If you have a child who is a picky eater you probably have spent time worrying that their nutritional needs aren’t being met. I know I have. If you have a child who is a picky eater, you may want to try what’s called the “One- Bite Rule”. Tyler’s father has used it to try and get Tyler to try new things and low and behold, I found out this morning that it’s actually a method suggested by dieticians, nurses and pediatricians. As I was reading my morning email, the current issue of the newsletter, Family Education offered a few tips for parents who want to try to change their picky eaters eating habits.
The rule is simple— you encourage your child to try one bite of the food you are trying to introduce. It works best for toddlers and young children, but anyone (including picky adults) can also be won over. Here are a few things to keep in mine when applying the one-bite rule:
Don’t bombard your kids with tangy, spicy or mixed foods.
The dishes should be kept simple.
Introduce one food at a time.
This method works best if you try to introduce new foods when your kids are hungry.
The article also advises parents to let their kids know that it is okay not to like a particular food or dish but to also encourage our kids to try the food first before they decide they don’t like it. Many times Tyler will reject food simply because he does not like the way it looks (or smells). It’s also a good idea for everyone in the family to practice the one-bite rule. This serves as a good model for your kids to follow.
Another way to encourage your kids to try new foods is to have them pick out new food items at the store to try. We did this recently with papaya. Neither Tyler nor I liked it but at least we tried it. I find that a lot of things that I hate, he loves and things I would figure he would like, he hates! So you never know.
Finally, the article recommends that we should not be disappointed if our kids don’t like the foods we are trying to encourage them to eat. We should, however, praise them for trying and in some cases, we can try again later and have success. I tried to get Tyler to eat a crab cake a few months ago and he declined twice (on two separate occasions). Then one day he asked to try one and (surprise!) he realized that it wasn’t so bad after all. Sometimes we just have to be patient.
See also:
Sneaky Mama’s Top 9 Tips For Picky Eaters
Solve Your Child’s Eating Problems