We love this recent article about picky eaters coming from the New York Times. I’m a parent of two very picky eaters – one who continues to make strides and one who is a little stuck – and everything in this article rings true to me.

Practically speaking, our pediatrician gave us the same advice that the pediatricians cited in the article do: provide diverse choices, keep trying to encourage eating different foods and do it multiple times, and understand that a hungry child will eat.

The hardest thing for a child of a picky eater is that as they move from crawling to walking, they lose weight. And as they lose weight but “picky eat” they risk being classified as “failing to thrive.” It’s a parent’s worst nightmare and one we worried about every time we went to the pediatrician.

The truth for us was this: we had to accept that in one case, our daughter was being picky because she had a very heightened sense of smell (a sensitive nose) and was also very sensitive to things being spicy. We had to find a happy medium with foods that were somewhat salty or sweet – without being unhealthy – but also a little bit bland. For my other daughter, she appears to have sensory concerns related to feeding that are more focused on texture. We are still trying to pick the lock on that little one, but introducing different textures or getting a speech language pathologist or pediatric occupational therapist involved can really help.

It’s scary to have a child who is a picky eater – who only wants salty or sweet things or won’t eat healthy things we know they should have. It does take persistence, empathy, and patience and an understanding that, in the end, a hungry child will eat and a patient parent willing to diagnose what might be happening will be successful.

We invite you to read the full article from the New York Times here.

Do you have advice for parents of picky eaters? Share your comments below.

About the Author

Bill Anderson is a father of 4 who shares his experiences about parenting and life with Guidepost Parent.

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