Duker Wellness Program
  • CATCH CORNER (Healthy Tips)---How can I get my picky child to enjoy a wider variety of foods?  Picky eaters are going through a normal developmental stage, exerting control over their environment and expressing concern about trusting the unfamiliar.  Many picky eaters also prefer a “separate compartmented plate,” where one type of food doesn’t touch another.  Just as it takes numerous repetitions for advertising to convince an adult consumer to buy, it takes most children 8-10 presentations of a new food before they will openly accept it.  Rather than simply insist your child eat a new food, try the following:

    • Offer a new food only when your child is hungry and rested.
    • Present only one new food at a time
    • Make it fun; present the food as a game, a play-filled experience.  Cut the food into unusual shapes.
    • Serve new foods with favorite foods to increase acceptance.
    • Eat the new food yourself; children love to imitate.
    • Have your child help to prepare foods.  Often they will be more willing to try something when they helped to make it.
    • Limit beverages.  Picky eaters often fill up on liquids instead.
    • Limit snacks to two per day.

Catch Program Files