Almost all parents worry about their kids’ nutrition, and if nutrition is a sore topic in your household, you are not alone!

According to a study published in Contemporary Paediatrics, nearly two thirds of parents have at least one problem with their child’s eating habits. A small consolation if chicken nuggets are pretty much the extent of your pre-schoolers food preference, right?!

A great part of nurturing, of course, involves food and the role it plays in the life of a healthy thriving child. While we want our kids to eat every vegetable and embrace every level of the food pyramid, our best efforts are often snubbed by what seems to be mere stubbornness on the part of our offspring, turning mealtimes into a battlefield.

The good news is that pickiness for most kids is a passing phase. Remember Mom’s and Dad, it’s rare that a child that eats anything and everything. In fact, most kids find some foods unpalatable. Keep in mind that at the end of the day, we all have food habits and preferences which are normal, as long as we have an overall healthy diet.

Here’s the thing, it’s ok if your child doesn’t like vegetables; but, what’s not ok is for a parent to become so invested in a child’s eating habits that every meal becomes a source of dread for the whole family. Adam Strauss, M.D., paediatrician in Westwood and Mansfield, offers a word of caution: “When parents demand that their kids eat certain foods, they’re attaching negative connotations to it. Pretty soon, the struggle is worse.”

So, until your child understands the importance of a balanced diet, here’s what you could do:

• Chill, chill and chill again. Lose the guilt. Think of the food intake over a week rather than a day; look at intake and variety in that way.
• Mealtimes should be calm and uneventful. Without distractions from TV’s, toys or pets.
• Take him/her with to the grocery store. Ask your child to help you to select fruit, vegetables and other healthy foods.
• Enlist a sous-chef. Ask your picky eater to help you cook. After choosing a recipe and stirring the bowl, kids are much more eager to try something new.
• Teach your child about good nutrition without lecturing. Nonchalantly mention that eating her oatmeal will help her run and jump better!
• Respect your child’s appetite. Serve small portions; give him/her the opportunity to independently ask for more.
• Be sneaky. Hide goodness in sauces and dips. Mac and cheese for dinner? Add well-cooked pureed cauliflower, or turn zucchini into noodles – “zoodles.” Top cereal with fruit.
• Make sure there’s always something familiar on the plate.
• Bite your tongue. No bribing or threatening at mealtimes.
• Cut foods into shapes with a cookie cutter – anything mini is always a hit! Or, skewer it; it’s always fun to eat something off a stick.
• Try serving raw veg, they might love the crunch.
• Limit snacks and juices.
• Limit exposure to one or two new foods each week.
• Don’t be a short-order cook. Don’t prepare a second meal after he/she rejects the first. This will promote picky eating.
• Keep serving healthy choices until they become familiar and preferred.
• Allow treats. Having less healthy foods occasionally helps them from becoming forbidden.
• Aim to inspire. Lead by example, eat healthy.

So, if you’re the Mama (or Dad) of a picky eater, be patient. You won’t change you’re little one’s eating habits overnight, but the small steps you take each day can promote a lifetime of healthy eating.

Source: www.mayoclinic.org, blog.landofnod.com, www.magiccrate.in, www.momadvice.com, cupofjo.com, www.webmd.com, www.babycenter.com, www.parenting.com, childmind.org, www.netmums.com, blog.mint.com, familyfoodllc.com, www.arktherapeutic.com, isliplibrary.org, www.parents.com