Throwing Food/picky Eater

I am a firm believer that discipline and mealtime do not go well together and I think you are handling that part really well. It is probably just a phase. Have you tried Gerber Graduates? My daughter loved those little tv dinners and they had the meat and the veggies. Good Luck.

I have three kids (5, 3, and 9 months).

Jacob and Chris have totally opposite food preferences. We also have a one bite rule, but I make sure to put at least one healthy thing (meat, veggie, or fruit)that they do like on their plate. Whenever possible, I do think eating as a family helps model good eating and table manners. I would suggest further that you both might enjoy letting her help prepare the meal. She might be more willing to try the food if she is proud of herself for helping to cook it. I think praise or using humor is generally much more effective than discipline (although it does have its place).
An example of the humor aspect and some might think this would be rude to talk about at the table, but I told my boys that if they ate asparagus that it would make their pee pee smell. They ate it loved it and gulp...always make sure to bring that nice fact up about that vegetable when they saw it:) I also talk about healthy foods a being "super foods" and want to see their muscles after they eat a bite. My little girl is to little for all this yet, but it worked wonders for my boys.

I wish I could remeber the book, but there is a book out there about how to sneak veggies into meals that they like...sneaky chef?

I hope you find something that helps you!

I have one word for you RELIV! It is my favorite thing on earth when it comes to feeding my kids. No matter how hard you try, some kids just won't eat good things and they will eventually be introduced to less-than-nutritious food too. Reliv International makes a great supplement for kid with all their OPTIMAL nutrition included. Just one shake a day (chocolate or vanilla) and they are SO healthy. My kids have had improved health and attention span ever since we started this great supplement (Mom LOVES it too, as a prenatal and just an everyday preventative, it saved me from gestational kidney stones). It has given me peace of mind when it comes to feeding my kids. If you'd like more information just go to www.reliv.com or if you'd like more about my journey with reliv please feel free to e-mail me at ____@____.com

As a side note, our food supply itself is less nutritious than it was 50 years ago. Dr's agree that everyone needs to be on a supplement because even the most healthy diet doesn't offer all the nutrition we need for OPTIMUM health.

I posted a similar query about two weeks ago. I got an overwhelming amount of responses. I recommend you go back and find my post and read what everyone had to say. I got some really great suggestions. What worked for our son (he's 14 months) is just eating together as a family and not focusing 100% attention on him. Once he realized he was part of the meal and that everyone else talked and ate at the same time, he got the hang of it and has stopped throwing food overboard. From all the responses I received, I did realize that this behavior is normal and they will outgrow it! Good luck.

S.,

A picky eater can be frustrating...If she is growing fine, find foods she likes that are healthy and give her milk or a mixture of yogurt/juice for the vitamins and nutrition, if she likes that. I always offered different foods but if my children didn't eat, I would just NOT feed them anything else until the next meal but milk or juice/yogurt. Eventually they will eat when they are hungry enough. I would supplement with the yogurt/juice mixture. The only caution is to not make the drinking the ONLY food she eats. This is a phase, and it too shall pass. When she throws the food on the floor, she is just trying to get your attention...make her clean it up when the meal is over. My 8 year old daughter still spills food on the floor, I just make her clean it up. I just keep telling myself, if my child is doing this when he/she is 16, then I will worry.

Sounds like you are a good mom. Hang in there!

Hi S.,

I think your daughter is behaving normally, sorry to say! My daughter did the same thing - and that throwing the food on the floor act sure gets old fast doesn't it?! :-)

She won't starve herself, when she's really hungry and ready to eat, she will. I think right now she's exploring, testing, playing, etc. I can't remember what age I started giving my daughter Flintstone chewable vitamins, she was maybe 18 months old or a little younger even. I was like you and I was afraid that she wasn't getting enough nutrition because she seemed to go on a veggie strike for the longest time.

The good thing is she will eventually grow out of this, most likely within the next few months I would think. Good luck! There's light at the end of this long tunnel, I promise! :-)

-Char

I have 2 under 2 and they both eat well w/o issue, no food throwing, no refusing to eat what is served. The behavour of throwing food is a learned issue when they get away with it. Mine attempted to drop food on the floor for the dog or to directly feed the dog. This resulted in their getting their food taken away and offered to them one bit at a time. They would rather feed themselves so they did not like this at all. If they threw a temper tantrum, I turned their chairs to face the wall, if the tantrum continued they got placed in a play pen in a room alone. At first they would scream and scream b/c they did not like to be alone, they are used to being with their 7 brothers and sisters at all times. I kept with the program and the tantrums stopped as did the feeding the dog or dropping food on the floor.

With consistancy (A LOT OF IT), it does not take long to win this little battle. It is better to learn limits now than to have a teenager without limits. Then you are in real trouble.

YES, start her on vitamins and don't let her play on your sympathies IF SHE decides not to eat. Sometimes a child is more strong willed than the parent and wins. Let's face it, NO ONE wants to feel they are starving their little angel or listen to them scream forever. BUT none of mine have starved and they are all very well behaved. Don't give in, buy some earplugs if need be. Just take her food away and offer her one bite at a time. Children will NOT starve if food is offered, even food they don't like. I have a steadfast rule that you eat at least one bite of everything on the table, no matter where you are and no matter whether you hate it or not. No one is going to die from one bite. Thet are also required to eat what I cook, not something else. I cook 3 meals a day. Everyone gets to pick their favorite meal every week, without picking the same meal 2 weeks in a row. They have to pick 4 different meals in the month. So our diet is has a lot of variety and what one them likes, someone in the groups is going to absolutely hate. BUT they have to eat it anyway. Same rules for everyone. I have raised a group of kids (and grandkids) that will eat anything. But it took and still takes (with the babies) a lot of "sticking to it" to get it done.

Good luck with whatever you choose to do. I know what works for one family does not work for another. I have kids come to my house that only eat pizza and Mexican Food. The do eat what I cook though, but never at home. Their moms are amazed. LOL

Dear S.,
My advice would be to take the food away and get her down from the high chair and move on. She will eventually learn that when we get in the high chair it is time to eat. It won't take very long for her to catch on. And about the 19 month old being "very picky", I really don't buy it. I think we allow our children to be picky. I give my children their food and if they don't eat it they know they will get nothing else, so most of the time they end up eating it. Don't give up but remember that YOU are the parent!

Good luck,
L. C

S.,
When my son, who has Down's Syndrome, was about the age of your daughter, he began eating about one thing only for long periods. He must have lived off of Kraft's Macaroni and Cheese for a couple of years before he moved on to something else. Then there was spaghetti, then chicken fried steak and mashed potatoes. I used to despair that he would never eat normally. Now he eats essentially everything. I did give him a heavy regimen of vitamins. He is quite healthy, and never had any of the special problems that many children with Down's have.

I think if you can find a few things she does like, encourage her to try new ones, but don't make a big deal about it, it will all work itself out. I can remember being a very picky eater as a child. Now I wish there were more things I didn't like! If she throws it on the floor, I think you should continue removing the food and ride out the tantrums. You will eventually win. It may get worse before it gets better, but right now she is controlling you. I assure you she will not starve! I'm 65 and have raised a 45 year old and my son with Down's, who is now a well-adjusted young man of 27.

I just remembered that yogurt has been a staple all these years. It was only lemon yogurt for years. Now he regularly eats strawberry and will eat other flavors if the strawberry is not available.
M. Walker