Getting My 3 Year Old to Eat Better

why stop playing to eat? seriously its hard to sit and eat sometimes haha. the first thing i do is cut out juice and sweets when my kiddos don't eat because the sugar in those items make the stomach feel full and decreases appetite. at three they like to show their control make up their minds and such. get her to participate in preparing the food like melon/grape/apple scewers, banana smily face pancakes/waffles, english muffin pizzas. small amounts of food help my kids to snack more often which is good snacking is what kids do their portion sizes are small because they are small. i worry more about WHAT they are eating not how much. you could make a list of the foods she tells you what foods she likes when you designate snack time she can pick what she wants when it is meal time have her serve herself or help pick out the side dishes ie:"kid" do you want peas or carrots with dinner? or grapes or oranges? if she only eats a bite or two well so be it.
try to space out your snacks/meals a couple hours apart. as long as she's getting some good food she'll be fine. if you make it a big deal she'll know she's frustrating you :P good luck

Make sure the snacks she has access to are healthy (fruit, veggies, whole wheat products, water not juice) and get rid of the sweets in your house. Grazing is fine as long as her choices are healthy. Unless her doc. is worried about low weight, she'll get what she needs without you needing to "trick" her into anything.

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Make sure the snacks she has access to are healthy (fruit, veggies, whole wheat products, water not juice) and get rid of the sweets in your house. Grazing is fine as long as her choices are healthy. Unless her doc. is worried about low weight, she'll get what she needs without you needing to "trick" her into anything.

Your preschooler will eat better if YOU feed her better. You're in charge. She's eating sweets all day but not too many? Which is it? Put a stop to it. Serve 3 regular meals a day. Get rid of the sweets. Make all snacks healthy snacks - yogurt, applesauce, fruits, nuts, cheese, peanut butter on crackers. She shouldn't need to be tricked. Mealtime should be mealtime, not a playtime. Serve her meals in the kitchen or dining room, where her toys are not visible. Have family meals, where you are sitting at the table together eating. I can't understand why it is so difficult to schedule 3 meals a day. It's up to you to set this routine. Give her breakfast before she can begin playing. When it's 5 minutes til lunchtime, give her that warning and when the five minutes are up, let her know that as soon as her plate is cleared, she can come back to her toys. Sit her at the table with a reasonable lunch and when she is done, she can play again. Same routine for dinner. Will she like it? Maybe not. Will she have a tantrum? Maybe so, but she should be eating 3 healthy meals a day and it's up to you to make that happen,

Snacking is fine if it's healthy snacking. Kids need to eat frequently, and in fact it seems that's a good plan for adults. Her "sweets" should be fruit, not cookies or candy. Cube up some cantaloupe or honeydew and have it ready in the fridge. You can even make it fun with fancy toothpicks if she can manage that - good for the fine motor skills too! Put out some grapes (small ones so she can chew without choking, or cut them in half, especially if she is walking around). Her snacks should be yogurt, veggie sticks dipped in hummus, a slice of apple with peanut butter on it, whole wheat crackers (like low salt Triscuits), and so on. Stuff celery with cream cheese or Laughing Cow soft cheese. Dot with raisins if you want. Make a face on a plate - a green pepper smile, carrot coin eyes, lettuce hair, a broccoli floret nose, apple slice cheeks or earrings, and so on.

She will only be able to eat what you purchase and serve, so take the snacks away - just don't have any pretzels or cookies in the house, and she won't be able to eat them at all!! If you have an assortment of things ready, she will make better choices. You might designate an area of the fridge for these things, so that when the door is opened, those great choices are right there. You could also put some things in little baggies or tupperware - healthy crackers, trail mix, raisins, etc. But don't have too many of the same thing visible on any given day. When the crackers are gone, they're gone - tell her she already ate them so she can choose something else. Make it all seem exciting - and why don't you eat the same things in front of her? It will seem more normal.

Hi S.----I think you have to keep the sweets away and only use them for treats...not rewards...there is a difference. To get her to stop playing and understand that meal time is important, engage her in meal preparation. I think it would be important to have her develop that habit now. I've read where part of the US's dietary and obesity problems are caused by eating on the run or in front of the TV, etc. We must learn to savor our food, eat slowly and let our bodies tell us when it is full. If we eat too fast, the signaling mechanisms don't have a chance to talk to us. And, sitting down for meals is a time to connect with everyone in the family. It is especially important as the kids grow up so that you avoid behavioral problems by keeping open lines of communication.

I recommend reading some of the Dr. William Sears books and/or go to his website www.askDrSears.com. I know he has a section about picky eaters. He's likely to have advice about uninterested eaters as well. I know that you can ask a ? on the website and have it answered by one of the 3 Dr. Sears. (His son, Dr. Jim, is on the ABC show The Doctors.) I have located a series of youtube videos for you to watch, if interested, by Dr. Sears. They are broken up into 9 different videos, based on the title of the DVD, 9 Simple Steps to a Healthier Family Diet. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me, it would be my honor. Here is the link to the first part, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CEVyIvulZY&feature=re....

I think the biggest thing you can do is to have her start helping, and that begins at the grocery store. Let me know if you'd like the entire 9 Steps DVD and I'd be happy to send it to you. Good luck! D.

Schedule & designate an eating area, wont be easy at first im sure. minimize the distractions

Totally normal for kids to graze all day or not really eat except for one good meal. Just offer her healthy choices and she'll be fine. Try to get her to eat 1 or 2 bites of each thing on her plate at every meal and don't let it be a battle either. It's not worth it.

You'll notice a growth spurt in her because you won't be able to keep food in front of her for a few days and then she'll stop. A child won't starve themselves either.

Good luck
S.

As a couple of the other Mama's have already told you..."grazing" is normal and really best for young children. It helps to keep their blood sugar levels at a more even level and cuts down on "meltdowns" because of sugar drops and spikes.
Offer healthy choices for her throughout the day. Make them fun..."ants on a log" ( celery stuffed with peanut butter and raisins sprinkled on as the ants)..apple slices, orange segments, hummus and baked chips to dip in it, frozen blueberries, yogurt, cheese and crackers, cubes of ham or turkey.
At dinner time, let her be involved in the preparation process so it is "her" dinner...she is not too young to help set the table, tear up the lettuce for the salad, measure things as you prepare the dinner. Make it a time that the two of you are working together and having fun.
And remember that she is still going through such growth stages...sometimes she needs a little food sometimes her body demands an endless supply...let her be your guide...just keep the choices healthy for her.