Trying to keep my very picky eater 3yo healthy as we’re (hopefully) expanding his diet. Right now the only foods I can get him to actually eat are McDonald’s, a specific brand of yogurt, banana bread, some crackers and some bars. Refuses any beverage besides water. (He’s likely on the spectrum.)

  • FuglyDuck@lemmy.worldEnglish
    22·
    2 months ago

    Flinstone vitamins, maybe? Or any other kids gummy vitamins.

    I would highly recommend talking with a child therapist before this becomes an ingrained habit, if you haven’t already.

    • seaQueue@lemmy.world
      14·
      2 months ago

      It’s also worth getting them checked out by a gastroenterologist. Sometimes picky eating is a subconscious thing to avoid having the shits all the time.

      • Apepollo11@lemmy.world
        11·
        2 months ago

        I’m not trying to downplay the reality of serious health concerns sometimes being behind food habits, but I think I need to say…

        Picky eating is an absolutely normal part of child development. Anecdotally, both of my kids went through two distinct phases of picky eating, at around 3-5 and 8-11.

        They gradually grow out of it. All you can do is try to make sure what they are eating is nutritious enough while they are going through it.

    • krowbear@lemmy.worldOP
      6·
      2 months ago

      Yes, that may be the answer. He’s getting help through early intervention and on the waitlist to get tested for autism so see if that’s what’s causing his picky eating. Luckily his pediatrician is not urgently concerned about his diet because he’s growing well enough and seems healthy, but since I’ve stopped breastfeeding I’ve been keeping track of what foods he’s been eating and noticed how few vitamins are in all the things he’ll eat.

      • Maeve@kbin.social
        5·
        2 months ago

        Op, I agree with getting some gastric testing, if possible. I may or not be divergent, testing is cost prohibitive. But I was diagnosed as a child with IBS and still have occasional issues after food poisoning set backs a while ago. After getting that straightened out, a decent probiotic cap with fiber set me back on track until I could eat a mostly veggie diet, until the robber Barron corporate overlords started pricing decent food so crazily. You can add nutrition to crackers or bread with nut butters if your toddler will have them. If toddler requires more sweetness, try adding as little maple syrup as possible, and honey if his practitioner deems it ok.

        Have you tried home made sweet potato fries (oven baked or air fry is fine, you’d have to look up how to oven fry them), or if your child will eat baked sweet potatoe with a little real butter they are highly nutritious and gut friendly. It’s just hard to say because one of the many reasons I may be asd is it doesn’t matter how much I like the flavor of something, if I don’t like the feel or consistency of a food, I’m simply not having it.

  • Hello_there@fedia.io
    221·
    2 months ago

    I know you’ve thought of this, but encouraging you to try again. Ive found that kids will refuse something to eat and then come back to it later when they are actually hungry.
    It may take a tantrum and crazy cry session, but with love and attention they can normalize and get back towards a more normal diet.
    I get that kids have certain things they don’t like, but for anyone whose kids only eat things that are deep fry brown, I think it’s worth the short-term crisis to solve the long-term aggravation and health issues. Edit: ok yeah I missed the potential autism part of question. Encourage other parents to stay strong with eating habits if that is not the case

    • abbadon420@lemm.ee
      44·
      2 months ago

      It may be spartan, but giving them a regular plate of homecooked dinner (with vegetables of course) and nothing else until they’ve finshed it, works most of the time. If not, they go to bed hungry which doesn’t hurt them (it hurts your sleep though) if it doesn’t happen every day. Like you said, they’ll likely come around, but you have to out-patience them.

  • LanternEverywhere@kbin.social
    18·
    2 months ago

    Freeze dried fruit. It makes fruit taste and crunch more like candy. My nephew goes crazy for freeze dried fruit. Blueberries, figs, mango, there’s so many to try

    • Kit@lemmy.blahaj.zone
      2·
      2 months ago

      Yes! Also dates are great and last for a while on the shelf. They’re super sweet. Also raisins or trail mix. You can even make granola bars very easily with quick oats, peanut butter, honey or maple syrup, and trail mix. Sprinkle on a bit of salt for extra addictive.

  • surewhynotlem@lemmy.world
    11·
    2 months ago

    Dried mango was big for us. We also supplement with Flintstones. There are also vitamin drops you can sneak into their food.

    Also, eat something and casually tell him he can’t have any. My kid (AuDHD with PDA) wants anything they can’t have, especially when it’s mine.

    • intensely_human@lemm.ee
      51·
      2 months ago

      Jesus christ. My most powerful negative memories of being an autistic child were when communication between me and adults would devolve into manipulative tricks designed to help me.

      • surewhynotlem@lemmy.world
        8·
        2 months ago

        I don’t know your experience, but parents have the moral obligation to keep their kids safe and healthy. That sometimes requires that you get your kids to do things they don’t want to do. You can either do this with manipulation or with force. There’s no third option because kids don’t have the proper coping mechanisms to suppress their emotions and do what they’re required to do, even when they don’t want to.

        That isn’t to say your parents did the right thing or that they were trying to keep you safe. I don’t know you. Maybe they were abusive. My point is only that manipulation is often the better of two bad options.

  • LordOfLocksley@lemmy.worldEnglish
    136·
    2 months ago

    He’s 3 years old. He’ll eat when he gets hungry enough. He has no income, he can’t supplement his diet with McDs, just deny buying it. Sure you’ll have some tantrums, but better that now than trying to deal with it later.

    Parenting is not easy, it’s hard work, and with that comes hard decisions, including putting up with temper tantrums for the greater good.

    • surewhynotlem@lemmy.world
      21·
      2 months ago

      He’ll eat when he gets hungry

      You never were so focused on something that you forgot to eat all day?

  • Apepollo11@lemmy.world
    7·
    2 months ago

    Dry cereal always worked (still does!) as a nutritious snack. Granted, the nutrition has all been sprayed on, but it’s still there.

    A little mixed tub of Cornflakes/Branflakes/Rice Crispies/Coco Pops always goes down well.

    • krowbear@lemmy.worldOP
      3·
      2 months ago

      That’s a good idea. He’s turned down all the cereals we routinely buy, but I should experiment with more of those.

  • Em Adespoton@lemmy.ca
    6·
    2 months ago

    Applesauces with no sugar added?

    Refusing anything but water isn’t necessarily bad.

    He probably wants things with a predictable mouth feel and neutral temperature that aren’t overpowering.

    Hotdogs tend to be popular (the cheap ones).

    If you haven’t tried cheese toast, it may be an option, although you need to be careful about the type of cheese.

    Also worth trying baby carrots and seedless grapes that don’t have browned ends and are off the stem.

    Something else that may be useful is having him help make some snacks; kids will often eat things they’ve made themselves when they won’t accept the same thing from someone else.

    If you can afford it, you could also try a sampling party where you buy a small portions of 5 or so similar items at a time, and get him to taste them all and tell you which is the worst and best. Don’t bring “will you eat this” into it at all: it’s a game and he has to rank them. In order to rank them he has to taste them.

  • NoneYa@lemm.ee
    5·
    2 months ago

    How about fun shapes of healthy foods? There’s this YouTube video of someone doing some https://youtu.be/5kZwTPGhkdA?si=cDgP6DiKXdKf77ej

    How about some dried fruits or dried vegetables like you can buy in bulk bags at a store like a health food store? My mom and dad got me hooked on dried pineapple and other dried fruits as a kid.

    • krowbear@lemmy.worldOP
      61·
      2 months ago

      He’s a super picky eater. I serve him a wide variety but the only things he’ll actually eat are the more predictable, processed stuff so I’m trying to make sure he’s at least getting all the vitamins and nutrients he needs.

  • Fester@lemm.eeEnglish
    4·
    2 months ago

    Some crackers have whole grain versions that taste as good or better than their white flour versions. Goldfish and Cheez-its are the two that come to mind. This doesn’t make them “healthy”, but at least there’s some better fiber in there. Compare nutrition labels.

    Also try veggie chips/sticks. Again, they’re not “healthy”, but… there’s some better stuff in them than normal junk food. They are junk food with a small amount of bonus nutrition.

    Freeze-dried fruit is addicting, but expensive. Try it and/or dehydrated fruit. The latter is chewy while freeze-dried is crunchy and melts in your mouth.

    You can also try making your own nuggets or tenders with whole-grain panko breadcrumbs, and seasoning. The trick is to make it better than McDonald’s, which is easy for an adult, but tricky for kids. I don’t know the magic sauce though.

    One of the latest Splendid Table podcasts had a guest on to talk about cooking healthy for kids (or she just wrote a book about it, I didn’t listen yet.) It’s a great show. Check that out.