How to Deal with Kids who are Fussy Eaters, Part 1

Part 1 of 3 Parts on Kids and Eating.
Does your child scrunch up his or her face, pull back their chair and refuse to eat what you have served them? If so, stop letting them get away with it. I'll be blunt. Do you think a child who is desperately poor, who hasn't had a descent meal in who knows how long, would stick up their nose at the pot roast you are serving? Your child can choose the food they want to eat, or not, because they have enough to choose from. Trust me, if your child hadn't eaten in five days that container filled with tomato soup in your frig might look edible now. But luckily if you live in the U.S., your child shouldn't ever be in that fix!

I knew a boy who hated vegetables. He would eat fruit, hamburgers, pizza, nuts, etc. just not plain vegetables. When he thought he could get away with it he would put the offending vegetables in his napkin, pretend he had to go the bathroom and flush them down the toilet, or hide them under the trash in the trash bin. His mother asked his doctor what to do. (You can ask your own family doctor what to do for your child. There are vegetable and fruit supplements. Ask about them. However, this does not make up for having the real thing. It's in addition to.) The boy's doctor said, keep giving him fruits and find ways to make the vegetables palatable. He also pointed out the boy liked pizza. And that pizza has tomato sauce on it which is a crushed vegetable. I can't say I recommend giving your child carry-out pizza, but how about making a pizza at home with fresh tomatoes and olives? Or putting a sliced tomato on a homemade hamburger? As a "not so keen on vegetables person" myself, I like grilled vegetables, and vegetables cooked in olive oil in a frying pan. I also like raw vegetables with humus. The humus makes the vegetables more appetizing. If your child doesn't like a particle vegetable try another. I know a boy who says he hates all vegetables but mild big red peppers. You can try slicing up a big red pepper (not the spicy pepper) and serving it with a healthy dip or ranch dressing.