Picky Eater!

 

Fortunately my little one is not a picky eater yet but I’m sure I will have to battle this at one point.  I have done some research on this topic and have armed myself with some helpful advice when the time comes.  If your little one is a picky eater I hope that this can offer you some help and reassurance.  And if you have any other comments or suggestions on this please let me know as I’m sure there are a lot of you out there with plenty of experience on this topic!

1. Don’t stress.  Most toddlers are picky eaters at some point in their toddler years.  Just continue to offer the good foods.

2. Your job as a parent is to offer a balanced nutritious meal.  Do not force your child to eat the food.  Instead just offer it.  There are days your child will eat more and days he/se will eat less.  So your goal should be to have your child eat the nutrients he/she needs for the week instead of for the day.

3. You’re child will eventually eat because he/she will eventually get hungry.  During these “hungry” times you’re child will usually eat more than is needed which balances out the times when he/she doesn’t eat as much.  During these “hungry” times you can try and offer more of the foods that your child seems to eat less of and motivate him/her to try it.

4. Follow Dr. Sears tips on feeding the picky eater which can be found at the following site though I have added some of my favorites below (http://www.askdrsears.com/topics/feeding-infants-toddlers/feeding-picky-eater-17-tips)

                a. Nibble trays (muffin tins, ice-cube tray) with variety of snacks filling the trays.

                b. Using dips to encourage your child to eat  and dip veggies/fruits

                c. Have your toddler participate in the spreading or the topping of food

                d. Grow the food in a garden

5. Read other parenting sites and other bloggers advice on foods they provide to their picky eaters.

                a. http://www.babble.com/best-recipes/healthy-eating/getting-kids-to-eat-picky-eaters-fussy/

                b. http://www.rookiemoms.com/what-to-feed-a-picky-toddler/

                c. http://parents.berkeley.edu/advice/eating/one-diet.html

Good Luck!

Is your toddler getting enough calcium?

If you’re like me then you may be concerned that your little one may not be getting enough calcium.  I’m concerned because I’m still weaning my son so he is not quite use to whole milk yet and I’m having to find other ways to introduce calcium to him. 
 

You little one should be getting  500mg of calcium a day (about 2 servings of calcium) if they are between 1-3 years of age and 800 mg/day if they are between 4-8 years of age. It is important to consider that too much calcium consumption can increase the risk of Iron deficiency.  This is because it can keep your toddler full which means that they are not eating enough foods to meet their daily iron needs but also calcium interferes with iron absorption. Therefore just keep calcium consumption at moderate levels.

Tips for getting calcium into your little one:

1. During breakfast I give him cereal with milk (since he will drink the milk from the bowl instead of a sippy cup).  On other days I give him full fat greek yogurt mixed with fruits.
2. For one of his snacks during the day I either give him a cheese stick, yogurt, or cottage cheese with mixed fruits or veggies.
3. I usually sprinkle cheese on foods if I feel he needs more that day such as pastas, chicken, or vegetables.
4. I add vegetables that are higher in calcium to his weekly meals such as beans, kale**, broccoli**, and spinach**. My little guy loves Spinach and Kale and I find that I can quickly sauté it on the stove with some olive oil and garlic.  This makes it really tasty and my little one always wants more.

Calcium sources:

Food	Measure	Calcium (mg)
Orange Juice (Calcium Fortified)	1/2 cup	148
2% Milk	½ cup	140
Yogurt	½ cup	140
Salmon	1.5 oz	100
Cheese	1 oz	200-300
Broccoli	½ cup	36
Spinach	½ cup	122
Cottage cheese	½ cup	24
Kale	½ cup	16
Breakfast cereals	½ cup	75-500

Food preparation tips for a busy mom

If you’re like me you’re a very busy person, full time work, full time mom and wife, and part time student.  So I am constantly trying to find quick ways to prepare food and snacks that are healthy and organic.  Most of the time I am able to cook something for my family but on those days when I am not able to prepare something I make sure to have a stock organic baby foods on hand as well as pre-made organic foods from the grocery store.  Here are some things that I do to help me quicken my meal preparation or to just provide good foods/snacks to my little guy and my family.  

1. Grocery stored whole Roasted Chicken or Roasted Turkey breast – I love these easy and delicious things!  All you have to do is back some potatoes or sweet potatoes and have a salad and wild rice and you have yourself a meal! Depending on where you shop you may be able to get them hormone free.

2. Grocery stores usually have a section of pre-made items.  I love my grocery stores section of Mediterranean food items like Organic Hummus, grape leaves, chickpea salads, Edamame, etc.  I usually keep some packages of these in my refrigerator so I can pull out a grape leave or two for a snack or some hummus on wheat crackers.  I’m sure you can find tons of options at your grocery store!

3. Frozen Organic burritos.  There is this fabulous brand called Amy’s that has a bunch of different kinds such as brown rice beans and cheese, or black beans and veggies.  They are very tasty and so quick and easy to heat up.  It’s easy to cut it up into small bite sizes pieces for my little one and he loves them.  I know they are healthy and give him the nutrients he needs.

4.  Lots and lots of Organic frozen vegetables and frozen brown rice.  I love having frozen vegetables and brown rice on hand in order to quickly (and a lot of times with one hand) prepare them.  All it takes is a microwave safe bowl and 4-5 minutes and they are steamed!

5. Lots of fresh fruit on hand such as banana or strawberries, cheese sticks, or plain cheerios that my baby can snack on while I prepare his meal.

Why Dental Health is Important for your Little One

I think it’s really important to discuss the importance of keeping a baby’s teeth healthy. After all having healthy teeth is the foundation of being able to eat and obtain the nutrients we need. 

A week ago my little guy turned 1 so he is now officially a toddler!  Now that he is 1 I felt that it was important to make his first dentist appointment to in order to introduce him to the dental checkup routine.  I have been using the advice of my pediatrician and other references in order to care for my baby’s teeth and I have summarized it below for you.

It’s important that you begin dental care early on even if teeth have not yet emerged.  You should start by wiping the baby’s gums with a wash cloth a few times a day.  Once teeth emerge you should use baby tooth brushes to being brushing the teeth.  I found that the baby tooth brush was only slightly effective and I also made sure to use a washcloth to rub it against the baby’s teeth.  There are special baby tooth pastes that you can use but be sure to avoid toothpastes with fluoride for the first 2 years as babies will swallow the toothpaste.  You’ll want to check with your pediatrician and dentist about their recommendations for fluoride for your baby but most babies do not need supplementation as most drinking water contains adequate amounts of fluoride (check your local water department for levels).  See below for daily recommendations for fluoride.  If you have a well or suspect you have low levels of fluoride you need to discuss this with your doctor.

Here are some tips to keep teeth healthy:

1. Kids should see begin seeing a dentist between 6-12 months of age

2. Do not allow your child to fall asleep with a bottle in the mouth as the liquid can pool in the mouth and promote plaque buildup

3. Avoid putting juices and sugared drinks in bottles and instead use cups

4. Being cleaning baby’s gums and teeth with washcloth and toothbrush

1. http://www.ada.org/3034.aspx

2. http://www.ada.org/3084.aspx

3. http://www.askdrsears.com/topics/feeding-infants-toddlers/fluoride-supplements

Is your 12-18 month old getting enough calories???

Recently I have noticed that my 1 year old son always seems to want to eat everything.  Whenever I go into the kitchen he follows and needs to try everything I eat too.  I was worried that I was not feeding him enough so I had to double check the appropriate portion sizes for a 12 month old which I put in a nice neat table below.  Turns out that I am most likely feeding him enough (and I’m still breast feeding 4-5 times/day).  I just think he likes food!!! I know I provided the portion sizes guide in a previous post but I used a different format.  So you can use whichever one suite your needs.  I also found that it was easier to understand how much I was giving my son based on a sample menu. 

Portion Guide:

Below is a Guide for 12-18 month olds which provides about 1000 calories/day:

The best way to break up this chart is to feed your 12-18 month old 3 meals/day and 2 snacks/day

Nutrient Type	Examples
Protein (3 oz)	Beans, Fish (wild salmon, talpia),
Calcium (500 mg)	Cheese (1 oz = 200-300mg), Milk(1/2 cup=138mg), yogurt(1/2 cup = 137),
Vegetables (3/4 cup)	Carrots, squash, broccoli, green beans
Fruit (1 cup)	Banana, prunes, apple, orange, mango
Whole Grains (1/2 cup total)	Cereal, whole wheat bread (1/4 slice=1/4 cup), 3 crackers (3 small = ¼ cup)
Healthy Fats (3 tsp)	Avocado, olives, olive oil, sunflower oil

Sample Meal:

Breakfast: 1 - 2 tbsp pureed fruit; 1/4 cup Cheerios; 1/2 cup whole milk yogurt

Snack: 1/2 ounce cheddar cheese; 4 wheat crackers (no trans fats); 1/2 cup whole milk or breast milk

Lunch: 1.5 ounce roasted chicken minced; 2 tbsp of brown rice and 3-4 tbsp of mixed vegetables and 1/2 tsp olive oil; 1/2 cup whole milk or breast milk; small jar of prunes

Snack: 1/2 slice whole wheat toast with 1 Tbl of hummus; 4 ounces of frozen mango chunks defrosted; 1/2 cup whole Keifer milk

Dinner: 1 Tbsp serving of olives; rinse well & chop; 1 1/2 ounce chicken thigh minced; 1 to 2 tbsp mashed sweet potato mixed with 1 tbsp of whole milk yogurt; 1 to 2 tbsp of chopped green beans; 1/2 cup whole milk or breast milk 

Quick Snack Options:

I like to offer my son a variety of quick and easy to make snack options every day so it doesn’t have to constantly eat the same snacks over and over again.  Some suggestions are

- Full fat greek yogurt with fruit bits or pureed fruit mixed in

- Full fat cottage cheese with fruit or veggie bits

- Cheese sticks

- Pita and hummus

- Tortilla’s and guacamole

- Greek grape leaves

- Hardboiled egg

- Organic wheat or barley teething biscuits

- Wheat crackers and almond/peanut butter