66. The TOP 5 Mistakes You're Making When Introducing New Foods to Your Child
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In this episode of the Nourishing Autism Podcast, Brittyn spills her secrets about the common mistakes she sees parents make when introducing new foods to their children. Listen in to learn about the importance of considering a child's sensory needs when picking a new food, practical tips to setting your child up for success, making sure your mealtime environment is calm to avoid overstimulation, and more!
Download one of Brittyn's favorite resources, her FREE Food Sensory Profile Workbook to start implementing these strategies today: https://autismdietitian.ck.page/foodsensoryprofile
It's almost time for enrollment to open for Brittyn's online membership, The Nourishing Autism Collective! Enrollment will be open to those on the wait list for a limited time from July 30th-31st 2024! If you would like more individualized support from Brittyn, make sure to add your name to the waitlist here: https://www.nourishingautism.co/
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TRANSCRIPT
Hi, I'm Brittyn, a Registered Dietitian and autism sibling. I have a passion for helping parents of neurodivergent kids navigate nutrition and wellness for their child, one small step at a time. Here we'll explore practical nutrition tips, learn from top autism experts, break down the newest research, and share inspirational stories that will empower you to utilize nutrition to help your child feel their best and thrive.
Listen in while picking kids up from school, sitting in a therapy waiting room, taking a quick walk or wherever you find yourself, looking for some inspiration and a friend to guide you along this journey. This is Nourishing Autism.
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Hey everyone, welcome back to the Nourishing Autism Podcast. I'm Brittyn, I hope you've been having a good summer so far. It has been hot, hot, hot here in Boulder, Colorado. I think it's especially hot because I am about to enter my third trimester, and boy, do I get overheated. I don't know if anyone else experiences this, but my heart rate is so sensitive in the heat, and this happened with my son as well.
But I would walk outside, and it would be hot, and my heart rate would immediately go up to like 110, 120. And my Apple Watch would always come up and say, high heart rate detected, high heart rate. Well now I utilize the Oura Ring, and I really love it, because I'm not so focused on the numbers like I was with the Apple Watch.
You can go into the app and check out what [00:03:00] your heart rate is. So sometimes when I really feel like my heart rate is raising, I can kind of sit down, take a
breather, cool down a little bit, but my goodness, I had forgotten how quickly my heart rate can escalate right now.
If this is your first episode, I'm so glad you're here. Today we're going to be talking about the top five mistakes that most parents are making when introducing new foods to their kiddo and i'm really excited
to talk about these because they're so so common and I see this all the time.
What I would love to do is save you the time and effort because we all know that feeding a child, especially a child
with a limited number of safe foods, takes a lot of energy. And so I want to be able to make sure that we're putting all the energy that we do have into utilizing the approaches that are going to be successful.
Okay. So number one, is serving your child too large of a portion. I see this all the time. We [00:04:00] see a new food and we give them an adult sized portion or even a kid sized portion that we expect them to eat and that alone can
actually cause your child to not even consider trying the food. We have to actually start from a place where we are starting so, so small, even like pinky fingernail sized.
I say this all the time. The reason why is because when we start really small, not only does it reduce pressure and tell the child, I'm not expecting you to eat this
large portion, we're starting super small, it reduces overwhelm and overstimulation, especially for a child who's already prone to overstimulation,
starting that small is going to be less likely to overwhelm them than starting with a larger portion. I know some people will just start with one little piece of broccoli or, you know, one carrot or whatever it might be, but even then, that still could be too much, so you [00:05:00] have to start really, really small and work your way up from there based on your child's comfort.
Now, some kids aren't going to even want that amount on their plate. Sometimes we have to start with what I like to call a learning plate, which is a little plate or a bowl that is off to the side of their bowl or plate that they are eating off of. And when we do this, it helps bring a little distance in between their plate of their safe foods and this completely new food.
Again, reducing that pressure. We don't expect them to eat it, but we are giving them the opportunity to learn about this new food. They don't have to try it. They don't have to touch it. They don't have to do anything about it. But we can see it on this plate and we can start to get used to it. We can talk about it.
We can talk about the shape and the color. And this is also beneficial for kids who are not speaking. We still want to be talking to them about these foods, teaching them, and giving them the opportunity to learn these new foods as well. Because you can [00:06:00] also learn by seeing a new food and feeling more comfortable around it, the more times that you're exposed to it.
Now, we have to remember that just times exposed, where they can see it, doesn't mean that they're going to just magically eat it all of a sudden. We talk about exposure all the time, but there are a lot of steps that happen as you get
closer and closer to eating it, so I want to make sure that we don't forget those steps, too.
Which also leads me to mistake number two, and that is expecting that your child is going to eat the food just right off the bat. Now, I have a lot of people who say, you know, I gave them some broccoli, I gave them this, and they didn't like it or they wouldn't eat it, and they said no. And I know it's so hard to hear no or kind of get that rejection or just not have success, but we have to remember we can't treat eating as the only win.
We have to remember that there are [00:07:00] so many wins that happen along the way, from seeing the food for the first time
all the way up to eating it, smelling it, touching it, tasting it. These are all small little steps. There's actually 30 steps that I teach the members inside of my membership on how to expand their child's diet from first sight to actually eating it.
So we have to make sure that we don't lose track of all those little wins because they help build us all the way up to actually eating the food. If we skip those steps and we are only looking at eating as the success, your child isn't going to have success 'cause that's too big of a jump and you're not going to have success because you are viewing eating as the only win, and it's really hard to stick to something and keep going when we have these really, really lofty goals that
it would be like me wanting to lose 20 pounds and being upset [00:08:00] that that didn't happen in a week. We have to understand that progress happens really, really slowly and that it's not just going to happen overnight. So I want you to switch your mindset and remembering that there are so many little sensory steps that happen along the way
that we have to hit before we get to eating.
The next mistake I have is working on more than one food at a time. Now we talked about in mistake one, that your child can actually get pretty overwhelmed with just the amount of food that you're putting on their plate. But this can also be the different types of foods that you're putting on their plate if you're offering them more than one.
What we really want to do is provide them the least overstimulating experience possible, and that means introducing one thing at a time. We want to focus learning one food at a time. Now I really use [00:09:00] learning intentionally because we do learn to like new foods. Eating is one of those experiences that takes us time to learn and I think we often don't look at eating as a learning process when it truly is.
We learn how to count, we learn our colors, we learn different skills, and eating really is no differently. Now, it can come really naturally to some people, and for others it may be really difficult. And for our kids with sensory overstimulation, eating is one of those really difficult tasks that takes a little bit longer and we have
to make sure we're utilizing the right approach.
So, we have to start with one thing. Now, this doesn't mean to keep that one thing in forever, especially if you're not seeing success with it. I really want us to, you know, make sure that we're exposing them enough times to where they can recognize [00:10:00] the food the next time you put it out in front of them, maybe a week or two or three weeks from now.
But you're not burning them out on that food where now they just don't even want to see that food anymore. Let's say that I'm a child and my parent is putting broccoli in front of me every single day for the past six months. I'm like, oh, I'm so bored of this. I don't even want to see the broccoli anymore.
So it becomes that negative association. So we have to find a balance between introducing the food, helping them learn it, but then also not burning them out.
Now the next step is number four, and it is that you're forgetting to set the scene. Now when we come to a mealtime and we're feeling overstimulated, what happens biologically is that our hunger is
going to be diminished. And the reason why this happens, because when you come to mealtime and you have a lot of adrenaline going and you're
overstimulated and you're kind of stressed, biologically your body is in this flight or fight mode and we want to be in rest and digest mode. [00:11:00] So when we set the scene and reduce the overstimulation at the table, around the table, in your home, we can come to the table with more of an appetite, we can also come to the table feeling less overstimulated and having more capacity to actually consider trying something new or exploring something new.
So what I mean by this, thinking of all the distractions that are happening at mealtime, is your dog there? Do you have the TV on? Is your child running around the table, which I will say, it is hard for many children to actually sit in their seat during mealtime because they're needing
that sensory input or they're trying to regulate themselves. There are actually a lot of things that we can do to help with sensory regulation before mealtime to help reduce overstimulation too.
This may be following something like a sensory diet, which if you listened to my episode just a few [00:12:00] weeks ago with the
podcast host of All Things Sensory, you heard all about sensory diets. If not, go check out the episode, it's called Sensory
Diet 101, where I talk about how a sensory diet isn't actually a diet at all, and it is different sensory experiences that are prescribed to your child to help them be more regulated. So that can be a really great time before mealtime to help bring in some regulation for your child. But overall, what we're thinking about the mealtime is the mealtime experience and how they're feeling and what is going on in the background. And if we can reduce some of that background noise, as well as helping your child come to the mealtime feeling more
regulated, we can have more success with food as well.
Now, number five is one of the most important ones, and it's that you're not considering their sensory needs. Now, when we introduce new foods to a child,
it's because often times we see a need as their parent of, oh, they don't eat any vegetables, it's really [00:13:00] time to get some vegetables in. That's what we're really working on.
We see it from this place where we're trying to help them. We know what they need nutritionally. However, those foods are usually not going to align with their sensory needs. So, when you are deciding what new food to introduce to your child, instead of thinking from the parent point of view, I want you to think of it from the child point of view.
What are their sensory needs? Think of their sensory needs around food. What foods do they prefer? What is the sensory experience of those foods? Are they crunchy? Are they warm? Are they beige, what are they? And if you need help doing this, I actually have a freebie that I would love to give you. I'm going to put it in the show notes, or you can DM me the word sensory, and I will send you my free guide to help you understand your child's food sensory profile
and break down what that actually means for them [00:14:00] because what we can do from this is learn from your child's safe foods
and help build on top of those and that's where we start to see more success. From there we're able to make small changes and gradually expand and get more variety into their diet and gradually
get over to that food that they really need nutritionally.
Maybe they're really missing fiber in their diet, and we really need them to have more fruits and vegetables so they can have regular bowel movements. It can take some time to work our way over there, but when we start with the foods that align with their sensory needs,
we are going to have quicker and long term success. And that's what I want for you. So go ahead and download that freebie. You can check it out in the show notes. You can also go to autismdietitian. com slash freebie and grab that free workbook. It's one of my favorite freebies that we give out.
I hope this episode was helpful in understanding more about how to create a mealtime [00:15:00] that is going to help your child succeed, how to put foods on their plate in a way that's going to reduce overstimulation and really how to start seeing success. And if you need additional support with this, I'm here for you.
I need to share a secret with you and that is that my membership, the Nourishing Autism Collective, it is opening up for two days only to new members. We have been full for the past
few months and next week we are going to be opening up July 30th through the 31st to accept new members and I would love for you to join us.
So if you're struggling to introduce new foods to your child, maybe they have chronic constipation and gut issues because their diet is not in the place that is going to support them in having regular bowel movements. Or maybe you're just really looking to optimize their diet and their supplements and learn more about nutrition and get support from me.
This is the way that I support families, the only way that I [00:16:00] support families, and helping you do that. So I would love to support you. You can get on the waitlist at nourishingautism. co. If you go there, you'll be able to find the waitlist. And put your name on it so that you can be notified when we do open those doors for those two days only.
We'll have a limited number of spaces so be sure to snag your spot as soon as you see that those doors open up so that we can support you. I am so excited and I can't wait to welcome in a new group of new members and I hope to see you inside of the membership.
Transcribed by Descript
About Brittyn Coleman, MS, RDN/LD
Brittyn Coleman, MS, RDN/LD, is a distinguished Registered Dietitian and Autism Nutrition Expert, known for her innovative, sensory-friendly feeding approach to nutrition for children on the autism spectrum. As the founder of the Nourishing Autism Collective, and as an autism sibling herself, Brittyn brings both professional expertise and personal understanding to her work. She empowers families with her expert guidance, helping children receive essential nutrients for optimal health and development. Her strategies are tailored to the unique dietary needs and sensory preferences of each child.
Brittyn's influence extends beyond her membership site through her active social media presence and her popular podcast, 'Nourishing Autism'. Her educational content on Instagram, YouTube, and other platforms has established her as a leading voice in autism nutrition, providing valuable resources, practical advice, and a supportive community for parents and professionals.
