Food/Bento

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Currently my son makes his own lunch, but I worry that he is not making very good choices nutritionally. He likes Anime a lot and I was wondering if maybe I could convince him to eat healthier for lunch if his food was more interesting to look at.

However it occurred to me that it could just make things worse... sensory distraction, too many food choices, "strange" food.

Do any of you like Bento (I suppose aside from people who would be eating it for cultural reasons). Do you find that you can pick out enough fairly plain choices? I was thinking that steamed veggies , rice and sandwiches in different shapes might make him more inclined to finish his food... Especially since the portions for individual items are generally small.

Bit of a disappointment that "MorbidMiss" wants "plain choices" for her son ... but bento can still be quite fun.

If you haven't seen it, there here's an interesting recent article on bento with pictures.interesting recent article

Maybe you could show him some websites. He might be curious about the craft of making different shapes, designs etc... It could become a shared interest.

It isn't a matter of what I want, it is a matter of what he will eat.

I am not going to pick a fight with him over every single thing he eats. I just want him to eat enough to catch up to his age group for height and weight.

Ahhhhh, I've got a daughter who was recently at 25th percentile of height distribution and 5th percentile for weight. And then she lost 5 pounds while she had the flu. She loves all sorts of unhealthy foods like french fries, ice cream, cake, and so on, but just eats a small amount and then says she's full. My nephew is also unusually small and has a tiny appetite.

Seems like gaining weight is so easy. I'm on a diet. My wife has been on a diet for 30 years. Hard to find advice for people who can't gain weight.

i live in nyc where i can pick up a bento all around town even if i don't have time or energy to make one. usually the bentos i get when i eat out are pretty plain. i'm a big fan of japanese food but there are some things i just wont eat.

the nice thing about some bentos is that they come with built in dividers or ones that you can put in depending on the portions you want. having food in sections leaves you free to taste each without mixing or to ignore those things you dont like.

i'd suggest getting a sectional bento and maybe having some test runs where you put mostly foods that you know he likes and slip in some that you're not sure about. if he loves japanese things you may want to consider picking up some japanese cookbooks. anime often show characters eating typical japanese foods so he may be interested in some of these.

and bento can be very interesting. in japan it's practically reached art form status.

http://nozama.typepad.com/.a/6a00e54ed0 ... 970b-800wi

I was actually thinking about using containers we have at home already at first and just using silicone baking cups as dividers just until we figure out if it works for sure. The Bento Boxes are awfully cute, but the old man will have a fit if I start one more hobby that does not pan out and once you are collecting boxes... well it is kind of a hobby at that point.

The Anime angle is what made me think that this could be a solution to our nutritional issue. On top of that he does like "cute" things more than the "average" boy I think. My main concern was that in trying to branch out his number of foods that he likes he would start rebelling against food again. Or even possibly get so distracted by the "different neat stuff" that he doesn't get around to eating it. He is kind of easily distracted.

As of now, his lunches are boring and filled with stuff that has very nutritional value. Although we keep fresh fruit in the house he almost never puts any in his lunch. In the morning I just do not have the energy or time to make a fuss about it. So I want to do something that will encourage more healthy eating. Plus the same thing all the time gets boring... even for him.