Getting a toddler who is a picky eater to eat dinner, lunch or any other set meal can be one of the most difficult times in your toddler parenting career. You try to offer a healthy, balanced diet and you get a no-no shake of the head or maybe the dreaded outstretched grasping grunt hand that says “I know what I want to eat, but you’ll never guess what it is”.
Well the good news is there are a few tricks you can use to try and get your toddler to eat what is in front of them. From my experience, I have found that for a picky eating toddler, eating a meal is not centered on the specific food offered, but the entire experience is important. A more detailed article describing the meal experience can be found here -
Toddler Feeding Issues: Are you Experienced? The total meal experience is comprised of all the factors and variables surrounding the meal. These factors include: the food offered, serving plate, available utensils, etc. These factors can be modified to change a negative meal experience into a positive one where the child eats their food. With this in mind below are the top 10 things to try when your picky eating toddler won’t eat:
1. Change the Food Item – Giving the toddler another food item is common sense, but as parents we tend to get in the mindset of trying to make them eat what we have prepared come heck or high water.
2. Change the Number of Food Items – Try putting out more than one option. This let’s your child make their own decision.
3. Change Baby Utensils – If they have a spoon, give them a baby fork. If they have a spoon, give them another type of spoon. We have had good success with this one.
4. Give them an Adult Utensil – Again, changing utensils has worked well for us. We have seen our toddler like eating with an adult spoon or fork when he won’t eat with his. I don’t know if this is imitation, or he just likes stealing the utensils we are trying to eat with.
5. Change the Serving Plate – We have had good luck with changing plates. Our toddler might not eat off his special kid plate, but will eat the same food when it is moved to a paper plate or put directly on his highchair table.
6. Keep Parent Attitudes Positive – Toddlers are sensitive to our moods. If we are visibly frustrated that they won’t eat, they can pick up on it and become upset.
7. Just Ignore Them for a Bit – We have seen our toddler pitching a fit and decide to clean dishes. After a couple of minutes of not pestering him, we look up and he is eating fine.
8. Don’t Rush Around – This ties into the parent’s mood. A parent doing a mad dash trying to cook, clean, or otherwise can upset a toddler.
9. Change Distractions – Distractions such as the dog or TV can either help or hinder a child when eating. Try removing or adding distractions to see how they affect a picky eater.
10. Know When to Concede – Sometimes, no matter what you do or what you offer, the toddler won’t eat. Knowing when to give up and try again later can help you keep your frustrations to a minimum.
Hopefully you will find a trick or two in this list or use it to come up with some ideas on your own that will help you increase your picky eater toddler feeding success. If you have other tricks that have worked for you, please share them in the comments section to help other less fortunate parents.
Related Articles:
Why is my Toddler a Picky Eater?
Clues why you have a picky eater
Is Your Toddler a Mess After Meals? Try This!
The magic food catching bib
Picky Eater Toddler: Are you Experienced?
Ease your picky eating pains
