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Pre-School and Daycare
LILBIT1221
member
world's pickiest eater....
LILBIT1221
member
I know this is a preschool board, and my son is 6 I just didnt know where else to post this...there is a picky eater and then there is Noah. I know people say he will "grow out of it" but WHEN this has been going on since 18 months. He would eat anything we put in front of him, then he had some health issues and when he came out of the hospital...NOTHING. The kid will eat nothing. Peanut butter sandwich no crust no jelly, yogurt, bananas, fruit snacks. That is about it. And if you do somehow convince him to try something no matter how small the bite he will throw up. He is not under weight and he is healthy, so should I not worry about this? Anyone else have a picky eater? TIA for any words of wisdom
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Re: world's pickiest eater....
hello fellow Floridian!
hmmm....sounds much less like a picky eater and more like something is physically wrong with him. What was he in hospital for? maybe he is having digestion troubles and the food is physically making him sick?
do you think he is throwing up in defiance? Or the food is affecting him?
I would talk to your pedi.
If it isn't physical, then I would say - just make sure you aren't making it a battle. If he doesn't want to eat what you are eating, then OK, no dinner. Do he eat OK at school?
It's defiance all the way. We dont FORCE him to eat anything but even things like watermelon...seriously? Watermelon? He was in the hospital because he had an absess in the back of his throat...so in a way it makes sense but it was 4 years ago. Seems like he would have outgrown that by now. Trust me if he wants to try it he will, but its on his terms or nothing. The DR isnt worried about it because like I said he isnt sick or underweight. I was just curious if anyone else has this problem to this extreme? It's just frustrating. OH and he eats fine at school because his push over of a mother packs him a lunch every day.
Oh, honey, I am right there with you, unfortunately.
My DS has never thrown up, he just won't try anything. A-N-Y-T-H-I-N-G!!
I swear he's one of the pickiest eaters I have ever known. Like yours, he will only eat a handful of decent things. Chicken, cheese, yogurt, noodles with butter, PB sandwiches (no crust, and no jelly) and grilled cheese. No veggies...AT ALL! The only fruits are a few bites of a banana on occasion, or an apple (sliced & peeled - if I do this, he'll eat almost a whole apple).
He has no idea how batty this food thing drives me, because everyone has told me to not make a battle of it. We listened to the advice of our pedi (who is not really concerned either, like yours) and others, and serve him what we're eating. He goes without dinner sometimes, and that kills me. He is just so stubborn, he won't try anything new!
This has been going on for about a year and a half now, I guess. *sigh*
I have gotten him to LICK a cantaloupe and a watermelon, but that's it. I figure that's some progress, though. I also used toothpicks to get him to eat some turkey and cheese last summer. Hmmm...I may have to break those out again. LOL.
I wish I had some advice, but just wanted to let you know that I am right there with you!
DS #1: May 25, 2007
DS #2: Jan 7, 2009
DD #3 due May 17, 2014!!! Low lying placenta and DD measuring 1 week ahead at big u/s
My son is almost 6, and there are a few others on this board with kindergarten age kids, so you picked a good spot! I also have a 9 year old DD, so I've been through this with her as well.
Both my kids are pretty picky about food, but have gotten better with effort. Here are some things I have found that helped them:
1. Start in the grocery store. Summer is a good time to do this, because kids are home from school. Give him an "assignment" that he has to pick at least one fresh fruit and one fresh veggie that he would like to try. Let him pick the actual one, and put it in its own bag. Don't make it about "you've got to start eating better food!" Make it about "summer is a great chance to eat a lot of neat stuff that tastes good!" Talk about what foods look interesting to him in the store. Challenge him to find foods of as many different colors as you can that he would be willing to eat. When you get home, allow him to try it right away, if he wants to. If he doesn't like it, or it makes him gag, don't sweat it. Praise him for playing along, and tell him to start thinking of another food he'd like to try next trip.
2. Buy a kids' cookbook and let him pick something from it that looks good to him. My kids have been introduced to a lot of new food by the Rachel Ray 30 minute meals for kids cookbook.
3. Be alert to textures. I have one kid for whom food texture is a big issue. Nothing with a thick skin, like tomato or beans goes down without a gag. It seems like your son likes foods with a consistent and soft texture. So, when you make the change to new foods, first try foods with a similar texture to what he likes. He likes yogurt and bananas? Try sweet potato soup. And for the first time you make it? Load it with sugar, cream, and butter. Who cares if the first batch is basically more dessert than veggie -- the big goal is to help him get used to different flavors and food items.
4. Let him help cook. I was skeptical of this trick at first, but it really made a difference. My kids get hung up on how "weird" food looks when it's cooked. Also, they tend not to like dishes like a casserole, where all the foods are mingled together. Seeing the stuff cooking seemed to help this a little.
5. Once you have gotten him to try a few new things without throwing up, have "chef" salads for dinner. This technique provided a HUGE breakthrough for my picky eaters. I put out bowls of salad ingredients including: lettuce, spinach, cukes, carrots, broccoli, purple cabbage, tomatoes, grated cheese, sliced up lunch meat, hardboiled egg slices, peanuts, dried cranberries (or cherries or raisins), whatever fresh fruit I might have, sunflower seeds, and gourmet croutons. I put all the ingredients on the counter and let the kids stand on a stool and make their own salad. The only "rules" are that they have to have at least 5 different colored foods in their bowl, and they have to have at least one member of the veggie group, one fruit, and one meat or cheese.
Other than that, they have total control. They could make a salad that looked like a real salad, or they could just put separate ingredients in their bowl, not touching. I got a few dressings that kids are okay with. Some good ones are 1000 Island and Honey Mustard, because they're sweet and not too tangy. If your son is a fan of salty foods, Ranch is usually a good bet as well. I have one kid who pours the dressing on the salad like a normal person would, and one who uses it as a dipping sauce. Whatever!
Making their own "salad" psyched my kids into feeling friendlier towards raw vegetables. They also felt really proud of eating food they knew was not traditionally kid friendly food and that was healthier than what they normally ate.
Summer is a great time to tackle this project! Good luck!
I have one of those too. DS is 4. As an infant, he would eat any type of pureed food. The problem was, he refused to eat anything besides pureed foods until he was around 15 months old. Then it was still a battle.
We have made significant strides in the past couple of months with getting him to try new things. We bribe him, lol. The problem is, he immediately gags. We can usually talk him through it, but not always. Even the foods that he likes, his first words are "I don't like that." Then he'll try it, and he'll say, "I like it." Very frustrating. He pretty much lives off of hot dogs, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, and french fries. He does like raw carrots and celery and most fruits. We also supplement with PediaSure.
DS is perfectly healthy, but his eating habits frustrate me to no end. I just want him to eat, and I have tried everything from rewards to bribes. He has been big from the day he was born. He wasn't even on the charts until he was 3. Now, he's 95% for weight and height. We also give him a daily vitamin.
We thought it was a texture issue at first. My DH is still certain that it is. We recently moved, but at his 4 year check up before we relocated, his pediatrician offered to send him to occupational therapy. She thinks he might benefit from it. We are still settling in, but I'm thinking we will look into it soon. I'm terrified to send him to school because he'll go hungry. People say that if they get hungry enough, they'll eat. They haven't met my DS.
I'd talk to your doctor and look into therapy. I know how frustrating it is, and I always tell DH that if we are blessed with another baby, that kid will eat, lol.