Fussy Eaters: Helpful Ways to Encourage Children to Eat a Healthy Diet

Parents play an extremely important role in helping their children develop food preferences, but attempts to encourage young children to eat a more healthy diet may actually be having the opposite effect, according to a review published in the International Journal of Obesity

Many children become fussy eaters around the age of 18-24 months, forming the start of a long term battle with food for many parents. Toddlers who were once happy to eat a wide range of foods, including fruits and vegetables, may start to refuse to eat particular foods. Others who were quite open minded about new tastes and flavours may start to become neophobic (afraid of new foods). Such behaviour can be extremely trying and stressful for parents, leading them to resort to all manner of ways to encourage children to eat a healthy diet. However, such good intentions may not always have the desired effect

What most parents don’t know is that what is actually going on is that your child’s survival instinct is kicking in. Evolution cleverly instilled an instinct into children at this stage of development in order to discourage them from eating foods which may be poisonous. Evolution saw that children once walking suddenly had access to (were in reach of) poisonous foods and so to ensure the survival of our species our children developed neophobic reactions to ensure their continued existence.

Our problem now is that our current education tells us how important nutrition is for our children and so as parents we become deeply concerned when our children stop eating a lot of the most nutritious foods.

So first what not to do:
Don’t overly restrict certain foods or start offering them as a reward, this is what is referred to as positive reinforcement and will actually lead to an increases in the preference for that food, rather than decreasing it. Correspondingly don't force your child to eat a food they are refusing as this will only increase resistance and decrease their liking of that particular food. Furthermore, offering foods as a reward for good behaviour such as eating vegetables may not have the intended consequences. Offering desserts as a reward for eating greens, or some other distasteful' food, makes the reward food more desirable to your child and the food you are trying to encourage them to eat, less desirable.

So what can you do to encourage your child to a healthy diet?
Parents can play a significant role in helping children to develop healthy eating habits. Whilst we are built and born with certain likes and dislikes, food preferences can be modified by experience during early childhood. Parents, brothers, sisters and other role models such as teachers, can all help shape a child's food preferences by modeling good nutrition. The more they see you eat healthy food the more they will realise that these foods must taste alright otherwise why would you be eating it?

Try to be patient when it comes to getting your child to try new foods, although this may be easier said then done. The more your child is exposed to a food, the more likely they are to try it. It takes approximately 11 attempts for a child to try a new food, although it can be as many as nearly 90 times! Remember refusal of new foods is common and has a reason and the less you push the more likely it is that they will come around

Here are some helpful tips:

Make mealtimes fun! The emotional atmosphere at mealtimes is important. Don't use meal times as an opportunity to chastise and don't let a child's failure to eat cause unpleasantness.

Make the most of role models. Siblings, peers and parents can act as role models to encourage the tasting of new foods.

Expose your child to a range of foods, tastes and textures early on.

Keep trying new foods. Repeated exposure to initially disliked foods can breakdown resistance.

Don't restrict access to particular foods. This has the effect of increasing, rather than decreasing, preference for, and consumption, of that food.

Don't force your child to eat a particular food. Doing so will decrease the liking of that food. Food refusal is to be expected and should not be allowed to generate negativity.

Don't use high energy foods as rewards and treats for eating their greens. It's unlikely to encourage your child to eat the food you want them to eat. Use rewards such as a trip to the swimming pool or the park instead.

Look at your child’s diet over the entire week rather than the whole day. Survival instincts are strong and because of this it is unlikely that if offered a variety of healthy foods your child will be lacking good nutrition.

Remember they can’t eat what’s not in the house so avoid overstocking on unhealthy snack options.

Offer your child freshly squeezed fruit juice as an alternative. Let them help put the fruit in the juicer.

Offer a multivitamin so as to cover all bases.

I have a son who is 12 and I can testify to the fact that they grow out of it. Like any normal toddler he went from eating great food to refusing it but now I can often find him having up to 4 pieces of fruit a day of his own accord. Remember your best indication is your child’s growth. As long as they are in the healthy weight guidelines for their age try not to worry and let nature take its course.

Lee Spencer
May 8 Issue of Optimum Life E-Zine

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