Picky
Eating: A Success Story
By: Samantha Gilbreth
“I always
thought before I had kids that when I did they would be perfect eaters because–
hello! –I was a dietitian! Then I had a child and reality hit.” – Brittany
Poulson, MDA, RDN, CD, CDE
I do not have a picky eater for a child, but I do have a
husband. Before my husband and I were married, I was aware of his lack of
exposure to many foods that I had previously considered to be extremely normal.
Growing up, his family was limited in exposure to a variety of foods from a dad
that was a “meat and potatoes” kind of man and a family history of severe food
allergies. This shaped him into someone who was a little cautious of trying new
foods. It was on our one year anniversary that I recognized the true extent of
his lack of exposure when he tried his first strawberry (and loved it). Since
then, I have heard multiple lectures on the topic of “picky eaters” and how to
lead them toward trying new foods while studying to become a Registered
Dietitian. Although these lectures were all focused on children, I have found
that some techniques can also be very effective with adults as well.
My favorite technique to put into practice is involvement in food preparation, which
encompasses everything from making the grocery list to deciding which plates to
use. When writing our grocery list, I always have categories first, such as
“fruit”, “vegetable”, “meat”, etc. Then, I ask him to list a few under each
category that he would like and ask him if I could put in a few suggestions
(since he almost never includes items like carrots or tomatoes on his list).
Then, when I am at the grocery store, I pick up what is on the approved list,
and oftentimes I also pick up a surprise ingredient that fits into our
categories to encourage variety. When it
comes to dinner time, I always give him menu options so that he feels more
invested in the meal. He usually steps in to help with cooking, but I
especially encourage it when we try new foods so that he can better understand
how it is prepared and feel further invested in the food item. I have also
found that when he is involved in preparing the food, he feels like he has more
control and can make the food more to his liking. For example, he will not eat bell
peppers unless they are cut to a certain size, so when he is in charge of
cutting up the vegetables, I can rest assured that he will be eating all of his
vegetables that day. This technique has worked wonders on widening the variety
of foods that my husband will eat, especially when it comes to vegetables.
Another technique that works well is exposing him to new
foods when he is hungry. Recently, we
were trying to wait for dinner because we had late dinner plans already
scheduled, but we could not hold off anymore. Since I was craving guacamole and
had avocados already, I decided that it was a good idea to go ahead and snack.
The only problem was that so far in his life, my husband had always been a
little wary of avocados. I mean, they are mushy and green, after all. But, what
he does like is lime, so when I
squeezed fresh lime into the soon-to-be guacamole, he decided that giving it a
try would not be the worst thing that he could do. Now, I eat avocados at least
three times a week, per his request.
When I was little, my grandmother’s favorite line to say was
“You don’t know that you don’t like it until you’ve tried it ten times.” Little
did I know that she was right. Of course, there are some foods that you know
you do not like the first time you try them. For example, I know that I do not like rutabagas and
Cool Ranch Doritos. For my husband, the most recent discoveries are related to
scallops and brussel sprouts. Over the past few years, he has tried scallops at
least four times, always asking me if he likes them before taking a bite. Well,
he finally decided one month ago, that scallops are definitely for him.
However, brussel sprouts have not been so lucky. After trying them at least
five times with different preparation methods, last week he decided that
brussel sprouts could no longer be tolerated. That was a sad day for me, especially
since I love brussel sprouts more than I sometimes care to admit.
When I told my husband that I was going to write about him,
of course he became very curious, so I let him in on the project by asking him
to list some foods that he loves now that he did not when we started dating. He
then eagerly began listing foods, making sure that I was writing them down, and
he also started talking about how his cooking skills have improved as well. On
that note, he recently decided that he needed something more challenging than
risotto to make for me, so he took on the scary but delightful task of
conquering the chocolate soufflé. And he did.
Though sometimes it feels like there is no hope when it
comes to getting people to try new, exciting, or maybe even “scary” foods, it
is important to recognize that he or she has valid opinions and preferences and
that using them as the driving force behind trying new foods will help with
your success. My husband would not be where he is today in regards to the foods
that he will and will not eat without constantly reminding myself that he is
his own person that is capable of making his own decisions. My job is simply to
help him find new opportunities.
My Husband’s “Victories”
|
|
|
·
Lentils
·
Cherries
·
Sushi
·
Whole wheat bread
·
Raisins
·
Cranberries
·
Wild rice
·
Brown rice
·
Asparagus
·
Scallops
· Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP) |
*For more information
about intervening for picky eaters, visit: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/blog/10-tips-helping-kids-try-new-foods
* “Even
Dietitians Have Trouble Feeding Their Kids”: http://jillcastle.com/childhood-nutrition/dietitians-trouble-feeding-kids/
No comments:
Post a Comment