My 3 year old barely eats meat, I always offer her meat but she rarely eats it? What should I do?

Question

I have a 4 year old and a 5 1/2 year old who eat all their meat that's offered to them. I don't know why she doesn't eat it. What else can I give her? She seems to be heading down the road of being a vegetarian. She loves salads, noodles, rice, etc. I need some advice.

She's not a picky eater, I just want to make sure she gets enough protein in her diet. She was a premie, but is not underweight.

Answer 1

I think it's pretty normal for a little girl to go through that phase. Yes, I did say it is just a phase. I take care of my friend's two children, the boy is 1.5 yrs younger than the girl. Around the age of 4 she said she didn't want to eat any meat- not even a McDonald's hamburger. The boy on the other hand would eat his meat and then the meat off her plate for her. All she wanted was grilled cheese, peanut butter and jelly, and macaroni & cheese. Despite this, I would still give her meat and not allow anyone to leave the table until she finished. She would fuss and complain because I would give her more meat than I expected her to finish, so when I would graciously tell her she didn't have to eat all of it, she would end up eating the amount I intended for her to eat. She was so reluctant, one time we all sat for 2 hours until she finished it. Sometimes I would dice the meat and mix it well with the food. That was successful because she was unable to pick out the tiny pieces of chicken or tuna combined with the noodles or rice. She is 6.5 now and she still doesn't prefer it, but she does eat meat now pretty regularly and without any fuss. Just give your daughter time, but don't give up on giving her meat for dinner at least 3 times a week.

Answer 2

My son is the very same way. He will eat meat occassionally, but prefers the vegetables, noodles, and fruits. DO NOT DISPAIR. Children's eat habits change as they grow and explore new foods. I wouldn't worry unless your 3 year old's pediatrician expresses concern.

If your child is not allergic to nuts, they are a good alternate source of protein. Try soy chips. I think they leave an unpalatable after-taste; however, my son loves them. Cheese, yogurt, and milk are also reputable sources of protein. If you are concerned about pesticides, Yo Baby makes an Organic yogurt for kids that comes in a variety of flavors. Bite-sized meatballs are a big hit with my little one. I make them with ground turkey and herbs for flavor. (But any ground meat will do.) After assembly, I bake them in the oven until done at 400F.

Answer 3

i hope that this will help you....


read on....

it isn't really necessary that they eat meat as long as they get their protein. There are other sources of protein that may work better with children at fussy stages. When I couldn't get my son to eat meat, I tried to sneak in the protein whenever I could. Here are a few examples:
Yogurt - he's crazy about it. He thinks it's just fun, but I know there is protein and calcium in there for him. There are many varieties now too - cups, smoothies, parfaits, tubes and more.
Cheese - we just LOVE string cheese. Its handy, travels well and has lots of protein.
Ravioli - I buy plain, frozen meat filled ravioli in a large bag, cook it all up and then keep it in small containers. I freeze most of them and keep one container in the refrigerator, ready to go. My son loves eating them plain and there is very little mess at all.
Protein powder - I'm watching my weight and always have sugar free vanilla and chocolate whey protein powder handy. One day I slipped a scoop into my son's milk and VOILA! he thought he had chocolate milk, but I knew he was getting a good serving of fat free/sugar free protein.
Eggs - If your child isn't allergic to eggs, they are also a great source of protein. My son loves hard boiled egg whites.
I hope this helps.

Answer 4

Other foods like eggs and peanut butter have protein like meat does. Just make sure she eats some of those, and keep offering meat once in a while like you have been. As long as the rest of her diet is healthy, I wouldn't worry too much about it.

Answer 5

My son just turned 4 and is a picky eater, he only eats meats that he likes, but prefers the veggies over the meats, he also like fish sticks, does she like that, I just try to bulk him up on the veggies and greens to give him the vitamins and nutrients

Answer 6

Let it be and thank GOD your baby is blessed enough to know what is good for her. If you are worried about the whole "lack of protein" thing I suggest you begin to read about what other foods contain enough protein. For example, soybeans contain more protein by the ounce than red meat! Fantastic isn't it? Your daughter is a wise soul.

Answer 7

its ok for her to be vegetarian. most vegetarians are calmer because meat can make you more tense and just happen to be mean and bad.take animals, for example. Do you see a giraffe(vegetarian) pacing back and forth like a lion?? the giraffe must be so calm that it doesn't make any noises at all. Then a lion... you know.. maybe if giraffees were fed meat, they would let out another side of themselves.

Answer 8

Make sure she is eating other proteins like eggs, what about meatballs with spaghetti, does she like that? Beef has a lot of B vitamins and she needs those. Ask her Dr. if supplements would be a good idea.

Answer 9

My youngest sister was this way, my mother talked to a friend of hers who was a nurse. The nurse said that when she was hungry, my sister would eat and when she did, make sure she ate things with extra vitamins, etc. If you take her to the doctor and she is underweight, then I would worry. However as long as she is okay and is getting all the vitamins and nutrients that she needs, she will be okay.

Answer 10

As long as she is eating that's all that matter. Try vitamins to give her the extra protein she needs. Vegetarian is not a bad thing.