Many parents experience frustration when their child refuses totry asnack. Before you start worrying, keep inmind that this behavior iscommon inchildhood and there might bemany things causingit. Inmost cases, the lack ofappetite isnot due toanything important, but tonormal things that all children gothrough during their lives.
At5-Minute Crafts, wewant tohelp you find out why your little one doesn’t want toeat. However, keep inmind that this article doesn’t intend toreplace any professional advice. Inall cases, it’s always best tomake anappointment with your child’s pediatrician for aproper diagnosis and treatment ifneeded.
Why children sometimes refuse toeat
Nutrient intake during infancy and teenage years isextremely important for your body and mind todevelop properly. That’s because, during this period, agreat deal ofneurological and physical changes take place. Occasionally, young children have atendency todevelop food-related problems, such asapoor appetite, selective food intake, oreven afear ofeating insome cases. However, it’s important toremember that while these things can bevery concerning for parents, they may actually bebased onunrealistic expectations ontheir end. But typically, toddlers are healthy— they just have anappetite that varies according totheir age.
1. Serve portions that are appropriate for their age.
Maybe the problem isn’t that your son ordaughter refuses toeat what you’re giving them, but that the portion you’ve served istoo large and may even feel somewhat overwhelming toyour child when they first look atit. Children need less food than adults, sotry serving them asmaller portion ontheir plate. And don’t worry, ifthey’re still hungry, they’ll end upasking for more anyway. Remember that toddlers experience big changes inappetite throughout their lives, sosometimes they might need less food than usual, and other times they might actually ask for more.
2. Stimulate their appetite with creative presentations.
Try tomake lunch ordinnertime asfun aspossible sothat your child looks forward tothat time ofthe day. Children may beput off bythe texture orappearance ofsome foods. Typically, things like broccoli might not seem like agreat thing toeat when you’re akid. That doesn’t really mean that your child isapicky eater. You can try making your dishes more appetizing byusing star-shaped cookie cutters topresent fruits and vegetables inafun way tomake them more appealing.
3. Don’t force your child toeat.
Mealtime should beamoment toenjoy yourself, and kids should also beable toenjoyit. It’s not agood idea toforce your child toeat against his orher will, ortoforce them tofinish everything ontheir plate. When children refuse food, they might actually betrying toassert their independence. It’s not anuncommon thing since it’s around this time that they develop their sense ofautonomy, sothey prefer tofeed themselves and become selective intheir food choices. It’s better not tothink ofitasarebellion against you, but more asaphase oftheir development.
4. Gradually introduce new foods.
When some children are reluctant totry new foods, their parents usually think that they dosobecause they’re picky eaters. However, it’s perfectly normal for little ones toreject unfamiliar tastes ortextures. Ifyou want toget past this, when your child tries new foods, you can try starting with just asmall amount and offer their favorite food first asanincentive totry the new ingredient. After awhile, they might get used toitand find itnormal tohave this new food.
5. Avoid distractions during mealtime.
Ifyou allow your child towatchTV orplay with atablet orcell phone, they may lose all interest ineating orinother things. You might want toconsider establishing some boundaries and even restricting the use ofelectronic devices while, atthe same time, promoting family bonding byenjoying amealtime conversation. After all, eating isasocial activity for humans, soit’s the perfect moment toshare experiences and thoughts. Make sure the eating area isrelaxed and that the chair fits your little one soheorshe iscomfortable atthe table.
6. Include your children inactivities related tofood, such ascooking orshopping.
One ofthe most important things when itcomes tohelping your child understand food better, ingeneral, istoinvolve him orher inthe cooking process tounderstand better what they have ontheir plates every day. This includes inviting the child tojoin you onshopping trips and beincluded when choosing food topique their interest. Try taking them with you when you gotothe store and let them pick out some healthy items they’d like totry. And let your kids help you prepare the food. They can dosmall tasks, like set the table, wash fruits orvegetables, peel them, etc.
7. Reduce the intake ofsweets and sweet beverages between meals.
Sometimes, when lunchtime ordinnertimes comes, children might not even behungry atall because they’ve had too many snacks and sodas throughout the day. Achild’s stomach issmaller than that ofanadult, soitdoesn’t need much food tofillup. Ifyou suspect this iswhat’s causing your toddler’s poor appetite, you should start paying attention toeverything heorshe eats tomake sure you can correct this issue assoon aspossible. Ifyou notice your child eats too many sweets orsodas, you might want toconsider replacing them with water sothat they’re really hungry when it’s time toeat.
8. Become arole model for them.
It’s important toremember that young children learn about food and food preferences byobserving how other people surrounding them behave when eating. That’s why the example you set can change everything. Try tolet your children see you eating ahealthy diet that’s high invegetables and fruits instead oftreats and sweets. This will help them gain the confidence totry these foods and accept them easily.
9. Check iftheir lack ofappetite isdue tolack ofattention.
Sometimes changes that might seem unimportant toyou asanadult might feel huge for achild. Think, for example, about ifyour family moved toanew house ortown. Your kids might have tomake new friends and adapt toawhole new life. This change could also becaused byaloved one passing away, beitafamily member orapet. All ofthese stressful situations can cause your child tolose his orher appetite. Before worrying too much aboutit, remember that, inmost cases, this isjust atemporary situation. You can help them feel better byoffering them peace ofmind and bytalking tothem ifthey needit.
10. Reward your child inthe right way.
Parents often use strategies such aspromising them dessert ifthe child tries new food. Eating unhealthy foods like chips orice cream increases excess calorie intake and causes children toeat when they are nolonger hungry, somaybe that’s not the best idea ifyou’re trying topromote ahealthy diet. Instead, you can use praise tolet them know you’re proud ofthem.
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5-Minute Crafts/Health/Why Your Toddler Refuses Food, and 10 Strategies to Encourage Them to Eat
