[merrick]

Food has become a major issue in my house. Ever since having my ds I have become more and more concerned about eating healthy. Started with breastfeeding really, I kept thinking "if I'm trying so hard to give him the best nutritionally now, shouldn't I do the same with solid food?" I did not know how to cook anything that didn't come from a box before, and neither did dh really. Now I try to cook mostly from scratch, limit fast food, cook healthy meals, and I no longer eat meat except for fish. I am also in school to become a dietician (and hopefully someday an LC).

DH on the other hand would have preferred eating out and from a box. He just cannot stand vegetables or most fruits for that matter. Mostly what he'll eat are bread, rice, cheese, meat, and pasta (but only if he can pick out the veggies with ease). He would rather fill up on chips and cookies than eat the meals I cook. He is sooo picky about his food. If a bean comes anywhere near his plate he will not eat the food. If there are too many veggies he can't pick out he will not eat it. If someone accidentally puts lettuce on his hamburger and then takes it off, he still will not eat it!

I am worried about his health from eating this way. I also worry about the example he is setting for ds. Even though I try to eat healthy and serve healthy meals, how effective is that going to be when ds sees his father eating junk all the time?

I also really feel bad that dh is so often left out at dinner time. Most of the time when he does eat what I cooked, he grumbles about it. It kind of hurts my feelings too because I put a lot of time and effort into planning and making these meals.

So I need some ideas! Please help! I am at a loss about what to do. I have told him that if he can come up with an idea for something to cook that is anywhere close to being healthy or nutritious I will cook it. So far the only things he ever wants are fettuccini alfredo (which I do make for him occassionally, even though he prefers jar sauce to homemade

) and hamburgers and hot dogs (which we also have occassionally but only if he cooks it on the grill, and I no longer eat these things anymore).

Right now our schedules are really hectic so we don't really have family dinners. But that is soon to change and hopefully we will be getting a dining room table (moved from an apartment where there wasn't room for one) and I really want to do the family dinner thing.

Any advice from any of you who actually made it to the end of this long rambling post?

 

[memory maker]

I know exactly how you feel. DH would rather have something frozen heated up in the microwave than most of the food I cook from scratch. He calls it his "comfort food" but I really think most of it is gross.He wont touch veggies either.Im worried about his health because his dad is diabetic and had quadruple bypass surgery. I would like some feedback on this too.

 

[NYCVeg]

In my experience, the best thing you can to do is to 1) stock the house with healthy food (don't buy junk--if he wants it, he can get it), 2) prepare and offer healthy meals and 3) model healthy habits (works on kids and adults!). I worry very much about my dh--cholesterol and heart problems run in his family; his father, uncle, grandfather, and aunt are all on heavy doses of cholesterol meds, his grandfather has had several heart surgeries, and his dad has also had a number of heart scares. He tries, but he loves junk--ice cream, cookies, chips, burgers, etc. At the end of the day, I feel like he's an adult and I can't force him to change. On the other hand, by cooking meals with lots of veggies, beans, whole grains--over time, his tastes have definitely expanded, and, even though he still eats junk, he eats much more healthily in general.