What to do with a picky eating nigh on 6 yr old? Or not to worry?

[IhearyouClemFandango]

As a toddler/baby DS (3rd child) ate pretty much anything given to him, but he is now really quite rigid.

He will eat:

• cheese omelettes
• ham sandwiches/baguettes
• cheese and ham toasties/toasted wraps
• burgers
• chicken nuggets
• sausages
• scampi/fishfingers
• peas
• sweetcorn
• cucumber
• raw carrot
• Apples
• grapes
• strawberries
• raspberries
• pineapple
• water melon
• pizza
• chips
• rice
• chilli (as long as no visible bits of veg)
• plain filled pasta
• little chicken satays and scotch eggs
• green beans (raw from the garden)
• Anything sweet, ice cream, biscuits etc
• Yogurt (he has it plain with fruit for breakfast)
• Baked beans
• Mussels in garlic butter (sometimes!)

I make as much as possible of all this, for example the nuggets, burgers, bread, wraps, ice cream, biscuits, pizza etc. He eats a shedload of fruit most days.

Typing it out it doesn’t seem too bad, but in terms of actual meals it feels restrictive. He won’t eat meat per se, steak or roasts or whatever.

How do you encourage picky eaters to eat more? I have tried dishing him up some of whatever we have and trying to get him to try some, or doing him a version of ours but how I think he may like it (pasta without the sauce with raw veg or whatever). Or I’ve sometimes tried not bothering and just doing him one of his standard meals (we have chickens so always have rest eggs for an omelette etc).

Do they tend to grow out of this sort of thing or should we be trying anything in particular? He is our third and the first one to have any issues in this regard, the other two have their moments of deciding they don’t like something they have previously eaten lots of, but on the whole they are adventurous eaters.

This is not helpful at all, but I so wish my child would eat that range of food! He's potentially ND though. I would say you have all of the food groups in there so not to worry.

That's pretty normal for a 6 year old. It's a good range of stuff really. Will he eat Bolognese as it's very similar looking to chilli?

I would just serve up whatever the family is having and he can eat it or not, no stress/bribes/rewards/punishments/comment.

Balance meals so that there is something he will eat at every meal.

I say just wait. Our elder DC now 10 has eaten similarly. A list of about 30 foods she wouldn’t go past. Different list (doesn’t do eggs, will do meat if simply cooked no sauces)

in the last year she’s spontaneously tried a lot more things. Often doesn’t take to them but being willing sometimes even asking to try is a big wow in our world.

and she’s started liking things she refused before (recent gains cherry tomatoes and peaches and nectarines this summer).

ive kept it no pressure, seeking to plan ahead and make sure things she’s comfortable with are available when we eat out or go visiting friends or relatives.

seems like she’s gradually expanding what she’ll try under her own steam.

I was literally going to say the same thing as @everybodytidy

If it helps my DC has to see a dietician and they are happy if the child is getting all the food groups - even if it's the same food over and over.

They also told me no bribes, withholding deserts etc. If you want to introduce new foods then do it alongside 'safe' foods and if they just lick it that's fine.

Thank you all for your input, I appreciate it. I'm conscious of not wanting to make a big deal out of it. Equally I think his selectiveness is more apparent because he is nearly 6 yrs younger than his nearest sibling, so the contrast between him and their very grown up eating habits seems highlighted!

That’s similar to my 9yo dd except she eats less veg!

I don’t think it’s bad at all for 6! I’d just keep offering what you’re eating. We try not to make a big deal of it when she’s eating different food to the rest of us. At one point she said she wanted to eat alone as she doesn’t like eating with others, which I was worried about, but we’ve managed to keep up eating together.

11yo had v restrictive eating - she has asd - and improved massively around age 10 so I feel hopeful.

I'd be delighted if mine ate that! Not helpful I know but I don't think that's a bad list

DD has ASD so this may not be relevant she isn't a massively fussy eater in terms of range of food but she can be particular about textures much more than taste. Loves to eat a whole cucumber, but sliced cucumber is slimy so won't eat it, same with bananas or mango. Doesn't like 'bits' so it's smooth juice, peanut butter, seedless jam. Likes 'dry' things so couscous and quinoa are a hit pasta less so.

If you can find a pattern to the quirkiness then you might have great success getting him to eat more foods.

@Xmasbaby11 DD with ASD also doesn't like eating with others, she says watching people eat makes her gag as it looks unnatural. So meals at home tend to be eaten in front of the TV to reduce the pressure and if we eat at a restaurant I try to sit DD facing a wall or window instead of another diner.