Encouraging a reluctant eater to expand their diet to include new foods takes time, patience, and creativity. If you need new ideas for strategies to try, I have 15 strategies for you to try with your reluctant eater.
When trying these strategies, keep the mood light and fun. If these activities make your child feel pressured or your family feel stressed, then the strategy may not be the right fit. Help you and your child remain in the right frame of mind by presenting these strategies as opportunity for exploration.
If a strategy does not work, simply move to the next one until you find one that feels like a good fit for you and your child.
Please remember to check with your medical provider to rule out medical reasons for selective or reluctant eating. These strategies do not replace medical advice. Keep your child safe by first ensuring that there is not a medical reason for your child’s eating patterns.
Here is a list of 15 strategies to try with your reluctant eater! Remember to have fun and enjoy the process! These strategies provide excellent opportunity for parent and child connection. Take the time to connect and engage with your child through these activities.
15 strategies for reluctant eaters
- Present 2 preferred foods and 1 non-preferred food at each meal.
- Go on a grocery-store scavenger hunt. How many red fruits or vegetables can you find?
- Plant a garden. Watch your food grow and spark curiosity.
- Play with rolling pins, spatulas, pots, pans. Explore common kitchen utensils and tools that are age-appropriate and sage. (Please, no sharp objects, glass or anything that could be dangerous.)
- Set up a play kitchen. Spark your imagination by cooking up a new creation.
- Read books about food. Visit your library to find non-fiction and fiction books. Can you find a fiction book with a food item as the main character?
- Color pictures of food. What would happen if you color an apple purple? Invoke a sense of curiosity about food by using your imagination.
- Set up a sensory bin with beans, rice, noodles, or other food items. Talk about how the food items feel and sounds in the sensory bin.
- Play music while eating. Experiment with different sounds and rhythms.
- Visit a farmers’ market. Give your child the chance to touch, feel and see unique produce.
- Cook with your child. Make a safe, age-appropriate meal together. Give your child safe tasks like stirring or handing you ingredients.
- Talk about nutrition. Teach your child what your body needs to be healthy and grow.
- Watch a video about crops growing on a farm. Learn with your child how food makes it from the farm to our grocery stores and eventually to our table.
- Explore other cultures and traditional foods. What do people around the globe enjoy for breakfast? What about dessert?
- Choose new plates and utensils with your child. Allow your child independence and control by selecting the color, size and material of their plates and utensils.
If your child is old enough, invite them to participate in the process. Ask them questions about the experience: What did they like? What did they enjoy?
For younger or nonverbal children, closely tune into your child’s cues. What is their body language telling you? Do you see them expressing joy? Are they interested or curious?
Approaching food exploration with a spirit of curiosity will help reduce the pressure associated with expanding your child’s diet. While a healthy, varied diet is certainly the goal, reduced pressure will help you achieve the goal more smoothly.
If you would like additional ideas or support, contact Mama Hippos to learn more about our Strategies for Parents of Reluctant Eaters course or our individual coaching sessions.