Topic : Picky Eaters

My husband's side of the family has some crazy allergies.  I have none.  I am  afraid that my son is starting to show signs of allergies to food and I really don't want him to because it's what has made my husband SOOOO picky.  My husband dislikes more foods than he likes.  His mother can't eat anything- eggs, mushrooms, fish, vinigar, bananas- she has skin allergies too basically to anything- the sun, perfumes, soaps, lotions, fabric softener, detergent, some fabrics.  She has so many health problems.  I am scared that they'll be handed down to my son!  My son is 13 months old and is so hard to feed.  He can't have eggs because they make his face puffy and red. He can't have beans because they give him diaper rash.  He won't eat meat.  Pretty much the only protien I can get into him is from dairy products- cottage cheese, yogurt, cheese.  Some days he'll eat peanut butter and jelly.  I am scared that it's my fault he has allergies because I didn't breast feed.  Maybe if I had he would be able to fight off these weaknesses is his immune system to having food allergies.  Does anyone have any ideas on what I should feed this kid to get his protien into him?  Also, does anyone know if breastfeeding  would have improved his chances to ward off food allergies from my in laws and husband???  I can't change my choice to not breast feed because obviously he's too old to start that now.  I am just feeling guilty like I have made him weaker and hurt his chances to a healthy life.

Katie

well, if it's in your husbands family, your son was more sensitive to it anyways, so he would probably had gotten some of them, maybe you should have breastfed, but don't blame it on yourself, he would still have had some allergies. for the protein, maybe you can find some vegetarian meals with a lot of protein on the internet, i've read that there''s proteines in tofu and soy milk. furthermore you can give him feeding supplements with a lot of proteines. if it's still a problem when he get's older, it might be wise to visit a dietician, to figure out an appropriate diet for him.

 

good luck,

annemiek

I've looked at this whole message board searching for a picky eater nearer my daughter's age. the youngest i saw was 14 months old....well my daughter is having trouble with the transition into spoon feeding...she hated cereal, she can seal her mouth shut or spit it out and proceed to make the meanest face, which is cute n funny but i'm having a real problem...i've went ahead and tried veggies, that didnt work, fruits, that didn't work, now i'm trying mixed canned foods...she should be able to eat more than what she is, if its a good day i can get 1 tablespoon in her, i've resorted to puting rice cereal in her bottles to make sure she gets it, her weight and growth all seem to be healthy, she just is being stubborn when it comes to the spoon. it seems to be both the spoon and the new tastes...she was like that when i was forced to switch her from breast to bottle..(wasnt producing enough) .would not take the bottle, then once she got use to it, she could care less bout anything else.  its always a hassel, i've let other more experienced moms try, and they are at a loss to get the food in her mouth, and keep it in.  she wises up pretty fast too to what you r trying....smart lil kid.  at least im getting cereal in her, she even hates juices and those smoothies, will refuse them completely in a bottle even if shes hungry.   any advice???   and before anyone calls me britney...the car was turned off we were waiting on daddy to get out of work...she went safely and securely back into car seat...

 

My four year old daughter will not eat and when she does it is a very small amount.  I don't know if this is a thing she is going thru or if it is something I need to worry about.  It scares me at times.  People have told me that she does this for attention but I don't know what to believe. 

i don't know if she does it for attention or if there's something wrong. to be sure you should take her to a doctor to have her checked out. if there's nothing wrong, i suggest you decide what she should eat during breakfast, lunch and dinner, and give her a certain amount of time, 20 minutes, 30 minutes max. if she hasn't finished it then, no sweets or snacks or desserts until the next meal. the two kids of my b/f used to eat very little, but they got over it. and now they eat normally. so i'd say, make her eat what she has to, and let her earn her snacks and sweets. you should also try to keep her active, playin outside a lot, running, swimming. this will make her hungry and will make her eat better.

 

good luck

dont panic my son was a picky eater but as time went on he is eating most things now .... have faith and trust your instincts as a mother

i would stop her eating between meals that would make her hungry at times she needs to be .... thats what i did with my son ..... he was so skinny you could see his rib bones ... but now he is healthy and eating his meals.. ppl say have snacks so they can graze like a cow but our kids are not cows and need the discipline to know when meals are dished out they eat them ... give them a few days with limited food and see how much they appreciate meal times when they have them.... and not being harsh or nasty but sometime ya just gotta do it .... i dont mean limit there food just make it at meal times and meal times only until they learn !!!

Children are not born with clock's in their tummies.

A pediatrician once told me that in India, where he was raised, you eat when hungry..Not because it is 7am, noon, and 6 pm.

He also said that nobody will ever only eat one thing for their entire lives.

Visualize a 17 year old at a graduation party refusing to eat anything but PB&J. It just doesn't happen.

IMO, we place too much importance on scheduling our children' s eating and sleeping habits.

As long as your child is giving you cues that you are following, I'm guessing that they will grow to be healthy and strong.

 

Choose your battles.

 

 

Grazing is actually far healthier than eating only 3 meals a day. It is not for cows, it is for toddlers too.

My toddler has so much energy that she will eat constantly throughout the day, and if she falls short on her caloric intake, she is a rottten mess.

 I have 3 children - two teenage boys and an eight year old daughter.  When my boys were little they went through stages of picky eating and only eating certain things but by the time they were eight, their eating had improved.  I'm not saying they would eat anything, but I could at least put some of all I fixed on their plate and they would eat something.  Not my daughter - she has a very limited diet and they aren't things I can fix my husband or teens on a daily basis, they would starve.  She has always come in on the underweight side of the charts at her yearly checkups - her Dr always asks me if she's eating fruits and veges - unable to lie I have to say NO!  Her diet consists of sandwiches(grilled cheese, ham or turkey(has to be thin lunchmeat and cheese, PB&J), scrambled eggs, cheese quesadillas, cheese pizza, hot dogs, sometimes french fries and I believe that's it - no she won't eat chicken nuggets or mac and cheese like a lot of kids do.  I give her 100% juice and vitamins.  Most of the things she eats are not entirely bad for her but I take alot of slack from my sons and others about how I should make her eat, I'm spoiling her, etc... holidays are terrible because most people don't serve this kind of stuff at Thanksgiving and Christmas(she won't eat ham and turkey like you have during these meals) - sometimes I do get annoyed having to make her special things - but I have tried forcing her to eat. I once gave her mashed potatoes and she returned them to me all over me and my plate.  My father was VERY strict when it came to dinner time, we had to sit at the table as long as took(course we were only allowed so much time before he brought out the belt) As a teen I was bulimic which later developed into anorexia - I don't want to force her to eat and have never forced my kids to clean their plate - no one in my house is overweight, but healthy - even her now.  What I'm looking for is opinions, what do ya'll think, am I doing the best I can? Should I force the fruits and veges?

she should learn to eat more things, and she might have to get used to the taste. she can't go around eating fries, hamburgers and pb&J sandwiches. that's unhealthy, and i think it's impossible. furthermore i think you shouldn't have to make her anything special all the time. so, just make a meal the smae for everyone. and then you can do two things: you can either decide what she has to eat, within what amount of time, about 20 minutes or half an hour. and if she hasn't finished it by then, she won't get dessert, or she won't get to watch tv that night, or something else. if she does eat it, then she can have dessert or watch tv or something. another strategy is just letting her decide what she wants to eat, and if she doesn't want to eat, odn't give her something else. so if she doesn't like the dinner, she will be hungry in bed. and if she doesn't like it the second day she will be hungry again. and after a few days she will start to eat. she might try to get you to make something, faking that she's going to faint, or can't do anything. so you have to look closely and try to define when she's faking, and when she's real. but usually when she's faking, and she's so hungry that she says she can't do anything because of the hunger, she will eat just about anything. but to be able to grow healthy, and become a healthy person later on in life with healthy eating habits she needs to eat a variety of foods, or else she won't get the vitamins and minerals she needs.