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Most of us love our children so much that we worry that harm will come to them if they miss a few meals. Like maybe they will waste away overnight. Then it gets easy to let them manipulate us into feeding them nuggets. Kids are not stupid.
Coming on a board like this is a good thing because you get the back up you need to relax and give the kiddos the option of eating or not eating. Hunger will drive them to eat the nutritious foods you will put out.
Kids will quickly learn that if they don't want to eat, they don't have to eat- but then again they get nothing until the next meal. At that meal they get to choose what is on the table and or again not eat. They figure it out soon enough.
Cants get the toddlers to eat anything else, but chicken nuggets, fish sticks, hot dogs, grill cheese..
Any suggestions? Oh, yes they'll eat pasta but no sauce just butter.
I feel your pain. It does get better when they get older. My 1st son, now 6, HATED eggs as a toddler but around 3 years old, he loved them. What was worse was he HATED any type of bread. Gawd, it was a nightmare to pack him lunches for preschool because he hated bread of any kind - not even pizza.
Anyway, my toddlers loves tuna casserole. It is healthy and contains egg noodles, tuna and cheese! If you want the recipe pm me. Also, they love macaroni and cheese with ham or turkey. Our version has cream, parmasean cheese, butter and some garlic salt. When we eat "fish sticks" or "chicken nuggets", we make them from scratch with quality fish, usually trout or halibut and chicken breast. And it isn't hard. Believe me because I am not a good cook. As far as veggies go, we grill sweet potatoes in butter or olive oil with a pinch of salt. They love corn on the cob.
Hope this helps. Just know, it does get easier. Their palettes will expand!
Watch how much milk they're drinking. I've noticed toddlers have a tendency to drink a lot of milk, their tummies are always full, and they never want to eat. They also have a tendency to graze (snack), which again, won't encourage them to eat.
I'd limit them to 2 cups of milk per day, preferably NOT with a meal. Also no juice. If they're drinking calories, they aren't going to want to eat them.
I know it's easier said than done, I raised 4 picky eaters. My teens will eat pretty much anything now, my 9 year old son will not :-/
It sounds more like a control issue. I've found this approach works for me: The parent decides what food to serve. The child decides how much of it s/he wants to eat.
Sometimes when children (including nieces, nephews, etc.) raise a fuss, I tell them in a calm, matter-of-fact tone: This is what we're having for breakfast/lunch/dinner/whatever meal. It's your decision to eat or not. But just know this is all the food you will be having until [whatever meal comes next].
Usually the kids will eat. Sometimes they won't. I'm fine with either.
When one kid started raising a fuss consistently, I utilized this method. After a few days, the constant fussing/whining/complaining/begging for a tried and true favorite dish stopped. Every now and then, he will try to start up again. I do not give in. I give the same response as before in the same calm, matter-of-fact tone. Nips it in the bud.
And get this: He actually seems happier at meal times these days.
Last edited by sydlee; 01-30-2014 at 04:17 AM..
Reason: typos
I don't know if it's because my son has autism or not but he will actually starve himself and lose weight before eating things he does not want.
I picked up that deliciously deceptive book and have had no trouble feeding him spinach/various proteins through 'mac and cheese' or 'nuggets' - it just takes a lot of prep work, but thats okay with me.
I don't know if it's because my son has autism or not but he will actually starve himself and lose weight before eating things he does not want.
I picked up that deliciously deceptive book and have had no trouble feeding him spinach/various proteins through 'mac and cheese' or 'nuggets' - it just takes a lot of prep work, but thats okay with me.
Autism Spectrum Disorder children have different feeding issues. There are often real sensory problems that make it difficult for those children to eat certain textures or tastes. I have two kids on the spectrum and as you've found out it takes work, but you can eventually feed them healthy meals.
Autism Spectrum Disorder children have different feeding issues. There are often real sensory problems that make it difficult for those children to eat certain textures or tastes. I have two kids on the spectrum and as you've found out it takes work, but you can eventually feed them healthy meals.
I've been reading that yes, we're still very new to it since he's only 3.5 but I'm finding less arguing and more adapting has really helped. I have found as a last resort that 'juice smoothies' in patterned cups can get in all the daily fruit/veggies (banana overpowers a cup of spinach, avocado makes it creamy, I also throw in flax, peanut butters, etc and he has NO attitude - as long as he doesn't see that it's green and he knows there is 'juice' (banana) in it).
I've been reading that yes, we're still very new to it since he's only 3.5 but I'm finding less arguing and more adapting has really helped. I have found as a last resort that 'juice smoothies' in patterned cups can get in all the daily fruit/veggies (banana overpowers a cup of spinach, avocado makes it creamy, I also throw in flax, peanut butters, etc and he has NO attitude - as long as he doesn't see that it's green and he knows there is 'juice' (banana) in it).
I know this is off topic, but good luck. The journey has its challenges, but loving an ASD child can be so rewarding. I see the world through different, creative eyes.
Even non-autistic kids are often much more sensitive to strong flavors and certain textures than adults are. Additionally, if the kid is a phenylthiocarbamide taster, they may be more finicky about certain tastes. Fish sticks and chicken nuggets aren't inherently unhealthy; it's simple enough to lightly bread and bake healthy nibble-sized pieces of fish or chicken. A large part of the appeal there is being a bland finger-food that the kid can eat with a dip; cutting other foods down to size and providing something to dunk them in tends to go over well as a way of disguising healthy foods as fun foods. Hummus has proven a effective dip for me, and you can blend lots of extra nutrients into hummus.
Children will eat what is put in front of them if they are hungry and if they know that wheedling and whining and pitching a fit won't bring things to a halt over concern that they aren't getting what they "like" to eat. If that is what is happening, you have a power issue going on and you need to simply retrain the kids, in a calm, happy fashion that this is great food, made especially for them, to make them strong (and if they don't want to eat it, time to go to bed. Period).
Perfectly stated. Won't let me rep you again; apparently I agree with you way too much.
I don't understand this whole culture of the kids being in charge of what they eat these days. I just don't get it. When I was a kid we ate what mom cooked, and that was that.
To the OP, congratulations on recognizing that something is amiss with what you're giving your kids. You seem to be in a very small minority, and it's going to be tough I'd imagine to change now, but it will be worth it for their health and your conscience.
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