Tips For Helping Your Picky Eater Develop Healthy Eating Habits

Feeding a picky eater can be a challenge for any parent. It’s tough when your child refuses to eat the meals you prepare and prefers a limited selection of foods. However, with the right tips, you can help your child develop healthy eating habits.

In this article, we’ll explore 7 tips for feeding a picky eater, including making food fun and colorful, being a good example, offering a range of foods, giving your children a choice, making small portions, not forcing them, and keeping healthy snacks on hand.

1. Make Food Fun And Colorful

Children love having fun, and mealtime is no exception. You can make meals more fun by cutting fruits and vegetables into different shapes or arranging them in a puzzle on the plate. Additionally, you can give the food cool names, such as “rainbow salad” or “Mr. Potato”. This will make mealtime more exciting for your child.

2. Be A Good Example For Your Kids

Children love to mimic their parents, so you should show your child how happy you are when you eat healthy foods. You can also involve your child in meal preparation or bring them to the grocery store and let them choose the fruits or vegetables. This will make them feel more included and excited about the meal.

3. Offer A Range Of Foods

You can offer new foods to your picky eater, as well as different recipes and

forms. Pairing the food with a sauce is a great idea too! Don’t get upset if the child rejects your proposal. Continue offering new foods for several days or even weeks. After about 10-15 exposures to the new food, the child will most likely agree to taste it.

4. Give Your Children A Choice

You can give your child the opportunity to make a choice. For example, offer a few options of healthy foods and let them choose the one they want. This will make them feel more independent and enjoy the process.

5. Make Small Portions

Serve your children small portions if you don’t want to scare them or make them feel overwhelmed by a large plate of food. Remember, their stomachs are smaller than those of adults, so you shouldn’t serve equal portions to every family member.

6. Don't Force Them

Children don’t like when their parents try to force them to eat. You should calmly explain to them why it’s important to eat healthily. Meal time should be a fun and enjoyable experience for everyone involved. Talk about your day, eat with them, reduce pressures, feed their stuffed animal, etc to make the meal enjoyable for everyone. You can even use your imagination and tell a tale or a story with the characters that the kid loves.

7. Keep Healthy Snacks On Hand

It’s important to offer your child healthy snacks, such as carrot sticks, pieces of fruit, or nuts. This will prevent them from feeling hungry, and you won’t have to buy junk food when you’re both outside the house.

Final Thoughts

These tips for feeding a picky eater should make mealtime more fun for your child. However, it can take time before your child develops healthy eating habits. If you feel like you can't continue dealing with the problem on your own, the Therapy and Learning Center of Georgia can assist you and your child. Our experts offer ABA therapy, speech and feeding therapy, and occupational therapy, all important disciplines that may help your child with picky eating.

In conclusion, feeding a picky eater can be challenging, but it is not impossible. By following these tips, you can help your child develop healthy eating habits. If you need additional assistance, don't hesitate to reach out to the Therapy & Learning Center of Georgia for ABA therapy, speech and feeding therapy, and occupational therapy.