Are Picky Eaters Asserting Control?
Date :
Wednesday, May 25 2011
Source:
Autourina Mains
By the time the child reaches preschool age (4-5 years old), he is most typically out of the ‘no, no’ stage, but still likes to be in control of some parts of h/her life. Preschoolers are use to having a schedule and consistency and are beginning to form habits like having the crust cut from their sandwich. Having control over what h/she can eats may be one way to assert control. The best practice is to have family style meals with your child and to let the child help with food preparation.
A child is more apt to eat what he/she has prepared. It is also important to eat as a family because the adults are modeling proper nutrition. Some families are almost like a restaurant catering to each individual family member’s request. That is a difficult task to keep up with and it does not help unify the family. The children need to learn appreciation for food and appreciation for the persons preparing of the meal.
Sometimes children are picky eaters because they may have an allergy to certain foods or have sensitivity to the texture of some foods. For instance there are children that have difficulty with the texture of mashed potatoes but love to eat baked potatoes. Some children may have a geographic tongue which is much more sensitive to taste and some acidic foods such as pineapples and strawberries will actually irritate the tongue.
If your child is being picky to assert power, don’t hesitate to introduce new foods. As I tell my little ones at the Center we always have to try new foods because our test buds are growing and flavors you thought you did not like may become your favorite foods. Keep in mind that you may have to introduce new foods more than 30 times before a child will actually decide to try it. We always encourage the children to serve a little of everything and put it on their plate. Trying it may be just touching the food to their tongue, but at least they tried it. Never force a child to eat and don’t make a big deal about him/her being picky. Children won’t starve themselves so don’t worry.
When introducing new foods don’t make a big deal about it, rather just place on the table with the other dishes. Be creative and try to make eating into fun and imaginative games. People are always amazed at how much our little ones at the Center love to eat peas, and broccoli. We call broccoli little trees with snow on them (dipped in ranch dressing) and peas are smart pills. So make introducing new foods fun and don’t make a big fuss about the child being picky…..with little encouragement he/she will grow out of it.
Books to read:
The Usborne First Cookbook (Children’s Cooking) Illustrated by: Stephen Cartwright.
The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Children’s Cookbook
Salad People and More Real People Recipes
Website to visit:
http://www.momadvice.com/food/picky_eaters.aspx