Eating habits?

Brenda - posted on 05/03/2010

Thanks. Stina, my daughter is almost 5 yrs old. If she doesnt eat anything we feel bad later on that she is hungry and give her a snack. On the other hand if she does eat and eats good, she'a asking for a snack in like a half an hr! Its crazy, she says she hungry all day long even after snacks. And for breakfast all she will eat is a few bites of cereal. She used to eat other stuff but now doesnt want it. She is going to be starting kindergarten and i want her to be full so she can be productive and learn. well thanks again for the suggestions we have to try something different.

Brina - posted on 05/02/2010

i have to agree with Stina i give my 2 year old a lil bit of everything and he what he likes and tries the other stuff if he wants to but he knows that after dinner he wont get anything else so he tries to eat everything i give him and sometimes he will leave food but not a whole lot i think picky eating is avoidable if you set rules from an early age start habits teach them to not waste food

Stina - posted on 05/02/2010

How old?

With my kids, we never made a huge deal about what they did or did not eat. We limit snacks after about 3:30 pm so they are hungry for dinner and then when dinner is served, they get a little of everything and if they don't eat it, that's all they get. It helps to keep portions small since too much food on the plate is overwhelming and may make them not eat as much. If they don't eat dinner, cover it up and put it away in case they get hungry later that evening.

Kristin - posted on 05/02/2010

I've taken a 50-50 approach to their plates. 50% new stuff that they have to take age based bites of (he's two so two bites) and 50% of stuff we all know and eat. With the bites and the stuff I know they like, they can have more if they eat more than the required bites. I do not allow snacks within an hour of dinner and no more than a quick sip or two of water. I will not make a whole separate meal for them either. I do try new things periodically as they need to keep trying things, but if after many attempts they still don't like it. We move on.

Hope this helps.

Maggie - posted on 05/02/2010

have to agree with Zita, my son is the same way, and like she said make sure they are not to much fluids during the day and my son also only eats when he is hungry especially now because he is still teething sometimes he just doesnt want to eat and sometimes he eats a whole lot

Zita - posted on 05/02/2010

Hello, my thoughts with my own kids, some of whom are or have been picky eaters, is that they will eat if they are hungry. If its a new food it will take them a number of times trying it before they are used to it and may eat it. If you are serving new foods make sure its with something you know they like. One other thing is to make sure they are not filled up from having had too many drinks before supper. Hope this helps!! :):)