“There are changes that make a difference”
The carrot-and-plate strategy doesn’t work. Punishment and yelling at little ones doesn’t either. They turn a deaf ear to “stay still!”, “don’t leave the table until you’ve finished eating!” and “if you don’t eat your fruit, there’s no ice cream!” It’s normal for little kids not to want to sit at the table for the entire mealtime.
They are often messy in the way they eat and always get dirty.
These are typical reactions, because they do not like all foods and it is a great effort for them to try new flavours with different textures. So far, these are all behaviours typical of healthy child development.
The golden rule that we recommend parents try to follow and adopt when teaching their children to eat is to be understanding and patient.
A task that is not easy, considering that we live in a time when the goal is to achieve everything in the shortest possible time and with the minimum effort.
Eating a balanced diet from the earliest years of life requires time and dedication from parents.
Eating together as a family improves the quality of the diet and the development of good eating habits, as it is associated with home-cooked food.
Children's eating habits will be shaped by the habits of the home, and will continue for the rest of their lives.
RECIPE
Gianella Pedemonte
Bachelor of Nutrition
