Tips for Picky Eaters on Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving often brings to mind gratitude, family, delicious food, and maybe even a little football. But for some, it’s also a recipe for stress, conflict, and negotiating with picky eaters. If your holiday table comes with a side of mealtime struggles, don’t worry – you’re not alone! Here are some tips to help you navigate Thanksgiving with a picky eater and keep the holiday joyful.
Try These
Plan ahead. If your child has a history of picky eating, talk about expectations and what they might experience ahead of time. Discuss using multiple senses! Talk about what the food might look like, taste like, smell like and feel like! Giving them as many details as you can about what they might encounter may help them tolerate new or unfamiliar foods better.
Give your child a sense of control. Meal time can be an epic power struggle for some families. Let your child feel in control by giving them options. Maybe print out a list of all the foods that will be offered during your holiday meal and let them circle 3 foods they want to try. Check out our “Build Your Own Thanksgiving Plate” craft for some hands-on practice!
If you are worried about offending your host or others who have contributed to the special meal, teach your kids polite and socially acceptable ways to turn down foods they have an aversion to.
“No, Thank you, but it looks great!”
“I think I’ll skip this one , but thank you for offering.”
“I’m saving room for my favorites, but thank you!”
“I’m not hungry for that right now, but maybe later”
“It smells good, but I’ll pass this time.”
“Thank you, but I’m okay without it.”
“I’m just going to stick to what’s on my plate for now”
Teaching them to pair their words with a smile or kind tone can make their response even more gracious!
Set yourself up for success. If you know this meal will be a struggle for your kid, go ahead and give them a preferred meal ahead of time. Having a full belly may help your child tolerate new experiences better. Give them the option to pick 1-2 preferred items offered during the holiday meal to have while everyone else is eating so they are still a part of the special gathering.
Use visuals to help. Having a sectioned plate with the larger sections filled with preferred foods and the smaller sections filled with new or non-preferred foods may help the meal go more smoothly. We love the dinner winner plate when encouraging kids to try new foods!
Involve them in meal prep. Let them help you prepare a dish or choose an ingredient. They may be more willing to try something if they helped make it!
Deconstruct dishes. Sometimes mixed textures and flavors can be overwhelming for kids (and adults!). Serve the different components of common dishes separately to give them more control and freedom to eat the parts that they like (Think mashed potatoes without the gravy or veggies without the seasoning).
Keep it light! Try to encourage your child to eat but don’t force them to try new foods. Avoid turning this special time into a battle. Thanksgiving is about connection and celebration!
