How to encourage a 4 year old girl eat more type of food?

[Funz]

DD was also very picky with food previously. She will only drink soup and refuses any meat or vege and even rice up to when she was about 2yrs old. We had to sneak in small bits of rice and fish with the soup for her. Then came a period where she will eat only fish, eggs and tofu and refuses to eat any other meat of vege. That lasted till she was about 5yrs old. These days, she eats practically anything and is game to try all sorts of food.


DS is even pickier then DD. He is 6 this year and still pretty picky. He eats only chicken, selected types of fish and only spinach and watercress and it has to be cooked a certain way.

Through it all, we didn’t bother forcing. DH and I eat almost anything and we will always ask them if they want to try what we are eating. I keep telling DS that it is ok if he doesn’t like it after he has tried it. But if he has not tried then he will never know what it tastes like. Sometimes he buys it sometimes he will stubbornly refuse to try and we let it be.

I believe that children will model their parents’ eating habits. So if we eat as per normal and not modify our eating habits to cater to our children, they will eventually pick up our habits.

[tanlengkoon]

Hi all


Thank you for all your replies and encouragement.

TV programmes do not seem to help as she will know if I put unfamiliar food into her mouth.

I will try out some of the other suggested methods with her.

Thank you again....

[grace_3005.033874hotmail.033874com]

Hi All,


need your advise. my son only eats hotdogs. he goes to child care and as wat the teacher mention, he ate everything. but when he came back home. i can only cook hotdog for him (i mean rice with ikan bills soup or chicken soup and with the hotdog)… he don eat other food…

is it ok???

[gerberadaisy]

Hi EJ


Try to limit the amount of hotdog as too much is bad for health because of the sodium nitrate which is carcinogenic.

My kids have the same problem - they eat whatever is given in the childcare centre, but at home, they’ve very picky. So, it’s always a struggle for dinner, but at least they eat chicken, char siew, eggs and watercress. So, it’s almost always the same kind of food for dinner.

[satyagraha]

Hi tanlengkoon,


seems like your girl is taking carbo, protein, vitamins and etc. I think that’s good enough. Key thing that I’ll note is, is she growing acceptably (ie not a fussy eater to the extent that she is unacceptably small).

If you want her to take more vege (which is the toughest for kids), introduce it to her bit by bit. Coax her to just try 1 small piece at 1 meal. Clap and make a bit hooha about her finishing that 1 small piece, noting that it’s a big deal… tell her that she’s better than you when you are young (though it may not be true). You know how kids like to outdo their parents. Telling her how GOOD this vege is doing to her body, her skin, her eyes, her muscles, etc, etc. Use emotional blackmail if needed.

That’s it for that meal. Don’t attempt to get her down another one for that meal. But of course, don’t try this with the same vege all the time. Might get sick of it. Every meal try 1 different vege, you’ll soon go back to the 1st one.

If she’s receptive, after sometime… challenge her by adding 1 extra small piece.

The last thing I’ll do is to "hide" the food while they eat (eg. feed they while they are not aware). Not solving the root cause in this way.

[e3nity]

I got no problems with DS eating. He simply eats anything i place on my dining table. :love:


What i do is make the food look attractive. EG: if DS dislike carrots, i'll cut the carrots in different shapes and design on his plate. I will show him its nice by eating lots of it to encourage him to pick it up for a bite. It works for him. Colours and design of the food brings the kids interest as well. Say ur DD don't like meat. You can consider using minced meat mixed with fish meat. Blending food together gives a different texture but she won't notice its meat since most of it she will taste fish..

We cook different things everyday to expose him to common dishes. Our dining time is like game.. He will start \"snatching\" for food.

[grace_3005.033874hotmail.033874com]

ya lo… it always soup adn rice for him… he will ask for hotdog… so i normally cut the hot dog into small pieces and let him eat too much… have intro to him slowly with tofu, bit and pieces of hotdog… lets cross my finger that the small pieces of tryin can last longer…hehehe

thanks anyway…

[Yummylicious]

I was informed by my friend that Disney is having a Mars Needs Moms movie tickets and premiums giveaway contest.


They have a similar topic on How to get your kids to eat vegetables.

Perhaps Mummies here can post their tips on the contest page and stand a chance to win!

http://www.facebook.com/disneystudiosSG?sk=app_195222697168125

I heard the movie is quite touching!

Now, Gonna think of how to prepare nice and cute looking vegetables in my son's bento tomorrow.
:lol:

[alfa_juliet]

for vegetables, both dds realised tht when they don’t eat veggie, they have problem passing motion (hard stool)


when they were toddlers, i served them cherry tomatoes, boiled broccoli & baby carrots as snacks.

PLUS i make them having NO choices too. i told them what is served/cooked is what they eat & add some stories like children in other countries are dying of hunger or too poor to buy food…yadayada yada

[smurf]

Erm, dun even give choices, eat whatever is served...dun wanna eat? Can, but will be hungry lor, dun give biscuits, snacks after the meal even if the child dun finish the meal and is hungry.. if u do that, next time, he or she would think, never mind lah, if I dun eat this, later also got snacks what...and dun say,'eat more veggies ok? It's good for u, blah blah blah...'


When u nag, your kids usually won't listen.