PARENT MAGIC #2
Conquer the Picky Eater! Graeme Langford = The Picky Eater.
By Carrie Vittitoe
M
y middle child, Graeme, is the world’s pickiest eater. I, of course, worry about whether he’s getting enough of the basic vitamins and minerals. But I also stew over whether he’s getting enough fiber, too much sugar, or if any additives and colorings have harmed his genetic code. Beyond fretting about nutrition, I worry about his weight. In an age of childhood obesity, I see Graeme go through periods of sickly skinniness, and it freaks me out. I have tried and will try anything. Some things never worked, some worked for awhile, and some have worked far longer than I ever thought possible. So what have I tried? • Chocolate Pediasure drinks. He drank about two of these then decided he didn’t like them. • Naked brand Green Machine juice. I told Graeme it’s what the Incredible Hulk drinks to turn him green in the hopes that he might drink it. He didn’t. • Sweet potato fries. He refused. • Juice Plus gummy vitamins. He would eat the fruit ones all day long if I let him, but he wouldn’t touch the veggie ones. • Spinach brownies. I put chopped spinach in boxed brownie mix and slather it with chocolate icing. He loves it, but I don’t like to do it often because I’m not sure spinach is worth a diabetic coma. • V-8 Fusion drinks. He liked them, but they
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PHOTO BY MELISSA DONALD
contain so much sugar that I began to grow uncomfortable with serving them. • Milk shakes made with frozen strawberries, plain Greek yogurt, and a little ice cream. Sometimes he says he loves these, and sometimes he won’t touch them. • English muffins or homemade whole wheat pizza dough covered in pizza snack sauce and cheese. I will do anything to get some lycopene in him. • Plain and vanilla Greek yogurt combined in equal parts with either sprinkles or tiny chocolate chips on top. He likes this. • Pumpkin or banana or sweet potato or squash muffins with whole wheat flour, wheat germ, and mini chocolate chips. When he asks what is in them I say, “love.” He likes these. • Carrot whole wheat muffins with homemade cream cheese icing on top. He likes these, too. • I persist. I ask him if he wants to try a bean or a piece of corn. He always declines. Always. At the peak of my worry over Graeme’s nutritional health, it occurred to me that before the modern era, children did not have a wide variety of foods to eat. They ate what was available. The point of eating for them was not to be “optimal;” it was to survive. Since then, I have tried to accept that Graeme will eat what he likes, and I focus on getting him to survive rather than making him the best, most nutritionally fit Graeme he can be. Carrie Vittitoe pursues her nutritional quest in Louisville with her husband Dean Langford and their kids Norah (9), Graeme (5), and Miles (3). She is a regular contributor to Today’s Family magazine.
“Love” Muffin Recipe 1 egg 4 oz natural applesauce 1 tbsp olive oil 1 /2 cup sugar 1 and 1/2 tsp vanilla 11/2 cups whole wheat flour 1 to 2 tbsp wheat germ 1 /2 tsp salt 11/2 tsp cinnamon 1 /2 tsp soda 1 /8 tsp baking powder 1 /2 cup to 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips 1 to 11/2 cups veggie/ fruit of choice such as grated zucchini, grated carrot, cooked/ pureed sweet potato or squash, smushed banana. Throw it all in a bowl and mix. Pour into wellgreased mini-muffin pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.
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