How to Feed My 4 Year Old Dessert?

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  • Kpablo
    Kpablo Posts: 355 Member
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    You should know the reasonable amount of food she should eat. I say play it by ear. If she only eats 2 bites of chicken and 2 bites of broccoli. You know that's not enough. Ask her to eat a little more, then go from there.
  • BrunetteRunner87
    BrunetteRunner87 Posts: 591 Member
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    I think the most disturbing part of this post was that your daughter considers a 'Fiber One' bar to be dessert.
  • hottamolly00
    hottamolly00 Posts: 334 Member
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    The way I see it is that she's clearly not "full" or else she would also refuse the dessert. I would offer her the dessert but not until she has enough time to get "hungry" again AKA as a "snack." If she's still hungry, she'll eat what's presented to her. If she only wants the dessert, she'll just have to go to bed hungry for one night. The end.
  • meeper123
    meeper123 Posts: 3,347 Member
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    I know my parents were like that i once tossed my green beans my step dad made me eat them out of the garbage i was tramatised for awhile. I have issue not wanting to toss food or have left overs. As for your daughter make dessert something healthier like make some pudding that has an avacado base you dont taste the avacado but its there hide the good stuff in tasty things until she is able to eat more. Kids tummys are tiny!
  • andyisandy
    andyisandy Posts: 433 Member
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    I think the most disturbing part of this post was that your daughter considers a 'Fiber One' bar to be dessert.

    ^this....and I love those things as snacks but it is still really disturbing
    me three, I mean dessert to me is cookie, pie, pudding, cake....damn now I want cake
  • meeper123
    meeper123 Posts: 3,347 Member
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    I think the most disturbing part of this post was that your daughter considers a 'Fiber One' bar to be dessert.

    Better than most desserts but still maybe not the healthiest of ideas
  • ClementineGeorg
    ClementineGeorg Posts: 505 Member
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    Don't create a habit of rewards based on eating, no mather how much different is that habit. You should understand why, for the reassons you explained.

    Dessert after a meal is not good for digestion, especially at dinner, and especially for a children who's diggestive system is still forming. Desserts should be treats or snacks. Meals should provide all the nutrients and fullness on their own.

    Try to offer your 4 year old desserts between meals, like a snack.
    Desserts should be natural for children, offering them at the right time, in the right portion.
    But if you want to motivate her with something, ask her to do small tasks around the house appropiate for her age, like gathering toys after she plays. Still a reward, but not creating food connection habbits.
  • kayaksara
    kayaksara Posts: 157 Member
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    I don't make my kids clean their plate. I try to get my kids to only take or ask for what they are hungry for. If they want more, I will make more. We don't typically have "dessert" in the sense of a sweet after a meal but if they ask for icecream or cookies in the afternoon or at night, my answer will only be yes if they ate reasonably that day. I offer other choices like a bowl of strawberries or watermelon or something they still really like but know it is more nutritious than the cookies or icecream. They are 10 and 13 year girls and are pretty receptive to this. If the "dessert" is healthy in the first place and they didn't clean their plate, I guess I wouldn't say no.
  • hottamolly00
    hottamolly00 Posts: 334 Member
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    I know my parents were like that i once tossed my green beans my step dad made me eat them out of the garbage i was tramatised for awhile. I have issue not wanting to toss food or have left overs. As for your daughter make dessert something healthier like make some pudding that has an avacado base you dont taste the avacado but its there hide the good stuff in tasty things until she is able to eat more. Kids tummys are tiny!

    I disagree with this. Tricking them into eating healthy isn't teaching them anything.
  • larsensue
    larsensue Posts: 461 Member
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    If my kids say they don't want to finish their dinner because they are full then they don't get dessert. If they don't like what they are eating I will make them eat all their veggies and then they can have dessert. I also think it depends on the age of the child. I was more lenient when they were younger, now they are old enough to understand the importance of a healthy diet they know they are going to have to eat some things they don't want to.

    ^^^^this!!
  • BeachGingerOnTheRocks
    BeachGingerOnTheRocks Posts: 3,927 Member
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    I don't let my kids have dessert if they don't eat their dinner because otherwise they would skip dinner in favor of dessert. I also don't force feed them either if there are foods they truly don't like or they are actually full (been there as a child). I do listen to them and try to serve the quantities and foods they like, and encourage them to try new things. Parenting is about balance and not going to either extreme, imo.

    Completely agree.
  • RambyPandy
    RambyPandy Posts: 118 Member
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    We don't really do desserts at my house at all. I want my son (almost age 4) to eat because a) he's hungry; b) he likes his food; and c) because it's what's being served -- with no other incentive. I don't deny him sweets entirely -- sometimes he gets juice pops, graham crackers, and when I am feeling extra indulgent a chocolate chip cookie or pudding. I like the idea of everything in moderation (for him; obviously I struggled with it which is why I am here!). He does eat a good amount of fruit throughout the day and is currently in the throes of an apple juice fancy.

    The thing is... I see how he is with sweets. He wants more and more and MORE and starts to focus on wanting sweet and sugary things all the time. I feel like the "sweets" thing can be a trap.

    And remember that if dinner has a lot of carbs, that converts to sugar too. I don't need him bouncing off the walls until 10:00 (2 hours past bedtime) because he had too much carbs, then sugar.

    Why not give her the Fiber 1 bar for breakfast, or for a mid-morning snack instead? I like how the OP thinks though -- the liberal attitude toward eating sounds positive to me.
  • TAMayorga
    TAMayorga Posts: 341 Member
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    I know my parents were like that i once tossed my green beans my step dad made me eat them out of the garbage i was tramatised for awhile.

    Wow, I can imagine!
    I have issue not wanting to toss food or have left overs. As for your daughter make dessert something healthier like make some pudding that has an avacado base you dont taste the avacado but its there hide the good stuff in tasty things until she is able to eat more. Kids tummys are tiny!

    Oh, we have NO issues with avocados at our house. She could eat one all by herself at the age of 2!
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
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    I think the most disturbing part of this post was that your daughter considers a 'Fiber One' bar to be dessert.

    ^ This. I will never understand parents who don't let their kids have real dessert. It's about portion control and moderation, not cutting out all the joy out of life. Hell, I ate a Krispy Kreme donut this morning between squat sets. That was just "energy." Dessert is later. :bigsmile:
  • ShreddedTweet
    ShreddedTweet Posts: 1,326 Member
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    I think the most disturbing part of this post was that your daughter considers a 'Fiber One' bar to be dessert.

    ^this....and I love those things as snacks but it is still really disturbing
    me three, I mean dessert to me is cookie, pie, pudding, cake....damn now I want cake

    Oh well your idea of dessert is totally corrrect and no one else's is. :huh:
    When I was young dessert would typically be things that other people don't consider proper dessert, tapioca, stewed apple, rhubarb, stuff some kids would turn their noses up at I'm sure and we didn't get it every day or even every week. Kids don't NEED dessert, why bother with it?! It's not a necessary part of dinner.
  • TAMayorga
    TAMayorga Posts: 341 Member
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    I think the most disturbing part of this post was that your daughter considers a 'Fiber One' bar to be dessert.

    :laugh:
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
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    I know my parents were like that i once tossed my green beans my step dad made me eat them out of the garbage i was tramatised for awhile. I have issue not wanting to toss food or have left overs. As for your daughter make dessert something healthier like make some pudding that has an avacado base you dont taste the avacado but its there hide the good stuff in tasty things until she is able to eat more. Kids tummys are tiny!

    I was also forced to eat out of the garbage. And to eat until I was in severe pain and threw up. I was not a dramatic kid. I was also forced to eat even when I said I was getting sick and then ended up with food poisoning. My brother was forced to eat foods that he ended up having an allergic reaction to, then threw up, then made to clean it up (he was 5). Sat in front of my food for most of the night and then served it for breakfast. It created a lot of anxiety. But, those were minor issues in comparison to the abuse I grew up with. And I can tell you this, the food stuff taught me a lot about not getting help for the abuse I was going through. It was just one more extension of being taught that adults force things on kids and kids put up with it, and don't complain (tell).
  • jennifershoo
    jennifershoo Posts: 3,198 Member
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    Fruits should be her dessert, not a processed food bar.

    If she eats her veggies, she could be allowed to get a " dessert" but you need to teach her that a dessert is NOT mandatory after a meal.
  • TAMayorga
    TAMayorga Posts: 341 Member
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    I think the most disturbing part of this post was that your daughter considers a 'Fiber One' bar to be dessert.

    ^ This. I will never understand parents who don't let their kids have real dessert. It's about portion control and moderation, not cutting out all the joy out of life. Hell, I ate a Krispy Kreme donut this morning between squat sets. That was just "energy." Dessert is later. :bigsmile:

    I understand that Fiber One bars aren't really appetizing for many people, but the chocolate ones have only 10 Calories more than one of my favorite cookies and enough fiber to help keep things, uh, moving?
  • ShreddedTweet
    ShreddedTweet Posts: 1,326 Member
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    I think the most disturbing part of this post was that your daughter considers a 'Fiber One' bar to be dessert.

    ^ This. I will never understand parents who don't let their kids have real dessert. It's about portion control and moderation, not cutting out all the joy out of life. Hell, I ate a Krispy Kreme donut this morning between squat sets. That was just "energy." Dessert is later. :bigsmile:

    I wouldn't feed a 4 year old a Krispy Kreme doughut.

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