Picky Eaters?

[alias]

E is not really a picky eater, per se.  But, he has some foods he does not like and will not eat.  He hates carrots and will not eat anything with carrots in it.  He did like green beans and peas, but has now decided they are disgusting also (gags and spits it out).  He eats pretty much any fruit, sweet potatoes, meat/rice, and finger foods.  What do you do when your kid doesn't like something?  Keep offering it?  Stop?  Mix it w/ something else?  Any advice to get more veggies in?

[ilovebed]

I keep offering it. Blb does not like green vegetables like zucchini asparagus green beans or salads. She will eat peas. She will eat all those things I just mentioned if they are in a stew or lasagna I make chili and lasagna both with zucchini and she will eat it.
She used to love raw broccoli and hates it now.
I just keep trying it out and don't make a big deal about it

[jennlin]

you can keep offering, or you can try other veggies. green beans/peas are not a necessity for life..you can try other things and then cycle around and come back to see if he likes them, and if not, try others, and just come back...and if he doesn't..no worries. he can eat something else.

[alias]

Jun 2, 2014 14:18:21 GMT -5 jennlin said:

you can keep offering, or you can try other veggies. green beans/peas are not a necessity for life..you can try other things and then cycle around and come back to see if he likes them, and if not, try others, and just come back...and if he doesn't..no worries. he can eat something else.

I'm not sure what else to offer.  In terms of baby food at the store, a lot of it has carrots in it.  Green beans and peas are like the only other vegetable besides sweet potatoes and squash.  I can make stuff, but I'm not sure what to make.  What other veggies do babies like/are easy to eat?  I make home-made sweet potatoes, but when I added peas and spinach, he won't eat it.  Maybe I should google some recipe ideas.  Or mix veggies w/ fruits.

I need to try more table food, but it is hard b/c we eat at different times and when I give him real food he mostly just makes a mess and eats very little.  And he's small and hungry and waking to eat at night, so I need for him to actually eat.

[jennlin]

Jun 2, 2014 14:46:29 GMT -5 alias said:

Jun 2, 2014 14:18:21 GMT -5 jennlin said:

you can keep offering, or you can try other veggies. green beans/peas are not a necessity for life..you can try other things and then cycle around and come back to see if he likes them, and if not, try others, and just come back...and if he doesn't..no worries. he can eat something else.

I'm not sure what else to offer.  In terms of baby food at the store, a lot of it has carrots in it.  Green beans and peas are like the only other vegetable besides sweet potatoes and squash.  I can make stuff, but I'm not sure what to make.  What other veggies do babies like/are easy to eat?  I make home-made sweet potatoes, but when I added peas and spinach, he won't eat it.  Maybe I should google some recipe ideas.  Or mix veggies w/ fruits.

I need to try more table food, but it is hard b/c we eat at different times and when I give him real food he mostly just makes a mess and eats very little.  And he's small and hungry and waking to eat at night, so I need for him to actually eat.

at 10 mos, i was giving bjl most foods already. if giving him real food is a struggle, you can make it ahead and freeze...our go-to bjl meal at the time was salmon/broccoli, tofu, or shredded chicken. she also loved noodles, toast, beans..if you want more veggies, you can do cauliflower, zucchini, beets (careful, they stain!), parsnips, mushrooms (if those count as veggies)....

we skipped purees, but if that's the only way to get him to eat, then just steam everything to death and mash..freeze in tiny portions (ice cube tray?) and after they're frozen you can bag them up.

[Deleted]

I would keep offering. A great resource for foods is wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com they have charts by age that may have some other ideas on them for you. Spices are another great option!

[alias]

Jun 2, 2014 15:45:34 GMT -5 @missmarple said:

I would keep offering. A great resource for foods is wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com they have charts by age that may have some other ideas on them for you. Spices are another great option!

That's what I was just reading!

[alias]

Jun 2, 2014 15:33:45 GMT -5 jennlin said:

Jun 2, 2014 14:46:29 GMT -5 alias said:

I'm not sure what else to offer.  In terms of baby food at the store, a lot of it has carrots in it.  Green beans and peas are like the only other vegetable besides sweet potatoes and squash.  I can make stuff, but I'm not sure what to make.  What other veggies do babies like/are easy to eat?  I make home-made sweet potatoes, but when I added peas and spinach, he won't eat it.  Maybe I should google some recipe ideas.  Or mix veggies w/ fruits.

I need to try more table food, but it is hard b/c we eat at different times and when I give him real food he mostly just makes a mess and eats very little.  And he's small and hungry and waking to eat at night, so I need for him to actually eat.

at 10 mos, i was giving bjl most foods already. if giving him real food is a struggle, you can make it ahead and freeze...our go-to bjl meal at the time was salmon/broccoli, tofu, or shredded chicken. she also loved noodles, toast, beans..if you want more veggies, you can do cauliflower, zucchini, beets (careful, they stain!), parsnips, mushrooms (if those count as veggies)....

we skipped purees, but if that's the only way to get him to eat, then just steam everything to death and mash..freeze in tiny portions (ice cube tray?) and after they're frozen you can bag them up.

I have been making my own purees and freezing, but I guess I'm not very creative on veggies.  I like to have baby food as a back up and also make sure he likes something before I make a batch of it.  I failed and added peas and spinach to his sweet potatoes and now I have a freezer full of food he won't eat.  The banana, apple, pear stuff in the freezer is getting eaten, but not the spinach.  

He likes to feed himself finger food, but he can't figure out how to chew (he has 8 teeth).  He like mashes it up in his mouth and ends up spitting most of it out.  He tries to hold it in with his hand, but most of it ends up on his bib and tray all mushed up, and then he finger pants with it and then rubs his face and hair.    I think he needs more practice.  So, I keep giving him some finger food and also purees.

[alias]

I think I need to be braver about offering him more real food, spices, etc. I guess he just is still such a baby to me it freaks me out.

I did give him some sweet potato from a curry I had at a restaurant and he liked it! And he had a pumkin and coconut curry pouch the other day he liked and one that had beans, rice, red pepper, and cilantro.

[jennlin]

for practice on getting foods into his mouth, you can try puffs and mum mums. they don't have much nutritional content/calories, but for practice.... i would probably try giving him some of those in between the purees.

[alias]

Jun 2, 2014 16:11:21 GMT -5 jennlin said:

for practice on getting foods into his mouth, you can try puffs and mum mums. they don't have much nutritional content/calories, but for practice.... i would probably try giving him some of those in between the purees.

I do this.  Usually before and after purees.  I give him a bunch of different versions of those (puffs, teething crackers, gold fish, munchies) and pieces of cheese and banana.  I also sometimes give him bits of what we eat, like pancakes and eggs.  The puffs and other stuff that melts in his mouth are fine.  But, anything he actually has to chew (cheese, eggs, pancakes, etc.) gets mushed up and mostly falls back out of his mouth.  

I Googled and found some boards where moms said their kids preferred purees well past 12 months...  Although, I'm it's not really that he prefers it, but he just doesn't get what to do with real food.  I try to eat with him so he can copy me and he copies a chewing motion, but I don't really think he's chewing, more like gumming the food into a mushy mess that falls back out of his mouth.  I'm sure he'll figure it out eventually...

[jennlin]

Jun 2, 2014 17:58:07 GMT -5 alias said:

Jun 2, 2014 16:11:21 GMT -5 jennlin said:

for practice on getting foods into his mouth, you can try puffs and mum mums. they don't have much nutritional content/calories, but for practice.... i would probably try giving him some of those in between the purees.

I do this.  Usually before and after purees.  I give him a bunch of different versions of those (puffs, teething crackers, gold fish, munchies) and pieces of cheese and banana.  I also sometimes give him bits of what we eat, like pancakes and eggs.  The puffs and other stuff that melts in his mouth are fine.  But, anything he actually has to chew (cheese, eggs, pancakes, etc.) gets mushed up and mostly falls back out of his mouth.  

I Googled and found some boards where moms said their kids preferred purees well past 12 months...  Although, I'm it's not really that he prefers it, but he just doesn't get what to do with real food.  I try to eat with him so he can copy me and he copies a chewing motion, but I don't really think he's chewing, more like gumming the food into a mushy mess that falls back out of his mouth.  I'm sure he'll figure it out eventually...

Lol okay I'm out of ideas then. Just try some new veggies, but no sweat if he doesn't love certain ones!

[Deleted]

Jun 2, 2014 17:58:07 GMT -5 alias said:

Jun 2, 2014 16:11:21 GMT -5 jennlin said:

for practice on getting foods into his mouth, you can try puffs and mum mums. they don't have much nutritional content/calories, but for practice.... i would probably try giving him some of those in between the purees.

I do this.  Usually before and after purees.  I give him a bunch of different versions of those (puffs, teething crackers, gold fish, munchies) and pieces of cheese and banana.  I also sometimes give him bits of what we eat, like pancakes and eggs.  The puffs and other stuff that melts in his mouth are fine.  But, anything he actually has to chew (cheese, eggs, pancakes, etc.) gets mushed up and mostly falls back out of his mouth.  

I Googled and found some boards where moms said their kids preferred purees well past 12 months...  Although, I'm it's not really that he prefers it, but he just doesn't get what to do with real food.  I try to eat with him so he can copy me and he copies a chewing motion, but I don't really think he's chewing, more like gumming the food into a mushy mess that falls back out of his mouth.  I'm sure he'll figure it out eventually...

Very soft steamed veggies that he can hold onto: baby carrots/carrot sticks, green beans, peas, squash cut in sticks. Sweet potato fries baked with some olive oil. Thin strips of toast with purée or cream cheese or hummus spread on it. Cheese sticks. Basically, anything in stick form that he can hold onto and practice munching. Remember the more practice, the better he'll get. The same with puffs. Gumming foods is ok right now because he is still getting most of his nutrition from a bottle anyways, it's the practice that's important. It takes a lot of tries for babes to get comfortable with new foods and new ways of eating, So keep offering!

And modeling the behavior you want him to do is great, along with labeling. So a big dramatic bite from you with "chew chew chew" as the words you use. Let him feed you then you feed him and make a game if it. Give him a spoon so he can practice putting it in his mouth with or without food. Summer is a great time to practice eating cause you can strip him down and really let him make a mess!

And, if he seems to still be "stuck" on purées at his 12 month appt, Check with his doc and see if a feeding eval might be appropriate. (I work with feeding a lot, you can pm me if you have more questions)

[shevacc]

We didn't do much in the way of solids regularly until 8-9 months, but mostly offered random things in stick shapes that G could hold. She was very anti spoon-feeding for a long time. She went through a very picky toddler phase but then started eating a wider variety of foods. Now it's back and forth depending on how hungry she is. If she's hungry, she'll try a reasonable variety of foods. If she's not terribly hungry, she'll turn her nose up at all but her absolute favorites. I would just keep offering and giving him opportunities to practice and I bet he'll get much better at it!

[alias]

Jun 3, 2014 17:30:45 GMT -5 shevacc said:

We didn't do much in the way of solids regularly until 8-9 months, but mostly offered random things in stick shapes that G could hold. She was very anti spoon-feeding for a long time. She went through a very picky toddler phase but then started eating a wider variety of foods. Now it's back and forth depending on how hungry she is. If she's hungry, she'll try a reasonable variety of foods. If she's not terribly hungry, she'll turn her nose up at all but her absolute favorites. I would just keep offering and giving him opportunities to practice and I bet he'll get much better at it!

It might be a tired thing.  After daycare sometimes he's super tired and cranky and that's when I have the most trouble, like he refuses or spits out any of his non-favorite foods.

[alias]

Last night I gave him cubes of squash with cinnamon, which he liked and got a fair amount in his mouth. But, then he got tired of it and was done. I gave him bits of cheese, which he loved and would keep eating. Some munchies, which he always likes. And I tried to give him some of my spaghetti. I ground some up and he liked the taste, but couldn't figure out how to keep it in his mouth. So, I gave him some longer ones, but he just played with them. Oh, well. I guess we'll just keep playing and see what happens.

[shevacc]

"Food is just for fun until one" I know it's much easier to say it than to believe it in the moment, though.

I think your tired theory is a pretty likely one.