Toddler eating habits

This old thread might be helpful:

http://www.indusladies.com/forums/baby-kids-foods/146854-why-indian-kids-dont-like.html

 

From my experience, if I make eating a play-thing (something to be loved, not feared) it works better. Also, if possible have supper along with him. Put a plate on the table and sit beside him. Seeing you eat may prompt him to eat.

 

If you force children to eat they take food as their enemy. Don't force your child. I
think it is probably the milk what is filling your son. Give him small meals several times
a day. If you eat food in front of him , he will start to eat.

 

My experience (have four children) is that a child basically stops eating at 1.5-2 years and starts eating again around 6-7 years age .

Here are my tips:
- eat the meal together if possible, not too much focus on the food, instead good discussions and focus on each other
- take the child with you when preparing food, let him/her tast a piece of veggies etc while you are chopping, tell him/her what you are doing
- a high chair, no toys or distractions, put some food on the plate and everyone eats as much they want, no forcing
- when the child inform that it is enough you ask her to say thank you (or whatever ritual you may have) and the child can leave the table
- no snack between meal times (of course a child cannot stay too long without eating so plan for midafternoon snack etc)
- reserve some favorite staples (like milk, bread but nothing sweet) with every meal but also encourage child to taste the rest of the food
- usually the child starts around one year age to demand for a spoon, give him/her the spoon and let her try, you can have another spoon to help out, again no force feeding
- finger food is also good when very young, bread sticks, French fries, raw veggies, fruit etc
- make about the same food for the whole family, you can take a side a portion if you plan to add a lot of spices or some ingredients that your child does not like

And remember - the child will eat when hungry and the amount of food a toddler needs is actually quite small.

 

[FONT=&quot]It is interesting and happy to see that in this discussion everyone concentrated how to make their kids eat Indian food, and not the pizzas, the snacks or some junk food. Kids need to be fed when they are hungry, and they will have it without forcing them much. Never feed them the junk food because they are not eating Indian food. American/Canadian kids have it that’s why there are more Americans/Canadians in rehabilitation centers like Bellwood Health Services, for eating disorder treatment, than Indians.[/FONT]

 

Junk/unhealthy food can be found from both american and indian cuisine. Pizza can be healthy if prepared so.

The background for eating disorder is quite complex and have much to do with adoloscense/overweight/pressure on young girls regarding outlook. Force feeding is also one major risk for eating disorders.

 

Dear OP.
We should not actually compare our kid with other kids in eating, me also do the same thing as my friend's DD will have all fruits and juices without complaining and mine not taking.
But actually, their taste buds are just developing and have different likings.
I do agree that it will hurt if our LO is not having food and we are having good food. I have experienced the same. What i did is i made the feeding session playful. Eg: While having food i ll take a piece of dosa and touch in the gravy with a funny sound like thottu thottu thottu(means touch touch touch) and put it in my mouth. then i ll give a piece to her and she ll do the same( our mission is to make food go inside their little tummy)Once they really like the taste, they automatically ask for food.Try different taste everytime.
Dont worry dear, There are lot of moms with u who are also learning hugsmiley

 

AGREE.

I am an ABCD stay at home mom and give my 4 year old a choice between 2 or 3 healthy foods for each meal each day and let HER control how much she wants to eat and NEVER force her to "finish" her food. Most of the food is American (whole wheat bread cheese sandwiches, baked fish, strawberries, blueberries, pasta, steamed carrots, etc.). We sit down together for half an hour and whatever she eats, she eats. Whatever she doesn't finish after half an hour is taken away til snacktime. I also have bedtime routine where she goes to bed at 8:30PM most nights. Dinner is at 6PM so she wakes up on her own around 6:30-7AM asking for breakfast.

Most of my SAHM mommy friends are U.S. raised of different nationalties (white, 3rd generation Japanese, also ABCD, etc). None of us having any feeding issues with our kids and most of them actually enjoy their meals knowing the CHILD is in control of their food. My daughter has been self feeding finger foods since 8 months and using a spoon since 14 months old. At the beginning, 1/3 of the food ended up on her body, 1/3 on the floor, and maybe 1/3 in her mouth. By the time she was 2, most of it was in her mouth. Yes, some food did go to waste but its better for it to end up on the floor than for a kid to be force fed to have it vomited out after eating.

In contrast, I see Desi moms constantly having food battles with their kids shoveling as much food down their throat as possible in any-which-way they can; distracting, bribing, scare tactics, etc. I also see them hand feeding kids as big as 8 years old while they play their video games as a bribe. These Desi moms and children dread mealtimes alike and often leave the child in tears, and sometimes the moms in tears too. Parents are worried about wasting food if the kid doesn't finish but they will often vomit it out which is even worse, much worse. This overfeeding of a small child is a disorder causing them to associate food with discomfort, bribe, and something to be dreaded.

For the most part, children's bodies are wired to eat enough to sustain themselves. When we overfeed them, we create a dread of mealtimes and take away that desire to eat. My daughter is only in the 19th percentile for weight and I accept her stature as it is rather than trying to make her "fat". Her healthy attitude towards food is far more important to me.