Picky eaters...

Do you ever faced with problems with your kids eating habits? Not taking vege, fish etc? I have the same problem before but now thank god, my children can eat almost anything!! (halal of course). My kids used to only eat what they like..other than that, they won't even touch!!

Picky eaters are common among kids..they only eat what they like or what they used to and reluctant to try new food. That reluctance has a name - "neophobia," the fear of trying anything new and unknown, including food. Kids developed "neophobia" as their safety measures..they only consume what they know and do no want to be exposed to the risk of unknown..

Eating habits among children can be moulded by the parents (especially their mom). I still remember when I was young I did not like fish due to the fishy smells..and my mom went along with it, so I ended up not eating fish until recently. I learnt a lot on the advantages of consuming fish - low in fat, high in protein and an excellent source of omega 3 fatty acids (certain type of fish)... then I know I need to change my eating habits to influence my children..slowly, started to eat fish...(still selected fish though).

Amirul (my eldest son) for instance, only like to eat Tom Yam..so it's everyday Tom Yam (almostlah..) no tomyam tak nak makan..can u imagine, me & hubby have to eat tom yam everyday?...so I decided to ignore his Tom Yam request and instead introduce new meal to him..first few days, he mogok tak nak makan..just makan roti, biscuits and other stuff but not nasi..but one fine day I think he got sick of eating those food, he eat whatever i put on the table..no doubt he still have his favorite food but he is eating other food too..and btw now his favourite food changes from Tom Yam, to ayam masak merah, masak lemak ayam..he even eat fish now .. and ikan siakap kukus has become his favourite too. He becomes so adventurous with food that he is willing to try any food now..he can eat ulam, salad, tempoyak & even budu!!

It is very important for mothers to change the children eating habit..don't go along with what they like and dislike..I know it's sounded as though I'm using force, but it works. But not all kids are the same..Alya (my youngest) for instance, reacted differently. Force does not work on her..as she is still on her formula, so if I cooked anything she don't like, she'll resort to milk. Then I tried involving her in the food preparation..from shopping, preparing & cooking. When she is involved in preparing the food, she is more than willing to give the food a try and most of the time she ended up liking them...

I know when your children are picky eaters, it will be a battle every meal time..I felt the stress before. Now that my kids are willing to try new foods, it is making it for fun for me to try new recipe everyday. I will try to include some of the simple recipe in my next entry...