Beyond being a "Picky" eater!

[crussell]

Hello everyone,
My son is now 5 1/2 and has a very limited diet (his choice). He is healthy but I can count on 1 hand all the foods he eats. I know that this is a sensory issue because he is particular about food appearance--if his favourite food looks just a little bit different from normal he won't eat it. I would like to try to overcome this because he can't live off of Mac & Cheese and pancakes. The Dieticians I've spoken too were anything but helpful! Does anyone have suggestions on how to work with him on this issue?
Thanks! :confused:

[NadiaRose]

My son just turned 6 and seems to have the same issues. Till he turned about 1 1/2 or 2 he used to eat a variety of foods. Now I can count on one hand what he does eat. I really don't see any sign of him changing anytime soon. One thing I do try to do is hide more nutrition in his food. I buy the Super NuThera vitamins (they are liquid) from Kirkman Labs and hide them in his orange juice at breakfast. Instead of chocolate in his milk with dinner i use the chocolate instant breakfast. For snacks I give him peanut butter and graham crackers. I just try to sneak as many things in as I can. I've been given advice to mix tofu in with his peanut butter to sneak some extra protein in. I haven't tried that yet but am still thinking about it. Sometimes he is really sensitive to when the flavor of something changes. Right now he is going through a really picky phase and won't drink the instant breakfast and when he thinks he tastes the vitamines in his oj he won't drink it. So what I did is get the calcium enriched oj and I split the dose of his vitamines between breakfast and dinner and that way he is less likely to not drink it. I know how frustrating it is to have a child that won't eat anything. I have three kids total and sometimes I just feel like a short order cook at mealtimes. LOL! I hope some of my techniques help even a little bit!

[sats12]

I hide food in bread as its the fav thing for my son and the only thing i know he def will eat with no problems or fuss. I get him eat bits throw them then eat again which is a bit odd but im getting used to it half the food goes on the floor or the table and hardly any in his mouth. I supplement though with multi vitamins as advised to when they dicovered he had ASD. Its liquid to so you can mix it in milk so he drinks it and fruit juice is wonderful if he wont eat hard fruits. I give mine apple skin off as he wont eat the skin its good for five times a day in little pieces and go towards what he supposed to have. Mix things in potato my son loves cheese and potato and i know its not good stuff cheese but it fills him up. He's just recently gone off beans which was a great thing for him to eat and sausages are another fav. Mix veggies in potato with a sauce he likes test which one s he will go for vary if u can what u give him to but if he likes the same thing three days in a row it wont hurt him. Freeze stuff to that u know he likes and give him that best way to get him to eat if he s a fushy boy like mine and notices if u change how u ve cooked it. Does your son smell food or put it to his nose to test it mine does all the time often i think he s trying to see how warm it is; Cold food he love yoghurt you can mix mushy fruit in yoghurt if he doesnt like hard stuff thats what i do. Mushy food wont hurt him and if he doesnt like the texture its a good way to make sure its eaten. Give him snacks if your worried about his lack of food not crips or stuff like that the odd bit of bread potato pasta if he ll eat it. Stick with what he likes tests the odd new thing with his fav foods he may gain more things he likes. Tuna and salmon are my sons new food which im quite chuffed about as he was def not a fish person but happily eats it when folded in bread. Mackerel is another one and brain food so they say. You can give them a good diet just not like our diet mixed up to make it just as good for them hope this helps.

[906sarah]

[QUOTE=crussell]Hello everyone,
My son is now 5 1/2 and has a very limited diet (his choice). He is healthy but I can count on 1 hand all the foods he eats. I know that this is a sensory issue because he is particular about food appearance--if his favourite food looks just a little bit different from normal he won't eat it. I would like to try to overcome this because he can't live off of Mac & Cheese and pancakes. The Dieticians I've spoken too were anything but helpful! Does anyone have suggestions on how to work with him on this issue?
Thanks! :confused:[/QUOTE]
I know how you feel. I am still dealing with this. My 5 year old is improving slowly. My 8 year old who is non verbal and severely impaired is doing excellent now. You have to be persistant and just keep exposing him to new foods. I always offer whatever we eat for meals first then if that doesn't work I give them their preferred meal. letting him initially tolerate the food in front of him then letting him play with it smell it so he can feel the texture and get use to it. Even encouraging him to just stick on the tip of his tongue. The food therapy speaker I listened to said playing games with food is good. Also getting foods that are the same color and shape as their preferred food.
With constant exposure and encouragment my children have had huge gains in this area. Don't give up because these kids would love to never change anything as you well know i'm sure. I hope I helped. :)

[jen]

We have problems with our 4 year old as well. Would live off instant noodles given the chance!!
It's not that he doesn't like the food, more he can't be bothered with it. We still have to feed him most of the time. He loves fruit and I try to give him as much as I can, but often an apple will last most of the day. He will start eating it then put it down and forget about it, then will find it later in the day and start eating it again. They will sometimes look a bit worse for wear, but he seems to enjoy them.
He seems to survive on a diet of noodles, sausages, chicken nuggets, fish fingers, chips, mashed potato (with whatever we can hide in that!),cheese, peas, yoghurt, jelly and fruit.
If he has access to sweets or crisps he will eat untill they are all gone, so when we have them in the house we have to hide them!

[lucysmom]

[QUOTE=crussell]Hello everyone,
My son is now 5 1/2 and has a very limited diet (his choice). He is healthy but I can count on 1 hand all the foods he eats. I know that this is a sensory issue because he is particular about food appearance--if his favourite food looks just a little bit different from normal he won't eat it. I would like to try to overcome this because he can't live off of Mac & Cheese and pancakes. The Dieticians I've spoken too were anything but helpful! Does anyone have suggestions on how to work with him on this issue?
Thanks! :confused:[/QUOTE]


Hi There,

I have worked with children and adults with Autism for many years. I have seen many children who have been able to eat new foods but as you know, slow and steady wins the race. The way in which the foods are introduced and accepted are as varied as the sensibilities of the children presented with them.

If your little guy is verbal and you can make a plan together, it would be ideal.

I'm sure you have tried tempting him with flavors and textures he does like. Can you expand on that? One parent I know played a game where she "tasted" a new food - she showed exagerated pleasure or distaste as she did it, then invited him to join her. (It was a game seperate from meal/snack time). He actually requested a new item soon after. In your case, if he liked the game -even if he just likes watching you - you might add "close your eyes."

Does your little guy have siblings or another child that he is particularly interested in? Kids often do it better than we do.

This is probably no help at all but I did want to respond in some way. If you to brainstorm some ideas, I'd be happy to do so.

Best of Luck to you and your little Picky Eater! S

[melsmommy]

[QUOTE=crussell]Hello everyone,
My son is now 5 1/2 and has a very limited diet (his choice). He is healthy but I can count on 1 hand all the foods he eats. I know that this is a sensory issue because he is particular about food appearance--if his favourite food looks just a little bit different from normal he won't eat it. I would like to try to overcome this because he can't live off of Mac & Cheese and pancakes. The Dieticians I've spoken too were anything but helpful! Does anyone have suggestions on how to work with him on this issue?
Thanks! :confused:[/QUOTE]


Until age 2 1/2, my child ate just about everything (except corn, which she never did like!). Then, her diet choices dwindled to just white bread with ketchup, cheese (she would eat tons of cheese), french fries, chicken nuggets, and canned ravioli with all of the sauce washed off. An alternative medicine physician finally convinced me to try the gluten-free, casein-free diet - he said to give it a six month trial, at least. We did that diet for three years, then gradually weaned her back to "regular" foods. Prior to the diet, she had a real issue with food textures - wouldn't eat grits, mashed potatoes, or anything "grainy." After the diet, she will now regularly try new foods (she may not like them, but she will at least try them) and has added several new foods to her diet, although vegetables are still a problem (tomatoes are pretty much it - no green beans, peas, carrots - but she will occasionally eat salad). We also supplement with vitamins, calcium, buffered vitamin C (she doesn't like citrus fruits), and essential fatty acids. The appearance issue is a tough one, so try to find substitutes that look as much like the preferred item as possible.