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We all range from low and sleepy to high and energetic throughout our day. Some of us, especially children, can do so within minutes! Adults can freely meet their needs and often do so using coffee, gum, mints, taking walks, exercising, clicking a pen, and turning on the TV or radio in the background. Children do not always have the knowledge of what will help them or the freedom to do so. That lack of knowledge makes it difficult to self-regulate and can lead to choices that are unsafe, unsanitary, or even make the problem worse. Attempting to make them stop will not help as that need will persist and your child will try to find another way to meet that need. As children are not known for their great safety awareness and judgement, that new method could prove to be risky. As adults, we can help support them and introduce them to methods that are helpful and socially acceptable.
Have a child who puts everything in their mouths (except food, it seems!)? Input into our jaw is a powerful way of meeting our needs, which can lead to this behavior. If you are a gum chewer, you can certainly understand. A terrific way to address those needs safely is to carefully select the food that is available to them. There are foods that will rev us up while others help us to organize. Here are some ideas for filling up their lunchboxes!
Running on empty? Offer texture, crunch, bite, salty, sweet, hard to chew, and cold foods/drinks. This could include whole apples, pears, carrots, cucumbers, celery slices, peppers, snap peas, crackers, bagel chips, popcorn, baked potato chips, nuts, seeds, roasted chickpeas, and dried veggie chips. You might also be able to expand into banana chips rather than soft bananas, toasted rather than soft sandwiches, dry cereal or granola, or using hummus or nut butter as a dip for crunchy veggies. Try strong flavors such as curries, sour fruits (lemons, limes, kiwi, grapefruit), salty pretzels or tortilla chips, pickles, pickled veggies, salsa, cinnamon, and spicy mustard. Experiment with cold foods, including ice, frozen peas or corn, and frozen fruit, such as grapes and bananas. You can even make homemade popsicles using smoothies or juices with water.
Too much energy? Chewy, smooth, warm, and softly flavored foods/drinks help us to organize. Try fruit leather, dried fruit (mangos, raisins, cranberries), turkey jerky, bagels, cheese, gummies, or sugarless gum. Also try sweet fruits (strawberries, melon, peaches, berries) and warm foods, such as soup, oatmeal, and hot chocolate. Smooth and creamy foods can also help, such as yogurt, hummus, hard boiled eggs, applesauce, nut butters, and smoothies.
Drinks count too! We can incorporate resistance (“hard work”) with drinks by using a small straw or "crazy straw" with thick liquids, such as a fruit smoothie or drinkable yogurt. Water bottles with a bite-valve can also be helpful. Experiment with the temperature of drinks and food, using seltzer water and eating frozen fruits or sherbet.
Give time for these strategies to work and remember to offer these snacks more than once. It can take as many as fifteen tries before we are willing to try something new and like it! Do not force the foods, but make it a fun exploration if they are new to your child. Be aware that your child may also like something one day and look at it in disgust the following week, so be sure to give them choices. Watch their behavior and see which snacks they are gravitating towards. They may be matching their energy (eating alerting foods while energetic) and not helping themselves at all. We can help support them (and us!) by being strategic in what is available to snack on. Not sure what to offer? You cannot go wrong with a system-organizing chewy snack!
*Always be aware of allergies for both your child and others around them.*
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