Any Tricks to Get a Child to Eat Healthier???

I don't think it's because he got sick, I think it's just because he's (sniff sniff) growing up and going through those fun stages. My daughter went through a fruit stage too. If he likes macaroni, that's a good one to slip cooked spinach, peas or carrots into. There's a book called Sneaky Chef or something like that too.

First of all the more relaxed you are about it, the easier the whole thing will go. They go through phases, maybe it has to do with how the taste buds develop.

Small bites of things are usually helpful, as are only a few pieces. The foods he is going for are all soft and easy to eat, does he have teeth coming in?

Same thing is happening with our son. He has 4 teeth coming in.. What I do is hide stuff. I put spinich in his eggs, or I process vegies and put it in ground up meat and potatoes.... also when ever I add shredded cheese he seems to eat more.. (probably bc cheese is yummy) He loves yogart and gold fish right now. I also bought some organic carrot juice and mix it with apple juice and dilute with some water.

Do worry it is just temp. most kids go through it- could be teeth, sick, power struggle. Most moms tell me it "don't worry."
L

It might just be a phase. I've heard of kids who go for a couple of months on peanut butter and jelly. Just keep offering him other foods and make sure he gets enough to eat. It sounds like he's still got a bit of variety and those are all healthy foods.

My almost 2-yr-old is totally doing this, too, and I smiled when I read this because bananas and yogurt are also his favorites. For meals, he does have to just eat what we eat, and if we have any fruit in the house and he says he just wants more fruit than is offered during the meal, I tell him he is welcome to have one more if his tummy is hungry after he has eaten the other servings on his plate (often, he isn't really that hungry, so he lets go of the idea). For snacks, I have taken to offering him "yogurt smoothies," usually for one snack time a day, which he thinks are the best thing ever but really are just a combination of the yogurt he loves and some of things I'd like him to eat as well -- I make them with about 1/3 yogurt and 1/3 milk and the remaining 1/3 use to "hide" other goodies he no longer wants to eat on their own - like a baby jar of pureed spinach or carrots, and often a spoonful of wheat germ and/or flax oil or whatever. It is amazing what I've been able to sneak into a smoothie! I usually use the whole milk yogurt (I like the Brown Cow brand), which does have fat but less sugar. I do use vanilla flavored yogurt, but you could use plain yogurt and add a splash of fruit juice or applesauce or whatever if he wanted it a little sweeter (the pureed carrots are actually kind of sweet). Anyway, he thinks these smoothies are the greatest thing ever, and sometimes it is the only way I get veggies into him some days, so we're both happy. He also isn't interested in milk sometimes nowadays but, again, will down one of the smoothie concoctions in 5 seconds without really realizing there's milk in it.

I don't have very helpful info but am in a similar boat. You might try avocado and see if he'll take that (and beans and strawberries). The pediatrician told me to not look at every meal for balanced diet but a 2 week period.

A friend of mine is hiding veggies in meatloaf or quiche. I haven't tried it yet.

I recommend the cookbook Deceptively Delicious. You make purees of vegetables and then "hide" them in yummy dishes. I also still offer vegetables that are visible. It's worked well for my three kids. I also agree with a previous post - kids often go through phases where they are mostly interested in the same foods over and over. I think as long as those favorites are Ding-Dongs or something like that and we keep offering them other options, healthy eating habits will develop. Good luck!

I think it's part of discovering other foods- my little girl used to want to eat veggies all the time. Now she wants carbs & sweets all the time and never veggies. I've limited what I have available so she has to choose healthy. She doesn't have her back teeth yet, but if I boil carrots so they're soft she'll eat those happily (if she can't have anything else). She also likes red pepper pieces and we drink veggie juice 'together'. If she sees me drink it she'll want some in her sippy cup. I make sure she sees me eating it- I'm sure you're doing the same thing. Other mommies have given you some great advice and I've learned some things too. good luck!

You didn't mention if your son was given a course of antibiotics for his ear infection. If he did take antibiotics, it may be helpful to give him some probiotics to replenish the digestive bacteria in the gut that may have been damaged or wiped out. Probiotics can be purchased at most health food stores, as well as some of the large chain pharmacies (I've seen them at Walmart before). They are very safe, usually lactobacillus, which naturally occurs in the gut---just break open the capsule and give him half in his milk or a little bit of yogurt or anything like that. One of the things that frequently happens after a course of antibiotics is that a fungus called Candida albicans can proliferate in the gut after some of the digestive bacteria get wiped out. Candida overgrowth leads to sugar or starch cravings, which it sounds like your little boy has. Even if he did not take antibiotics, you could still try the probiotics, because it's very very common for the gut to be low on these healthy digestive bacteria.
Hope this helps!

Children naturally choose to eat sweet/salty things, so it's up to you to decide what you are going to have around the house to offer. If it were me, I'd banish the food that has become a touchstone for trouble (goldfish, any other empty-calorie food) and keep it out of the house/ out of sight. (In our house, chips and other goodies are kept in a separate high cupboard and only brought down while our son is sleeping.) This approach may seem extreme, but "I just don't have any for you" eliminates arguments.

Children are not capable of starving themselves to prove a point. Your son will eventually eat those foods you first offered, just keep offering them without a lot of explanation, etc. You have to decide about the bananas, kiwi, yogurt and other favorites which are whole foods, and aren't horrible as far as foods go. You can choose to go with a healthier brand of yogurt if you are concerned about it (I don't know which brand you serve, but a lot of them are loaded with sweeteners. You can use plain yogurt and add a fruit spread to it to control the sugars.)

As for the 'yucky' face, I wouldn't be too responsive to it. If you give it a lot of attention and work to appease it, he's figured out how to make you change what you were doing.

You didn't mention if he's eating finger foods, but if you can just offer foods on his tray and then let him figure it out on his own, that might help.When our son is acting up at the table, it helps us to disengage and let him eat without our attention. He eventually realizes that he's not going to get any sort of reaction, and within a few minutes is busily eating. A lot of parenting/feeding is about selective ignoring. Keeping them in the corner of one's eye and not immediately jumping in to correct seems to keep everyone calm instead of turning meals into high drama due to preferences and our parental quest for neatness.;)

Best wishes for pleasant meals!

Jessica Seinfeld put out a book called "Deceptively Delicious". Rave reviews and a lot of good recipies and tips!

Also, as baby grows, it's important to involve him in the preperation of his food. It helps get them more interested in eating what they've made.

I have had luck with a product called Juice Plus. It is fruits and veggies in capsule form, but they have gummies and chewables for kids as well. It is like getting the nutritional equivalent of 15 fresh, raw fruits and veggies along with 2 grains every day. For only $22.75/month!!

My whole family takes it and have found that we don't crave junk food, but now want the "good stuff". I liked it so much that I now have my own virtual franchise and have a second business along with my massage therapy practice.

If you are interested, you can check it out on my website: www.dblairjuiceplus.com. JP+ is backed by really solid, published research which is also available on my website, along with some videos you can watch.

Let me know what you think!
D. B., LMT

It is most likely a phase. We are just turning the corner of that phase and my son is starting to eat a little more.

I like to sneak pureed cauliflower into mac-n-cheese. Cauliflower is mild in flavor (not green, but better than nothing). You can cook cauliflower and make "mashed potatoes" with it. You can grind up cauliflower before cooking and make "rice."

If he is getting enough nutrition for a week or so, let if be. My son only wanted crackers for what seemed like forever. I had to shave some meat and shred cheese, then microwave until the cheese and meat were crisp like the cracker. He liked fruit, but not much of anything else. It was a struggle, just be creative and keep offering.

Good luck and I will be checking back to see other responses and glean some new ideas.

D.

The foods you list are healthy foods. So let him eat them. Add others and let him choose to eat them or not. Don't make a fuss about his eating. Relax. He'll be just fine.

Excuse my brief answer, but offer only the healthy foods at meal time. If he doesn't eat it, take the food away and put him down. At the next meal do the same. Eventually hunger will get the best of him. Don't worry about him going hungry for a few meals. He will eat when he gets hungry. And don't give him snacks between meals of his favorite junk foods. If you give him snacks, give him his meals that he didn't eat. In fact take the junk foods that he likes out of the house, that way you won't be tempted to give in.

And if you find that he has become a picky eater all of a sudden, don't worry. My son was and he is now a very healthy 6'2". I always gave him what we all ate, he choose what he liked from what was on the table, and only was on the table.

It really does work. Good luck.