Does Your Child Eat Well? Why Doesn’t My Child Eat Vegetables? Worrying about your child’s eating habits is completely natural and understandable.
Every child has their own ‘feeding style’. Just as we are born with a certain temperament, some children have a poor appetite, while others have a very good appetite and enjoy eating and trying new flavours and textures. There are normal individual differences in eating habits, so there’s no need to worry or compare your child to others. It’s common for children to find it difficult to try new foods, to cling to the breast or bottle and refuse the spoon, or to eat very little or only certain foods. This is all part of the developmental process, and sometimes feeding isn’t as straightforward as we might see in paediatric manuals or child nutrition blogs.
From the School, we offer some tips to improve your child’s eating habits:
- Respect your child’s natural rhythms and don’t introduce new foods or changes too early. Exclusive breastfeeding or formula feeding is recommended until six months. After that, and following your paediatrician’s advice, start gradually introducing solids and new foods.
- Be patient and persistent. Offer the same foods cooked in different ways. If your child refuses something, wait a few days and try again.
- If your child doesn’t want to eat, don’t force them or keep them sitting in front of the plate for too long. Don’t save the same food for a later snack or dinner, and avoid chasing your child around the house with food.
- The right approach is to present the food at the table, give your child a reasonable and normal amount of time to eat, and then clear the plate once that time is up. Don’t offer dessert as a bribe if they haven’t eaten much.
- Eating together as a family is very important. Children learn a lot by watching and imitating. Respect regular mealtimes.
- It’s not necessary for your child to eat every type of vegetable or fruit. If they like three or four vegetables, offer those more often and gradually introduce new ones.
- Avoid using food as a bargaining tool. Be patient with changes and new habits.
“Early childhood feeding must be lived calmly and enjoying each stage”
