Tips for Picky Eaters Part 2

I guess I had a lot of tips for picky eaters. Here are the rest of my suggestions:

1. Use small portions – Your children might feel less overwhelmed with their meal if they are allowed to have small portions. Sometimes I ask my children how many bites they think it will take to eat what is on their plate. I estimate what I think it will take and ask them to make their guess too.

2. Same food for the whole family and meals at the same times each day. Some children are more comfortable with a routine than others. I tell my children that some days will be their favorite meal and some days will be someone else’s favorite meal. They need to take the good with the bad in everything in life. Cooking different meals for different people will burn you out faster than anything. Stick with one meal for the whole family! Having your meals at approximately the same time each day might help your child eat better meals too.

3. Read Bread and Jam for Francis. It’s a wonderful children’s picture book about a little bear that wanted to eat the same thing every day. This sweet little story shows how Francis learned to appreciate a variety of food.

4. Exercise – Lack of exercise can be a cause for lack of appetite. Remember when you were a kid and you ran all around the neighborhood with your friends all afternoon? Remember how hungry you were when you got home? You can develop quite an appetite running and playing outside.

5. Change up your meals sometimes – Have pancakes, waffles or cereal for dinner once in a while. Have leftover pizza, hamburgers or cold chicken for breakfast sometimes too. Your child might enjoy the variety and be more willing to eat if you have an unusual meal. There is a book called the Reverse Diet that actually uses this concept to help adults lose weight.

6. Let them Cook – Here’s my favorite tip for picky eaters. There are so many times people tell me that their children ate something they wouldn’t normally have eaten because they cooked it themselves. Involve your children in shopping for fruits and vegetables and planning meals. Let them chop and stir and season a dish. I bet you’ll have a different eater on your hands.

I hope you have enjoyed these tips for picky eaters. Let me know if you have any other ideas.