Do you make your kids eat whatever you are having or do you fix them their own food? My son seems to be developing a long list of foods he doesn't like or won't even try. My wife keeps making him what he wants instead of having him eat what we are eating. I was wondering how does everyone else handles this?
Making kids eat
- Thread starter Don
- Start date
Victor Leigh
New Member
I give my children a very democratic choice. Eat what's on the table or buy your own. So far I haven't seen any of my children suffering from malnutrition yet.
This is one of the hardest things we had to fight tooth & nail with for all of the kids in the family, our own and even those we sat for. Some kids are okay after trying a few new things with say an extra side of something that they like. Not all kids are the same though.
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We strongly encourage our kids to try new foods but we don't push it. My wife frequently ends up making chicken nuggets or peanut butter sandwiches in addition to whatever she has made for dinner. My kids are pretty young (1 & 3) so I still think they will grow out of a lot of their current pickiness.
My kids don't like vegetables much, but they don't have a choice but to consume whatever it is we put on the table. It helps that they know from their lessons in school the value of veggies in their bodies, and eating a balanced diet. Whenever they ask permission not to eat everything on their plate, we gently remind them what their bodies will be missing.
polamalu43
New Member
My kids are great eaters and its because they ate what we made when they were younger. Our rule was you have to try it first and if you take 3 bites and hate it, you can make a sandwich. Most times the kids loved the food.
My daughter eats what we eat. We don't make her something special. It is a fact that kids need to try something at least 10 times before they actually know whether they like it or not. Their palette is undeveloped. I think that making them a separate meal is giving in to a tantrum. My parents never made me a separate meal and I turned out just fine.
We don't force, but we often include some food that they don't usually eat together with things they like. It's important that they have a good appetite when eating, so when you suggest them to try something new, the chances of them detesting would be slightly lower. Age matters as well, my kids now eat things which they would not even go near when they were years younger.
I won't force my kids to eat something if they really do not like it but I insist that they try it at least a few times to see if they get used to it. I'm a little more lenient, I think, because my mother made me eat many dishes that I despised and still won't eat to this day. As long as the kids are getting all the nutrients and calories they need, I don't see a problem.
Unless their sick, they eat the rest of the family is having.Sometimes the wife will make a little something extra for deserv3e as a way of enticing the kids to finish their plates. I have to watch what their doing though. Don't want any funny business with hiding food under the table or anything.
My eldest son regularly comes to stay with me, my wife and 2 kids and his mum will give me a list of things he doesn't like. These are all things I've fed him in the past, so like my middle son (youngest is still on formula) he eats the same as me and my wife. I know he's eaten it before so he can either have the same or nothing at all. He soon learnt that we are not going to baby him like his mother does.
flfsurveyor
New Member
Thank God all my kids are now grown up and they could well afford to buy whatever they want to eat. But, when they were younger, my wife took great pains in making sure that the day's menu was to our kids' liking. No matter what I like! Fortunately, I was not picky on food so I ate whatever was served.