5 ways to Inspire Your Fussy Eaters

Fed up with your fussy eater? Here are my tips..

When you have a child, who is a fussy eater, it can be a worrying and stressful time for parents. What should be relaxing event, can become the most dreaded part of the day.

You may think you are alone in the struggle, but I can assure you, you are not. In fact, as many as 90% of children go through a lengthy spell of being fussy about food.

Here are some effective strategies to help encourage your child to eat a healthy diet:

Involve your child in meal planning

Children love to be involved! Ask them to pick a healthy meal from a kid-friendly cook book and take them to the supermarket to select the ingredients.
Ask them to help you prepare dinner by washing vegetables, measuring, stirring, pouring or arranging the food on the plate.

Ditch mealtime distractions

Share your meals together as often as you can. It’s tempting to leave electronics on but it can create bad habits for picky eaters. Turn off the TV and phones, take a seat at the dinner table and focus on your meal.

Keeping offering new foods

In order for a child to decide whether they like foods, they need to be offered it up to 10 times.
Pay attention to the textures they prefer. If they have issues with mushy foods, offer them whole grain crackers, breadsticks or crunchy vegetable sticks. If they prefer softer foods, offer them a banana or cooked pasta, but always encourage them to try new things.

Snack smartly

Stick to a routine with snacks. If you allow children to graze on snacks throughout the day or too close to mealtimes, they are less likely to have an appetite when it comes to dinner.
Provide them with three healthy snack choices and let them decide.

Make every bite count

It’s ok for your child to have a biscuit but offering them one that is made with oats, seeds, dried fruits and honey will provide them more nutrients than one that contains refined sugars and additives. It’s time to get creative!
Make food fun
Children will be more attracted to foods that are arranged in eye catching and creative ways. Add lots of colourful fruits and vegetables to your Child’s plate or use a cookie cutter to make fun shapes.

IF YOU HAVE CONCERNS THAT YOUR CHILD IS MORE THAN JUST FUSSY, YOU MAY WANT TO CONSIDER:

Allergies
If you notice a reaction that occurs soon after your child has eaten a certain food, they may have an allergy towards it. You should contact your GP if you notice symptoms such as;

• Red itchy rashes or bumps
• Shortness of breath
• Wheezing
• Sneezing or nasal congestion
• Swelling of the lips, tongue or throat
• Fainting, unconsciousness
• Confusion
• Light headedness
• Difficulty breathing

Intolerances

Food intolerance is different from an allergy and harder to identify. It is not caused by an immune response.
You may notice that your child has discomfort after eating dairy or gluten with symptoms such as bloating, stomach cramps, diarrhoea, nausea, or vomiting.
If you think your child has an intolerance, seek advice from a Nutritionalist.

Are you a role model?

One experimental study showed that parents who increased their intake of fruits and vegetables, were more likely to succeed at increasing their children’s intake.

Children learn by example and love to copy behaviours from family members. Try increasing your fruits and vegetables, let them see you eating nutritious foods may encourage them to try them too.

Fussy eater ideas

There are some wonderful resources online to help you with food and recipe ideas for fussy eaters, but here are some of mine;

1. Home Made Pizzas
Use whole meal pittas or gluten free pizza bases. If you’re using pitta’s, toast them first otherwise they can go soggy.
Mix tomato puree with a little water and smear over the base. Add your favourite toppings i.e. tomatoes, sweetcorn, pepper, red onion, cheese and pop in the oven for about 10 minutes. Kids will love helping out with this!

2. Hidden Veg Sauce
Shhh don’t tell the kids! Adding multiple vegetables (onions, carrots, courgette, garlic, leeks, celery) to a tomato-based sauce and mixing with wholemeal pasta will make a tasty, nutritious meal.

3. Vegetable Bolognese with Lentils
Finely chop some onions and garlic and gently fry them. Add diced carrots, peppers, courgette (peel if necessary), sweetcorn, butternut or any vegetable you fancy!
Add the cooked ingredients to your hidden vegetable sauce for an even bigger veggie boost or add chopped tomatoes and passata. Mix in the lentils and season with herbs. Added to wholemeal spaghetti makes this a wholesome dish!

4. Courgette Fritters
Peel and grate the carrots and courgette. Squeeze the liquid from the courgette and mix together. Add garlic, flour, eggs and onions and mix it all together. Add a spoonful to a heated pan with oil and flatter down as they begin to cook.
Fritters are very adaptable – you can try them with squash or sweet potato too!

5. Banana Oat Cookies
Treats don’t have to be full of refined sugars, try and include healthy treat options.
These are great and very quick to make with minimal ingredients; One mashed banana, 100g of rolled oats, 2tbsp honey, 1tbsp of coconut oil, raisins or cranberries. Bake on 170° for 15 minutes. I assure you, they won’t last long!