon trying new food even if it’s just a small bite. Teach your child to try new stuff and praise them instantly to encourage such behavior onwards.
4Make it colorful: decorate the plate with different kinds of beans and veggies to make the plate more appealing for your child to dig in to. Remember, fruits don’t have to be a whole nectar, they could be disguised into popsicles, smoothies, or even fruit yogurts.
5Let them help you prepare it! Whether it’s a plate of salad or a juicy fajita, encourage your child to help you cook so they can be encouraged to taste what they’ve learned in the kitchen today.
6Offer choices: giving your child options, whether plate colors or food options is always a good idea to end the “power struggle” between you and your child. Just make it clear that options aren’t really available when you’re outside of the house to avoid getting into trouble next time you’re eating out.
7Wait it out: if your child rejects a certain food, wait a while before you offer it again to them. Give them time to forget about it and don’t be too pushy, eventually they’ll want to try it.
8Taste your own poison: enjoying your own cooking would encourage your kid to like eating your food. Eat together at the same time, have a nice meal at the dinner table to encourage their eating.
9Plan B: find alternatives. If they don’t like the way broccoli feels, or the texture of meat/ chicken, no problem then! Find another type of food that would have the same amount of protein for instance.
10Disguise it: veggies have been kids’ number one disliked food for ages. If you insist on slipping in a few bean sprouts, fine just hide it in their food. Mash it up into pieces, cover it in teriyaki sauce, or even drizzle it with tons of dressing, your kid probably won’t notice it there.
