Preventing a Picky Toddler

Excerpt from Nurturing with Nutrition...

Growth slows down after the first birthday, so toddlers require less calories per pound of body weight, and therefore less food. The growth rate is only one-tenth of what it was when they were babies.

• Recognize that your child does NOT have the same eating pattern. He/she may only have a few bites at breakfast yet devour 3 servings at dinner. Follow his/her lead and respect your toddler's hunger cues.
• Picky eaters want to graze all over the place. Make sure your toddler always eats at the table.
• Eliminate as many distractions as possible at meal times.
• Keep it Simple. Avoid giving your toddler too many choices. Keep the look of the plate simple.
  
• If giving choices, limit it to two. Toddlers reject foods so they can be in control over decision-making.
• Avoid overwhelming your toddler with too much food. Keep portion sizes small. Use the 1 Tablespoon rule: serve one Tbsp of each food for each year of your toddler's age.
• Allow enough time for peaceful eating, but not enough time for dawdling. Let your child set the pace. Note: 20 min is enough time for a hungry child to eat a meal.
• Realize that sometimes it's just more fun to play with food than to eat it. Let your child feed him or herself and you decide the rules of how and how long.
• Limit snacking and liquids between meals. Too much MILK and JUICE is a MAJOR cause of poor eating. Limit juice to 4-8 oz A DAY and milk to 16 oz [for 12-24 month olds] and no more than 24 oz [for 2-5 years olds] A DAY. The rest of liquids may be water.
• Finally, be a good Role Model for what and how you want your children to eat.

Stay Tuned for "Coping with a Picky Toddler"