August 26, 2008
Try This Tuesday #6: Expanding Food Choices
Although my son has always had a definite dislike of certain textures and tastes, he was a fairly good eater until around his second birthday, at which point he was down to about 5 different foods.
Over the last few years, he has slowly increased the number of foods he will eat, but he is still very reluctant to try new things. I would like to see him expand his food choices, but many of the ideas I have gotten in parenting books or from other moms just haven't worked that well for us.
One behavioral strategy used by a local feeding clinic is to place a tiny amount of the new food on a plate. The child is then asked to sit at the table and told that once they eat the food, they can have their reward (go play, have a larger bite of a preferred food, etc).
They are always calm and friendly, never strict or coercive, and they have the taste sessions separate from meals. Getting a child to eat a new food is first about just tasting it, not about the nutrition. Also, when selecting new foods, they only change one thing at a time; if the child will only eat one brand of potato chips, the new food may simply be a different brand of potato chip.
Another important part of the technique is to set a timer. When the timer goes off, the session is done, even if the child hasn't eaten the food. This way, the child doesn't think they are getting out of it due to throwing a tantrum and they avoid reinforcing negative behavior.
While it may not work for every child, I am happy to enjoy mealtimes again and work on accepting new foods at other times. And we did see him eat a blueberry at the family reunion last month, so maybe there still is hope!
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Trish can be found writing here at 5MFSN every Friday in addition to hosting Try This Tuesday. You can also find Trish at her blog, Another Piece of the Puzzle.
Filed under Day In And Day Out, Food, Try This Tuesday by Trish
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12 Comments on Try This Tuesday #6: Expanding Food Choices »
#1 - Maddy @ 1:53 am
We are currently on 'food' 17. This of course is equivalent to 7and a half years 'work.' We live in hope and granola.
Cheers
#2 - Rickismom @ 1:54 am
tremendous idea, especially the timer to not encourage reward for negative behavior!
#3 - Danette @ 4:23 am
That's a great idea! We've given our boys the option to try a new food or not, they don't have to but if they at least try it they can have a treat like a little bit of ice cream or their favorite crackers or something (whatever is motivating for them at the time). Similar idea of not wanting to turn it into a battle, but I really like the timer idea. Thanks!
#4 - Julie @ A Celebration Of Our Journey @ 7:20 am
Thanks for sharing! I'm always open to new ideas about how to get Daniel to eat or try new things. Sometimes I know he'll love something if he'll just try it!!!
#5 - Amazing_Grace @ 8:04 am
I found an article concerning this and I posted it at my blog. I hope it is useful for others.
#6 - Clean Green Paint/Try This Tuesday « i think i can, i think i can…. @ 8:23 am
[...] great tips at 5 Minutes for Special Needs Stumble [...]
#7 - Maddy @ 9:19 am
We use a similar 'exposure' technique. Whatever 'it' is remains on the plate for the duration of the meal or snack = five exposures a day at the weekend.
I note you don't mention how many 'foods' he eats? Shall we compare notes? Shall I go first?
17
Cheers
#8 - Deborah @ 9:21 am
My 13 year old daughter also has food issues. She is however a proud graduate of our local Children's Hospital feeding program. The first couple of years of that program were quite unsuccessful, and I believe that was because the staff took the feeding problems as a behavioral issue. Once a therapist who understood sensory issues took over, we saw great success.
So, I would suggest that a particular feeding program or strategy be evaluated as the right choice for your child - are your child's issues behavioral in nature or sensory related? Getting the right approach could make all the difference in the world. Just ask my pizza, chicken, pork, green pea, spinach salad eating 13 year old!
#9 - Krystal @ 11:12 am
I have not been successful in the least with Princess on trying to get her to eat new foods. this has been the worst tragedy we have ever faced with her - it causes her such anxiety and she cries so hard and she just cannot!!
For Angel Eyes - it is all texture related - he cannot eat anything with more texture than a stage 3 baby food -a nd it can only be a gerber one because the beech nut has too much texture and he will literally gag and choke on it - we are working on this one too!
#10 - Jenny @ 3:36 pm
Thanks for this tip! I'll keep it in mind in case we encounter difficulties in the future.
Right now, my kids are pretty good eaters and will eat a variety of foods. Our biggest issue is that when they are finished eating, they want to throw any remaining food on the floor. The dog loves that, but Mommy does not!
#11 - Tammy and Parker @ 10:15 pm
I love coming here and reading all the great ideas everyone has to share. I learn so much. I actually take notes!
#12 - Try This Tuesday #7 @ 12:01 am
[...] I posted about feeding issues last week, many people mentioned sensory processing difficulties as a factor for their child, and I [...]