Top food "mistakes" parents make

by Jennifer Jordan (Subscribe to Jennifer Jordan's posts) Sep 15th 2008 8:01AM

Categories: Toddlers, Preschoolers, Kids 5-7, Kids 8-11, Eating & Nutrition, Mealtime

Getting your child to eat healthfully can be harder than a 48-hour labor. Much of the time, where picky eaters come from is unknown, although it seems able to start at an early age and set in for the duration of childhood if we're not careful. For most parents, we're terrified of the growing obesity epidemic and our children possibly becoming a part of it and we're equally concerned about our children getting proper nutrition.

5 Must-Know Kids Health Facts(click thumbnails to view gallery)

So, what to do? Well, a new section of the New York Times, dedicated to health issues, has a few suggestions. The first is to keep kids in the kitchen and get them involved in food preparation. Making kids aware of all the different kinds of food out there, moreso than just getting them to eat SOMETHING, is key, and being in the kitchen gives them, at least in part, that awareness. Another suggestion is to encourage children to try a bite of everything that's served. It was noted that coercing them into eating foods or bribing them into doing it doesn't really work. Many of you have noted that as well. And hiding or restricting the goodies? Well, that just makes kids want them more. We all know how that feels--adults who deprive themselves of the things they enjoy while dieting usually end up sneaking the foods or possibly overdosing on them.

Depending on the age of your child, some of these techniques may or may not work. I can agree with offering the variety approach though, regardless of your child's age. That seems to be the kindest, smartest way to get a kid to at least try something. I also eat whatever it is I serve my child, and make a big deal out of how yummy it is. Then, he inevitably at least wants to try what I have. He may not like it, but at least he sampled--and that's better than the period during which he attempted to sustain himself entirely on Cheerios.

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Comments (31)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

Baron 9-15-2008 @ 10:48AM

Ah, right, I remember those days of being a child and my parents trying to get me to eat better. Tasting or eating whatever was given to me (which I hated) promptly stopped when some fish I ordered, but didn't want to eat after it arrived because I really didn't want it in the first place, caused me (I'm sure it wasn't gross or bad to most people, but I was so picky in the taste and texture department, I couldn't stand to look at it, much less put it in my mouth) to throw-up all over the table at the restaurant.

I agree that there is a world of tastes and foods out there for kids to try, but I think that parents (me being a new one so I hope to stick to it as well, not to mention I have my own picky tastes in the back of my head) should be more concerned with portion control and making sure their kids get plenty of physical activity. I know that I went through a period of only eating french fries, potato chips, and beef jerky for a while, moved onto candy, etc. I might eat a piece of fruit or vegetable once a year for about the first 15 or 16 years that I can remember, but I was in great shape b/c 1) I didn't over eat and 2) I was always doing something outside or playing sports or working out, etc.

rebecca Biernesser 9-15-2008 @ 2:26PM

I have my oldest, who is the picker eater try at least a small bite of everything, regradless if he hates it or not. There are some foods that i know he will most likely never like, such as mashed potatoes (wierd huh) but he has never liked them but he has to eat a small bite. He had learned over the years that there are some foods that he hated and now he likes. Taste buds change over the years....

I also limit sweets. We don't hide them and I do buy or make them, but we say things like if you have this, then you can't have that or how big a piece you get depends on how much you eat at supper and how long it takes you. My kids also are very active, so they run off a great deal of things...

Brandy 9-16-2008 @ 3:36PM

Kids noways are always in the house sitting in front of a tv or computer.Im 33 back when i was young kid we was always outside riding bikes running around doing something.We used to get bunch neigbor kids together and play baseball.Take a look around you hardly ever see kids outside anymore.As far as i know the long street i live on their are no kids! Tell me how is that possible?

JO 9-16-2008 @ 3:53PM

I had a problem with my oldest eating her vegetables. One day when she was 4 we were sitting at the table and she did not want to eat her green beans. She looked up at my and said "mommy, you have big boobies" instead of laughing, i told her it was because i ate my green beans...from that day on she ate every bite of the green beans..lol
I also would tell her that Carrots made her eyes pretty and cheese made her strong.
Im all about "fibbing" to my children if it means they will eat something healthy. I don't force foods on them but I do expect them to at least try new things and take at least one bite of the new food items.

Debbie 9-16-2008 @ 5:52PM

I tried that trick too and it backfired. My youngest, who is 21 now, tells me she got made fun of at daycare for believing green beans made her hair shiny and pretty and carrots made her eye sparkle. She still won't eat carrots.

heatherenee1214 9-16-2008 @ 4:01PM

When we were young, my little brother had a friend that was the pickiest eater I have ever seen..... he puts all others to shame!!! This boy would only eat CoCo Wheats, and nothing else. And I literally mean NOTHING! His mother would fix them for breakfast and then make them and take them to school for his lunch (even in a thermos, I am sure they would have been gross by lunch time) and then again for dinner. Every day. I think that this went on til he was maybe 10 or so.... Can you imagine eating the same thing every meal, every day for years?!?

Sam 9-16-2008 @ 4:19PM

In the article it said how most parents are terrified about the growing obesity epidemic. I am sorry but where I am from this is not the case. I work at Taco Bell and I see the same parents with their children at least 5-6 times a week. It is not just a couple of families that do this, it is alot of families. I am seriously not exagerating either. It grosses me out and I feel so bad for these children. It is getting to the point where instead of saying Thank You after I give the customer their order, I feel I should say See You Tomorrow. It is not teaching these children how to eat healthy. I dont think people are aware of the intake on fast food. It is outrageous and downright disgusting. This is part of the child obsetity epidemic and people need to realize this. Nowadays a family dinner consists of McDonald's and Taco Bell. Disturbing, very disturbing.

otrpu 9-16-2008 @ 4:19PM

Ya can't say one thing and do another people, and that's usually the case

rebecca Biernesser 9-16-2008 @ 4:30PM

i posted in another thread the other day after I posted in this one, so i'm going to say it here....

There is nothing wrong with fast food, sweets, home cooked meals, meals made with grease or butter, or any other type of food.

It's all in how you eat it, when you eat it, how much you eat it. And exercising and staying fit.

Lynnette 9-16-2008 @ 4:32PM

most "experts" in the field of child care, health & human services, child nutrition, etc recommend and the CA Adult Child Feeding Program (think school lunches) requires participating programs to follow this rule: The adult decides what is served and at what time it is served, and the child decides how much to eat, even if the amount is nothing. Most children will eventually taste something if it is served repeatedly and without a fuss over tasting/eating everything.

Christi 9-17-2008 @ 12:05AM

My kids eat what we put in front of them. If they want seconds they have to eat everything, even what they don't like. Because we have done this our kids eat almost anything. No special orders, you eat what I fix or you don't eat. The easiest way to teach your kids to eat healthy is to start when they are babies. If they are raised that way they don't know any different.

Lynne 9-16-2008 @ 5:24PM

To the person that commented on not seeing children playing outside anymore... I'm a single 32 year old mother with 1 child. It terrifies me more to have my child stolen from my front yard way more than my child being obese. No child is safe and I cannot in good conscience let my child outside to play without me watching every moment. If I'm outside watching who is cooking the good healthy dinner? Who is cleaning the house and doing laundry? Something has to give and most days it ends up being play time outside.
Thank you for the good ideas on how to get a picky child to eat something other than chicken nuggets and chocolate milk!

jhb 9-16-2008 @ 5:39PM

you have got to be kidding me? kids can't dictate what they eat. you're the parent, make them clean their plate like my parents did when i was a kid. first get them to understand that food isn't cheap and it can't be wasted. this isn't something to be negotiating with a 5 year old over. geez. it's your house, you make the rules not the kid. then make whatever you want. then serve them a portion controlled size that fits their needs. whether they like it or not, doesn't matter. they either eat it or go hungry and eat it later when they realize that is all they are going to get. stop making kids wimpy, picky, whiny, brats by catering to their every want. geez and people wonder why kids are such brats nowadays. when they turn 18 and leave they can eat whatever they want. until then..they eat what you serve them like it or not. only in america....the rest of the world is starving and would kill for what your kid won't eat. we raise brats to be so wasteful and picky about food, that they write these articles to help you. go figure....

Naveybrat 9-16-2008 @ 8:37PM

I can't believe you think you can make a child eat something they don't like. My mom tried it with me and it didn't work then either. I am now taking care of my year old great granddaughter. I am in charge of feeding her 3 times a day. I can tell you right now there are things she will not eat no matter what you do. She will eat most things but if you don't want it spit out or thrown up once she won't eat it don't force the issue. Just try something different next time.

skarlett 9-16-2008 @ 6:39PM

Please, JHB...It's the old adage "clean your plate" that has led many a kid down the road to obesity. If the kid eats enough to be full, then is forced to wolf down the rest, it's harmful. And let me just remind you that every generation of kids is thought to be bratty or somehow worse than the one before. It's the generation gap, nothing more.

Eddie 9-17-2008 @ 8:20AM

skarlett....I was forced to eat everything that was on my plate (extra when it was something i hated) and I was skin and bones and muscles because I had to do chores like cleaning the house doing dishes yardwork etc. also no A/C which believe it or not, when the air is not controlled your body uses its fat stores to help regulate body temp...long story short the more you sweat the better for you.

the biggest issue in my mind is lack of playtime running and jumping acting like a wild kid with out being crazy or dangerous

Uly 9-16-2008 @ 10:49PM

Sure, if you want your kid to leave home at 18 and never call you again....

jhb 9-17-2008 @ 10:08AM

to all of you. sorry you are wrong. food has been treated like it's a cheap never ending commodity in this country, and it's wrong, period. i have a kid and he eats what i put on his plate. he complains like any kid does, but he knows who is in charge. i am the parent and my kid respects me. unlike some people's kids i see in public....who run the show and are rude and ignore their parents. kids need a parent not a buddy. they can make buddies at school and in the neighborhood. stop trying to be friends with your kid. if my kid leaves at 18 and never comes back...good! it means i did my job right and taught my boy how to be a man. also it's called portion control. if someone is stupid and doesn't know how much to put on a kid's plate...i have some advice. ask your peditrician, for help. also guess what we have the internet now and it's filled with info for giving proper portion control. obesity is not caused by cleaning one's plate. it's caused by the generation of spoiling and lack of parental involvement. it's not a generation gap, sorry you are wrong. kids today are being raised as brats, period. everyday is christmas for most kids today. this is not a generational thing...this is parents not being parents and rather trying to be buddies and friends with their kids and it's wrong and the kid is going to suffer. you are supposed to teach your kid how to make it on their own, not be best friends with them. well do what you want people...but be warned. spoiling a kid is setting them up for misery, disaster, and failure in life.

coderedwizard 9-16-2008 @ 6:06PM

When we were kids our mom made a plate of food, and we had to eat all of it, she knew how much we ate so the portions were right for us, and then if we wanted seconds we could have any part of the meal we wanted. We were never allowed to not eat what was served no matter what it was.

jazzyazaliah 9-16-2008 @ 6:45PM

I disagree with the "clean your plate" thing, simply because too many parents fill the plate too full to begin with. Furthermore, if you've ever worked in a restaurant of any kind, you know that the few bites of food left on your kid's plate isn't going to make a whit's bit of difference in the grand scheme of things. I'd rather my kid learn to eat judiciously than grow up believing she's a human garbage disposal whose mission is to eat everything set before her.

And as for wrapping kids up in cotton and wool and disallowing them to go out and play because someone might steal them, how bout taking some preventative measures like letting em play in the back yard rather than the front? How bout teaching them to kick, scream, and pull away from possible predators. If one lives in an area that's bad enough for someone to walk into the back yard to steal a child, get a chain lock for the garden gate. How about a dog? Not possible? How bout teaching the kid to dart into the house the minute someone approaches the gate?

Sure back yards can be boring, but they don't have to be. How bout getting a trampoline that can be seen from the window while mom or dad does the dishes? Can't afford a trampoline? What about a net and a ball for your kid, and other kids, to kick around out there where they can be seen and monitored? Better still, why not have the kid help with the dishes, so they can be done quicker? What to do with the extra time? Parents can go outside and play with their kids. Or sit on the deck/porch/ground and let their kids entertain them rather than watching TV for the rest of the night.

Justifying the exposure of a child to the common dangers of obesity, stunted intellect, and social dysfunction by siting fear of a possible, not nearly as common, danger is a cop out. If a parent tries, he or she can find ways to get his or her kids out and active, but it doesn't happen on its own; It takes effort and planning. No one's saying kids and parents must spend hours outside every day, but at least some time spent playing actively is better than none. Even fifteen to twenty minutes at the playground followed by the kid kicking the ball around the back yard with a playmate until supper is finished is better than parking him in front of the 'baby minder' (TV or PlayStation) for hours and hours on end.