For many families with young children, mealtimes are often a battleground. The more the parents pressure the kids to eat, the more the kids resist. There will be crying, tantrums, howling and screaming. Yes, mealtimes can be extremely stressful for everyone in the family.
Sounds familiar? Parents who yearn for stress-free mealtimes can try the following approaches to help children eat without pressure.
Avoid Playtime before Meals
When kids are excited about something, particularly after a very exciting playtime, their highly active and aroused body will suppress their appetite. “An excited child is not being naughty because she’s refusing to eat her food properly. It’s just that human bodies are genetically programmed to have no interest in eating when in a state of high excitement,” says Margot Sunderland, author of What Every Parent Needs to Know (Dorling Kindersley, 2006).
Forcing an excited child to eat is pointless. Sunderland suggests that parents wait until their child’s high arousal level drops and the child is calm again. Better still, avoid rough playtime just before a meal.
Avoid Snacks before Meals
Snacks before meals should be avoided if a child tends to eat very little at his main meals. If a child is hungry just before a mealtime, give him some milk or juice, but not too much. The child will then be hungrier at his proper mealtimes and eat more of what he should be eating.
Present Food in Interesting Ways
Parents will find that mealtimes are easier if they present food in interesting ways. By associating food with fun instead of anxiety, children are more likely to eat. Use attractive and colorful serving plates, bowls and cups. A tray with separate compartments is very useful too as toddlers like to see each item of their food separately.
Foods with fun shapes are appealing to kids as well. Cut out sandwiches in various shapes using cookie cutters. An Australian invention called the Lunch Punch works wonders too. It's a unique sandwich cutter that turns ordinary sandwiches into cool, exciting shapes and puzzle pieces. Let the fussy eater do some cutting too. He’s bound to eat the puzzle-shaped sandwich he’s just made!
Teach Kids to Eat Independently
Good eating behavior also stems from a child’s ability to eat on his own.. Penelope Leach, author of Your Baby and Child (Dorling Kindersley, 2003), suggest the following ideas to teach kids to eat independently:
- Give food that is easy for the child to handle.
- Avoid spoon-feeding a child who already knows how to hold a spoon. If he needs help, scoop food in the spoon and let him take the spoon in his hand so that he can feed himself.
- Allow the child to eat by any method he prefers – fingers, fists or spoon. He needs to feel that getting the food is what matters, not getting food using any particular method.
- Allow the child to eat in any order or combination. It doesn’t matter what course he starts with. And don’t make a big fuss if he dips his bacon in his cereal. As long as he eats some of every food or course offered, he will be eating right.
Parents with difficult children at mealtimes are not alone. To have stress-free mealtimes, parents should avoid rough playtime and snacks before meals. They can also present food in fun and interesting ways as well as teach kids to eat independently.
Found this article useful? Read also Making Mealtimes Fun, Dealing with Little Fussy Eaters and Help Children Try New Food.
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