Parents, Stop Giving In To 'Picky Eaters'!

[lizandjason]

I've seen so many parents post questions on these boards like, 'my two year old only eats pancakes and cheese pizza, where can we find these at Disney?'

(Excuse me while I hoist myself on this soapbox...)
Parents who give in to their kids' 'picky' food habits are doing their kids an incredible disservice. Healthy eating habits are formed in the first few years of life, and when kids are only given 'kids foods' like fried chicken fingers and pizza, guess how they'll continue to eat as they age?

I'm sure many parents will come back at me saying, 'but my Johnny won't eat any vegetables, and I don't want him to STARVE'! Guess what, Johnny won't starve. He'll eat what you give him. And when he's older, he'll thank you for loving him enough to set standards for his well-being. You are the parent. Do your job, stay in control.

UPDATE 4/16
[My original post was well-intended but came across as rude, pushy and judgemental. Something about what a person said in another thread really rubbed me the wrong way, and I reacted immediately to it with that post. I should have edited the post a long time ago, and I should probably still do that. To those of you who took offense, I can now completely understand why you did.As one poster just said, parents are constantly judged. And you can't always fight back in 'real life', but you can certainly do it on a chat board. I can't blame you for reacting the way you did, nor should I have taken offense to it.I can't say I wouldn't have reacted the same way if I had been in your shoes.

Thanks, everyone. I hope you all continue to raise happy, healthy children, and I will forever be in awe of how you do this thing called 'parenting' day in and day out. I wish you peace and joy on the journey.

 

[Tiana]

....

 

[LiLIrishChick63]

my parents raised me as "you'll eat what everyone else is eating, we're not making anything special for you" as long as i ate SOMETHING on the plate, they were fine with it.

i know someone who's child will only eat pizza rolls pratically everywhere. family events, she'll ONLY eat pizza rolls, and the mother just allows it. i don't get it. my parents would never let that fly....

 

[Mommy2cody]

You must not have children...LOL I said the same thing before my son was born, and guess what......he ate great until he turned about 4! Would eat ANYTHING I gave him, then one day...nothing. I hate it when people assume things.

 

[AshleyW]

I've seen so many parents post questions on these boards like, 'my two year old only eats pancakes and cheese pizza, where can we find these at Disney?'

(Excuse me while I hoist myself on this soapbox...)
Parents who give in to their kids' 'picky' food habits are doing their kids an incredible disservice. Healthy eating habits are formed in the first few years of life, and when kids are only given 'kids foods' like fried chicken fingers and pizza, guess how they'll continue to eat as they age?

I'm sure many parents will come back at me saying, 'but my Johnny won't eat any vegetables, and I don't want him to STARVE'! Guess what, Johnny won't starve. He'll eat what you give him. And when he's older, he'll thank you for loving him enough to set standards for his well-being. You are the parent. Do your job, stay in control.

I'd love your opinions!

I'm gonna have to agree with you. I was the. pickiest. eater. EVER! as a kid.. and guess what, I'm picky now, too. I'm sure it doesn't wind up like that for every picky eater kid, but it did for me, and I wish it hadn't. I have a huge slew of foods that I don't like.. tomatoes, onions, peppers, cherries, watermelon, a lot of seafood, anything that seems "weird".. which isn't a big deal when I cook for myself and DF. I simply cook things that I like. But when I go to peoples' house to eat, it stinks. I almost always just suck it up and eat whatever they serve, but otherwise (like at my parents' house, where they're aware of my food habits), I have to pick a bunch of junk out of my food.

Plus, I definitely feel like it would be a lot easier for me to eat healthy if I was able to enjoy more foods. I DO try new foods now, and have found a few foods that I hated as a kid that I do like now, but there's still quite a bit that I've developed a bad taste for.

.. I just realized this entire post makes me sound like a spoiled brat. I'm not, I promise. Just finnicky about food.

 

[AKL_Megs]

DH's family TOTALLY gave in to one of his cousins.

ALL she would eat from the time she was about 2 until she was about 10 was "pizza" (You would have to special order a pie for her. Dough and cheese. Nothing else on it. You could NOT just order her Cheese Bread. THAT wasn't PIZZA), chicken nuggets, any bread, and toast.

She had paper thin skin, the thinnest hair, and was so skinny.

WHAT would have happened if she didn't eat the hamburgers that were for dinner? And then, what if she didn't want the bacon and eggs for breakfast? Would she have had the hot dog at lunch? Maybe not, but she PROBABLY would have SCARFED down the tacos for dinner.

 

[mjkacmom]

Do you have children? I once told my pediatrician that ds11 (when he was younger) wouldn't eat more than 6 items. She said "so what?" I've had kids who will eat ANYTHING, and kids who have very sensitive palates (initially - the older they get, the more they'll eat - they do have to try everything). I've learned the hard way not to force food (nothing like a little vomit at the table).

Tonight, I made cheese fondue with cut up veggies (they all like different ones - ds7 loves peppers, dd7 loves broccoli). Dd13 didn't eat it - doesn't eat cheese (so she made herself stir fried tofu and broccoli). Ds11 didn't like it, so I told him to find something in the fridge (he had yogurt). The other 3 loved it!

I'm not going to eat food I don't like (I don't eat beets - think that's it). Now, if it's not your favorite, but you've eaten it in the past, too bad, you're eating it. All of my kids have been offered the same foods growing up, and there is a huge difference between the food lovers and the pickier ones. I've found that they are born that way (and again, get way more adventurous as they get older - I think taste buds develop at different rates).

ETA - I used to feel like the OP, because my first child loved every bit of food I gave her, and I assumed it was because I offered a large variety when she was a baby/toddler. Then ds was born, spit out baby food, spit out the avacado, tofu, and lima beans that dd LOVED, and I realized that I just lucked out with my first (and my fifth).

 

[hereyago]

Try having a picky parent to "take care" of.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I've seen so many parents post questions on these boards like, 'my two year old only eats pancakes and cheese pizza, where can we find these at Disney?'

(Excuse me while I hoist myself on this soapbox...)
Parents who give in to their kids' 'picky' food habits are doing their kids an incredible disservice. Healthy eating habits are formed in the first few years of life, and when kids are only given 'kids foods' like fried chicken fingers and pizza, guess how they'll continue to eat as they age?

I'm sure many parents will come back at me saying, 'but my Johnny won't eat any vegetables, and I don't want him to STARVE'! Guess what, Johnny won't starve. He'll eat what you give him. And when he's older, he'll thank you for loving him enough to set standards for his well-being. You are the parent. Do your job, stay in control.

I'd love your opinions!

How many kids do you have?

 

[DawnCt1]

I've seen so many parents post questions on these boards like, 'my two year old only eats pancakes and cheese pizza, where can we find these at Disney?'

(Excuse me while I hoist myself on this soapbox...)
Parents who give in to their kids' 'picky' food habits are doing their kids an incredible disservice. Healthy eating habits are formed in the first few years of life, and when kids are only given 'kids foods' like fried chicken fingers and pizza, guess how they'll continue to eat as they age?

I'm sure many parents will come back at me saying, 'but my Johnny won't eat any vegetables, and I don't want him to STARVE'! Guess what, Johnny won't starve. He'll eat what you give him. And when he's older, he'll thank you for loving him enough to set standards for his well-being. You are the parent. Do your job, stay in control.

I'd love your opinions!

MY OPINION!!!??? HOW DARE YOU!! Of course you are right! We planned our Disney trips around where DH and I wanted to eat. The kids came along, even if it was Victoria and Alberts and they behaved.

 

[C.Ann]

Being among the older group of posters here (60), I couldn't agree more..
In my family - as a child - we ate what was prepared for us (within reason - we weren't forced to eat anchovies or smelt - LOL) and that was that.. Same held true for my own children - and now my grandchildren.. People are always amazed that my 11 yr. old DGD snacks on raw veggies rather than cookies or chips, will choose yogurt over ice cream, drinks water rather than soda, and would never dream of asking someone to prepare something different for her than whatever is being served.. The reason is simple - she was raised like that from the time she started eating solid foods..

Barring any true medical issues that make it impossible for a child to eat certain foods, I think catering to picky eaters is setting the stage for long term problems - and not just with food.. I've seen it happen - and it's not pretty..

 

[gisgt]

I'm gonna have to agree with you. I was the. pickiest. eater. EVER! as a kid.. and guess what, I'm picky now, too. I'm sure it doesn't wind up like that for every picky eater kid, but it did for me, and I wish it hadn't. I have a huge slew of foods that I don't like.. tomatoes, onions, peppers, cherries, watermelon, a lot of seafood, anything that seems "weird".. which isn't a big deal when I cook for myself and DF. I simply cook things that I like. But when I go to peoples' house to eat, it stinks. I almost always just suck it up and eat whatever they serve, but otherwise (like at my parents' house, where they're aware of my food habits), I have to pick a bunch of junk out of my food.

Plus, I definitely feel like it would be a lot easier for me to eat healthy if I was able to enjoy more foods. I DO try new foods now, and have found a few foods that I hated as a kid that I do like now, but there's still quite a bit that I've developed a bad taste for.

.. I just realized this entire post makes me sound like a spoiled brat. I'm not, I promise. Just finnicky about food.

If you're a spoiled brat so am I - You just described me & I agree with everything you said! OP, you are SO on the money....don't let your kids grow up to be us

 

[DeniseinNS]

My 8 year old daughter is fairly picky and my 4 year old son will eat pretty much anything (his favorite food is brocolli lol) I am ok that my daughter does not want to eat certain things but I do ask that she try something at least once before deciding that she truly doesn't like it, she's actually found some stuff that she likes by doing this. I'm ok with pickyness as long as they are still eating healthy and not wanting to survive on just hotdogs and chicken nuggets. I'm a bit of a picky eater myself lol.

 

[4greatboys]

Mmmm okay. Will get on that right away.

 

[nmmom95]

Sorry, I have to disagree. My DS12 was the absolute pickiest eater. If I tried to give him something new, he would throw up. This happened for YEARS! I let it go, and now, he is a great eater. He will try anything, loves seafood, eats veggies. He doesn't eat much fruit, but he drinks juice, so I'm not expecting scurvy anytime soon. I kept offering, but didn't push, and eventually he came around. You get tired of cleaning up puke after awhile.

 

[WDW_lover_in_SC]

I've seen so many parents post questions on these boards like, 'my two year old only eats pancakes and cheese pizza, where can we find these at Disney?'

(Excuse me while I hoist myself on this soapbox...)
Parents who give in to their kids' 'picky' food habits are doing their kids an incredible disservice. Healthy eating habits are formed in the first few years of life, and when kids are only given 'kids foods' like fried chicken fingers and pizza, guess how they'll continue to eat as they age?

I'm sure many parents will come back at me saying, 'but my Johnny won't eat any vegetables, and I don't want him to STARVE'! Guess what, Johnny won't starve. He'll eat what you give him. And when he's older, he'll thank you for loving him enough to set standards for his well-being. You are the parent. Do your job, stay in control.

I'd love your opinions!

This is not true at all and is only yours personal opinion. I used to be a kid who would only eat pizza chicken tenders and hotdogs as was my brother. I don't like vegetables at all now but I still eat them. It doesn't matter what you force your kids to do they will do what they want when they are old enough. Whether it's eating dressing or whatever after a certain age you have no control. It's up to the child.

 

[LuvLDM]

I agree w/ the Op.
I have three kids, one of whom is a picky eater.
While I don't cater to it I do try and make meals that the entire family will enjoy.

I roll my eyes every time I hear a parent say in a frustrated tone "Johnny will ONLY eat Kraft macaroni & cheese". My neighbor makes three dinners every night because her kids are picky....it's absurd.

 

[hereyago]

I was actually a picky kid, DM didn't cook, but we would go out to eat,etc. I still hate any sort of eggs, I still hate certain veggies and mashed potatoes.

BUT: as I got older I myself would try things without someone telling me I had to eat it. I love escargo on my DCL trips. I will smack someone in the head for some crab legs, but I can't stand any type of fish.

DM-ms. non cooker, will microwave oatmeal and make herself a sandwich,but gets ticked off that I don't make her frozen fries heated up every night. so i will give her a couple quick options, if not she can make herself a grilled cheese sandwich. BUT the thing with dealing with an adult especially waif type adults, they will tell their friends you won't fix them anything.

 

[lizandjason]

Thanks for all your responses! Just so you all know, I fully respect everyone's opinions, whether they agree with me or not. It's interesting to see all of the perspectives.

I don't have kids, and I don't think that my lack of kids makes what I'm saying any less valid.It's just common sense! YOU are the parent...and it is your responsibility to make sure your kids are doing healthy things...I don't care whether they whine, cry, scream or tell you they hate you a million times. They are children, and they need guidance. Letting your kid do whatever he wants will lead to a slew of problems in the future.

 

[LJC1861]

When I was a kid...and there were 6 of us kids in the family, we were allowed to "not like" only one thing on the table at any given meal. We had to eat the protein, but we could not like any one thing on the table and not eat that. This was a challenge as Mom made lots of veggies, and we could only skip one! Brussel sprout night was always a challenge.....

She was also smart in that she taught us to cook at a young age. This gave us some ownership in the meals that were served. My sister and I (one year apart) would peruse our kid friendly recipe books, make our grocery list and then she would help us shop. We then cooked the meal..with Mom supervising from the safety of the living room. We found out first hand that preparing a meal that our family ate made us feel really good. My brothers also had their cooking night and we all loved it, especially the dessert that we always made as part of the meal. It was fun to deny our parents dessert when they chose to "not like" more than one thing on the plate. To this day, everyone in our family eats ( and cooks) well.

Linda