Picky Eater or Not?

As a first-time mom, it can be quite a mission to establish what foods your child really likes. But how much food variety have you exposed your children to before you decide to brand them as “picky eaters”? I think we use this term loosely. A picky eater is usually challenged by eating food (more under Research fact below). There is a stupendous variety of food across cultures and countries worldwide. If Jess (random name) does not like some meals of a culture, she just might like other meals of the same culture or that of a different culture. So, until you have, at least, tried to give a wide range of food options, you cannot really label anyone as being a “picky eater”.

My Experience

My husband and I do not eat sausages but our 17-months-old and 3-year-old children do. How come? You might ask. Well, we exposed them to it just to see if they would like it (and they did). This was a deliberate move after we realised that our daughter wasn’t a fan of some foods we ate like fish or beans – neither baked nor Nigerian beans porridge. They already eat the likes of pasta/spaghetti, potatoes and others so I became keen on expanding their palate.

As a Nigerian mom in the diaspora, I choose to expose our children to various local foods from home so that they also have a sense of taste for home food. Nigeria has a ridiculous variety of foods and it won’t be fair to deprive the children from this experience. So, occasionally, I make some Nigerian dishes and indulge our children. So far, they like rice and stew; jollof rice; coconut rice; egusi soup and eba; yam; and plantain. Getting them to eat another home favourite, moi-moi which is made from bean, has been a challenge since they are not beans fans in the first place. Other food trials include different types of soup, like okro/okra and white soup. We do not force them to eat new foods. Rather, we observe their countenance when they ask for a taste of whatever we’re eating. If they like it then they’re getting a plate next time :-). If not, they keep getting tasters until whenever.

Luckily, no matter where you are outside Nigeria, there is almost always a store around the area that sells Nigerian food stuff/ingredients. I have taken advantage of this and one cooking ingredient I must always have is maggi cubes. It always bring out the local taste in my food. You too can look out for a store/vendor that sells your country’s local food stuff.

I love this Bible verse, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6). It just about sums up the trajectory I am pursuing, even with food. The assumption is that you can train your child to overcome being a picky eater by gradually exposing them to a variety of foods (possibly beyond what you eat). I recall when our daughter was just over 2-years-old, and would not eat foods that touched each other. She did not like her foods mingling. In other words, mac & cheese, which is a children’s favourite, doesn’t work for her. However, she will eat pasta and cheese strings that are independent of each other. This observation birthed the usefulness of partition plates (also available on Amazon) in our home.

Research Fact

Partition plates are useful for controlled eating and can help picky eaters. Their use allows the eater to see exactly what they are eating and to try out new foods independently. Who is a picky eater? Picky eating is also known as fussy, faddy or choosy eating. A picky eater is someone with feeding difficulties. This is characterised by an unwillingness to try new foods, as well as strong food preferences. Although picky eaters are prone to struggle with some foods from a young age, it’s not a train smash. As they grow up, if there are no underlying health conditions, start small by introducing one new food at a time to the picky eater. This new food must be accompanied by their familiar favourite foods so that they do not starve if the new food does not work out. For more researched tips on how to go about this, feel free to reach out to me.

I’m curious to know what local/new foods you tried to introduce your child/children to (or still trying). Was it a win or not (yet)?