Parents always seem to know what is best for their kids to eat. Kids, however are the best judges of how much they should eat. Positive encounters with food at all ages will set the stage for sensible eating habits throughout their life. With a few tips for preventing food hassles, your child will grow up with sensible food habits.
There are a few important feeding jobs for parents starting with offering a variety of healthy and tasty foods. Be regular when serving meals and snacks and make meal time pleasant. Teach good manners and always set a good example. Using the tips mentioned above will pave the way for pleasant mealtime in the future.
There are several different types of eaters. We have the “food jaggers”, the “food strikers”, the “TV eaters”, the “complainer”, the “fear of new foods” kid, and the “great American white food diet” kid. There are a few ways to handle these kinds of obstacles. For the “food jaggers”, the kids, who eat one and only one food, allow them to eat what everthey want. Provided that what they like is wholesome. Do offer other foods at every meal along with their “jag” food. Food jags rarely last long enough to do any harm.
Then you have the “food strikers”, the kid who refuses to eat what is served which can unfortunately lead to “short order cook syndrome” for you. Make sure you have breads, rolls or fruit available at each meal. That way there are usually more choices that the child likes. Be very supportive and don’t be afraid to let the child go hungry if they won’t eat what is served. Which is worse, a child who occasionally skips a meal or a parent who is perpetually a short order cook?
The “TV eaters” are the kids who always want to watch TV while they are eating. Turn off the TV. Having the TV on is a distraction that prevents the whole family from interacting and bonding. Often times dinner is the only time families share together, so take advantage of it. An occasional meal in front of the TV that the whole family can enjoy is fine.
The “complainer” whines or complains about the food being served. First encourage your child to try other things that are being served. If they continue to disrupt mealtime ask them to leave until the meal is finished. Do not allow them to come back for dessert or let them eat what they like before the next meal is served.
The one who “fears new foods” is the one who refuses to try anything new. Continue to introduce and reinforce new foods. It may take many times seeing this food before they try it and many more before they like it. Do not force them.
A lot of kids fall into the category of the “great American white food” diet. These kids only eat potatoes, macaroni and milk. Again, avoid pressuring them to eat new foods; giving attention to picky eaters only reinforces a child’s demand to limit foods. Continue to offer a variety of other food groups and encourage them to try them; eventually they will move on to try other things.
Try these simple tips to make mealtimes a more pleasant experience.
Michael Russell
Your Independent Baby and Toddler guide.
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