Picky Eater - Youngstown, OH

Hi T.! One of my good friends has a picky eater and I love this idea! It works for her! She tells him that he is eating cabby patties or spongebob's house. She always names the food after something they have recently watched on tv that he really liked! Kinda silly, but I hope it helps!

hi my name is J.,i had the same problem with my oldest,what worked was,i started babysitting and the kids i baby sat ate real good so she saw that and started eating better,i also stoped giving her milk so she would eat.the milk fills them up so then thier bellys get full.so insted of milk give him water.then he will get hungry enough to eat..hope this helps..julz

Hey T., I used to have the same problem with my daughter she would forgo eating for chocolate milk and at first i was like ok with it because at least she was drinking milk but when she got to the point your at I was told to stop the chocolate milk, it fills him up and they have no appetite,then just let him eat what he wants when he wants, dont try to force him to eat something he doesnt like i was told that if my child wanted pancakes in the evening then let them have pancakes or if they waned something you usually have for dinner in the mornings go ahead, let him choose he may be not want to because its too stressful for him. Like i was told they will eat when they are hungry so stop the milk and see what happens I promise it will turn around just be patient with him. My name is C. I'm 31 sahm of 2 girls 4 and 6

Did the doctors mention anything to make you feel like you should worry?? He doesn't like any fruit?? What about 100% fruit juice?? I think that as parents we sometimes worry for nothing about things like this. I think that more important than what our children eat is how they eat...as in are they hungry when they eat or just bored? etc... If he's growing and he gets a multivitamin, I would just let him eat what he likes. All of the things that you listed have some nutritional value and I'm sure he will begin to like new things again soon enough, just keep offering them to him.

My son is that same age. I have to come up with interesting ways to describe the things he's eating. I'll say "Let's have some baby trees for dinner." and he eats it (brocolli) We watch Stanley and he loves animals so I tell him that panda bears love this kind of food....or how about some lightening mcqueen dippin apple sticks. Also I have found that anything I let him dip he will eat. Oh, and another thing I do is make absolutely sure that I'm not giving him food in between meals because I think "well, at least it's something" That pretty gaurantees he won't eat. I make sure that he mostly drinks water so he is getting fluid but not spoiling his appetite. CHocolate milk seems to satisfy him for hours and he won't eat and no drink until he has at least eaten half his food at dinner and it seems mean but sometimes I would sit down to dinner and eat without him and he would come and ask for food. It seemed like if I made it his idea to eat it was soo much better. Good luck!

it seems like right when i think i have all the answers with my 2 year old daughters eating habits...she does the same thing as your son. just the other day she said,"mommy, i hate food!" and she has not consumed more than 5 good meals in 2 weeks. she just grazes during the day now because she refuses to eat anything i make as a meal. for some reason she likes celery and carrots as a snack tho, which is good. maybe your son would like to try that.
my advice tho is to try new things. when my daughter began to refuse even nuggets, i decided to broil some salmon for her and she absolutely could not get enough! and its very healthy. she also enjoys frozen broccoli (i know, gross!) but she loves it. i tell her it is a brocollicicle. i sometimes make up interesting names for new foods to make them sound exciting. try making brown rice with a little soy sauce and sauted vegetables chopped really small. my picky daughter likes that.
as long as each day you can get some wholesome foods into your son and he is gaining weight and seems happy...hes probably just eating at his own picky pace and will come around when hes ready. also, make sure he is not getting too much juice or milk throughout the day. i think that might make him not so hungry for regular food.

Hi T.,

I can feel your pain. My 2 and 4 year olds are very picky eaters too. My oldest was seen by a nutritionist from ages 1 to 3 to follow his growth and weight gain. I learned a lot during that time. Read the book Child of Mine by Ellen Satter. She will put everything into perspective for you. Good luck.

You are not alone. My four year old boy is the same way. He hasn't had a vegetable in a year and a half. We get fruit in by giving him "Mimosas". Mostly orange juice with a splash of 7-up. Put a cute umbrella in it and they LOVE it! Good Luck.

HI T.! So sorry for this battle you have to face at least 3 times a day! You say he eats pizza? I started instantly looking through the list of foods for spaghetti. Spaghetti only b/c one of my co-workers told us that her mom used to sneak veggies in the sauce. Puree them and add. She said mostly peas - they have a decent amount of fiber and are a veggie, right. She never knew this as a young child. Maybe you could try this with a "home made pizza". You both could have a hand in making it, which is one of my almost 4 year old son's favorite things to do. he loves to help cook. Just add them to the sauce ahead so he doesn't refuse it immediately. Maybe try it out first. She said they couldn't detect it. And it adds nutrition with out the fight - I hope! I hope this helps. It's at least something different!
Missy

Hi T.
I do not have much advice for you, but I am also dealing with the exact same situation. My son turned 4 on Dec 16 and he has been a picky eater for two years as well. One thing that I have been doing is taking baby food (stage one so it is nice an smooth) and I mix it in with his food. Like a jar of carrots in spagetti sauce. My son will not eat any vegatable or fruit. He will drink juice though and eat applesauce. He does not even like mashed potatoes. We give him a vitamin each day and try to put as many vegtables we can hide into things he will eat. I also give him a pediasure if I feel he has not eaten the nutrients that he should have that day. I am with you though. I have tried everything and he would rather not eat at all then eat "real" food. Good luck with your journey and let me know if you have any tips for me!

I was told by my physician, "A child will never starve themself; don't worry." If his growth and daily health are ok, then don't worry. A child's body knows when it needs sustanance...we are just used to the 3 meal a day routine...not particularly necessary for a young child. They have their own clocks that tell them what they need. Similar to the infant that lets us know when to feed them. Now I am not saying allow your child to eat just whatever; boundaries are necessary. I have 3 kids and my oldest 2 have gone through phases similar to what your child is doing. SO far, so good. I was told also, it seemed like it was causing more of a problem for me than my daughter. :)

i know how you feel i have a 5yr old nephew that is the same way as your son i give him the drinks pediasure which helps out alot all he will eat is nuggets and milk and peanut butter out of the jar so if he likes milk that should work best of luck

Hi T.. I know what you are going through. My son is 2 1/2 and was an excellent eater from the time he was 3 months old until a year ago. He would eat everything and he ate all the time. Now he wants popcorn, hot dogs and macaroni and cheese all the time but even then he only takes 3 or 4 bites and then says he's full. I let him have the popcorn after he takes a few bites of lunch or dinner b/c I am always afraid he is starving. I have talked to his pediatrician about it and he told me that I can't force him to eat anything he doesn't want. He says that all kids will eat when they are hungry and try and limit juice and milk b/c they have a tendency to fill them up and then they don't feel hungry. I try and say no to the popcorn and the occasional sucker or cookie he asks for but even if he goes all day with no junk food he still won't eat very well. I make sure he takes his vitamin daily and he does drink about 3-4 glasses of milk daily so at least he is getting some vitamins and nutrients from those two things. He is 3 feet tall and weighs 35 lbs so he is not underweight. He has a very high metabolism and is very very active so I don't know where he gets his energy from sometimes. I wouldn't worry too much about it. It's probably just a phase. Keep offering the food to him. Thats pretty much all you can do. Also, my 9 month old son just started eating solids. He wouldn't touch baby food at all or even cereal! His doc said he is probably just a picky eater so we started offering him canned veggies and feeding him whatever the three of us had for dinner and lunch and now he eats better than his older brother lol. He especially loves green beans and spaghetti. I'm sure your son will be fine. If he gets hungry enough he will eat something.

As long as he is growing and getting his vitamin pill he should be fine. My daughter is 7 and she is a picky eater too. Will not touch jelly or any type of salad what so ever. Chicken nuggets, mac n cheese, hash, cut up hot dogs with ketchup, chocolate milk for sure, chicken noodle soup, french fries and cookies are her staples. I know it drives me crazy too but I have almost quit arguing with her, almost. I do the bribe things too, just another bite okay. Your son will be fine, he is big and strong and he is getting a vitamin pill. Try not to get so frustrated about it, maybe he will eat if there is not so much attention put on it. Good luck and God Bless.

T.,

Fussy kids are only fussy because they are allowed to be. Provide healthy, nutritious meals and snacks, and get rid of all the junk. Skip the chocolate milk, too, as that is a bad habit in the making. Don't force the issue, either. Simply provide what is appropriate and the kid will eat when he is hungry. If there are no more chicken nuggets, mac-n-cheese, or pizza (which are not inherently evil), he will have to eat what is there.

I do not believe you need to resort to "tricks" to get children to eat. If a little flair is needed, you can always go for the purple beans, orange cauliflower, and purple carrots. Have your son grow some of his own food, even if it is in a flower pot. He'll be much more interested in it when he has seen it grow. And fresh off the plant tastes better, too.

So, get rid of unhealthy food, and then don't make a big deal of his eating. Let him eat when he is hungry and stop when he is full. Show him a good example by eating good food, and he'll be fine.

Best wishes,
K.

My four yeard old son, who will be five in March, is also a very picky eater. He pretty much has been since birth. He was solely breastfed, which is the best in my eyes, but I did want to supplement at times, and he would have nothing to do with a bottle or formula. I don't remember having too much trouble with babyfood, but he was quick to learn what he did and didn't like. He is about 45 lbs, is skinny in my eyes; however my husband and stepsons were all "scrawny" when younger, but have grown into regular sized, very fit men. He doesn't want anything to do with vegetables, likes bananas, and his favorite is chicken legs and now salad, lettuce only. I have bought so many different kinds of vitamins, with no luck. He could also live off of chocolate milk, which at times, I have let him have cereal for supper or extra chocolate milk for peace sake.

So, I can relate to your worries. Doctors and loved ones tell me that if they are healthy, don't fret. That is easier said than done tho. My two year old is the opposite, he is very lean and loves his veggies and will try new things. My four year old is definitely the picky one. He is also picky about certain clothes, they can't be "itchy"....

I just take it one day at a time with him, I don't worry near as much as I did when I was a new mom, but we still have our times. I don't have any real advice, just know that you are not alone.

C.

T.,
My two year old will not eat a meal a day if I begged her, so what we do is leave her something out healthy, and if she wants anything else she goes to the fridge and picks it out. She can have snacks only when I feel that she has consumed enought healthy food. Sometimes I feel like junk is all she wants to eat! :) But, he won't starve himself, and I would just look for creative ways to add fruits and veggies to his meals. I do know that if my daughter helps to make our meals with us, she seems to eat them better. She has lived the last week of her life on scrambled eggs and cheese and yougart, but she is healty and to me that is all that matters! Good luck with the battle, I know how you feel! :)
M.

Oh T. you are not alone. My 7 1/2 year old daughter is sooooooo picky. It is awful. She hates vegetables. I used to be able to get her to eat candied cooked carrots. She won't eat those now. She isn't a real big fruit eater either. She would have bologna or PBJ for dinner. She was whining last night that she was hungry about 1/2 hour after she ate. She had a bologna sandwich. I told her that I was tired of it and she was going to eat what we were having for dinner. She ate a ton tonight. She is still full. I know that I got lucky tonight and tomorrow it will be different and she won't eat again. I know some "experts" say that if they don't eat what is on the table, they don't eat at all. If they get hungry they will eat. I have never tried that. I gave in to easily. However, I am about at that point and she will eat it or go hungry. I am sorry that this is not advice. I don't know what to tell you other than I know exactly what you are going through.

Since his growth doesn't seem to be a problem, it's more a matter of how much nutrition is he getting. So I'd suggest introducing Pediasure into his diet, for the extra boost of nutrition. What does his doctor say? Try making dinner time fun. Drizzle cheese over his veggies, make characters out of his food (like a smile face with raisins, bananas, and grapes on his pancakes), involve HIM in the actual choosing of what the family will have for dinner and let him help cook it. I hope these suggestions help. Good luck! I'm so thankful to have a child who will, literally, eat just about anything you put in front of him. But there are times when he's really just not hungry. So I let him tell me when he's hungry and he eats then (whatever it is we had for dinner is what he eats at a later time).