Until recently, my dear daughter was a real nightmare when it comes to food. We rarely enjoyed a meal together. She didn’t like this, she didn’t like that, that is green and she only likes red food, this is smelly… She had a million reasons for hating her food. We let her be, but we realized that we are just postponing the problem. We realized that we need to face our little fussy eater head on.
The question was: how to do this and still manage to keep your sanity? Check out my tips below!
How to win the fussy eaters game
Is your child a fussy eater or a problem eater?
Before you explore the different tips on how you can win the game, first you need to find out if your child is just a fussy eater or he has other underlying problems. Study their eating habits. A fussy eater can feed on different varieties of food but they tend to be picky. They will put up a fight and throw tantrums when there is new food but eventually they will consume it. They can even take one variety for a week or so before rejecting it.
On the other hand, a problem eater will only feed on a limited variety. Features such as texture, color or taste are a determining factor on what they prefer. Once the kid has decided they don’t want a certain food, they will never consume it no matter how you try. With such condition, you need to consult your doctor to examine if there are other underlying problems.
For the fussy eaters, here are some awesome tricks that work wonders.
Be creative in the kitchen
Try out different recipes with different ingredients. Don’t bore your child with the same food over and over. Every meal should be different from the previous one. This creates excitement as the child anticipates finding a new thing on the dinner table. Also, use different methods of cooking, if you have been frying sausages, bake them. Grill your chicken instead of deep frying. Different methods of cooking make the same food taste differently.
Baptize the food with new and interesting names
This sounds funny, right? Giving food different names creates excitement. If your child doesn’t like green vegetables you can try mixing with other ingredients. You can match potatoes with peas, and then rename the meal. Powered matched potatoes for dinner. Kids like associating with such concepts and they will love it. Who doesn’t like being associated with power?
Reverse psychology
You have to employ this method when your children are still young. How does it work? Whenever you introduce some new food, ask your children to preserve some for you. Let them know you don’t want to miss a share of the yummy food you have just discovered. Children are adventurous in nature. They will want to try the new meal and ensure there is none left for you just to see your reaction. Make some hilarious expression if your share is gone. Next time when there is a new menu, they will clear their plate in anticipation of your comics.
Create a sense of responsibility
Next time you are visiting the grocery store, take our little fussy eaters with you. Let them participate in the grocery shopping. You can also let them help you in the kitchen. Teach them how to prepare simple meals with some of the ingredients they hate. They will love the outcome and the food too.