成人快手

If your dinner table feels like a battleground, you鈥檙e not alone 鈥 fussy eating in toddlers is surprisingly common.

鈥淒epending on which study you look at, around 40% of children go through a fussy phase according to their parents and around a quarter will refuse at least one food every day,鈥 says registered dietitian Lucy Neary of The Early Years Dietitian, who works with babies and children.

It tends to start around the age of 15-18 months and peak at around two years, explains Lucy.

鈥淟ots of children start to refuse new foods and they might refuse dishes at home that they鈥檝e eaten elsewhere like nursery or a caf茅. They might also start leaning towards certain textures and safe, processed foods.鈥

You want your child to eat well and be healthy, so their fussiness can be incredibly emotional and stressful. 鈥淧arents tend to blame themselves,鈥 explains Lucy. 鈥淐ooking is wrapped up in love so if your child doesn鈥檛 eat your food, it鈥檚 natural to take it personally.

Then there鈥檚 the added stresses of 鈥榃hat do I give them now? Will they be OK? Are they growing properly?鈥. You get swept up in this vicious cycle and mealtimes become increasingly negative experiences. One of the first things I do with people is try help them to understand why picky eating in toddlers happens and how it's not their fault.鈥

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Fussy eating in toddlers is surprisingly common... you're not alone!

Weaning tips: heading off fussy eating

Although it鈥檚 not possible to completely prevent your child from becoming a fussy eater, there are preventative steps you can take during weaning to lessen the impact, says Lucy. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a critical window during weaning up to around 10 months when children eat anything.鈥

鈥淥ne of the things I suggest during the weaning process is to allow your baby to eat until they're full, as babies are born knowing how much they need to eat. Give them lots of different colours and textures. And I recommend two weeks at the very start of weaning when they eat primarily green vegetables. Children have a naturally sweet tooth and green vegetables can taste bitter so get them used to the flavour with things like broccoli, spinach, kale, courgettes and green beans. After this age, they tend to be less accepting and there鈥檚 research to show that this approach can help them become less fussy as toddlers.鈥

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There are steps you can take during weaning to lessen the impact of fussy eating.

If your toddler is already a fussy eater

All is not lost if the weaning window has passed 鈥 there are plenty of ways you can encourage your toddler to develop a healthy attitude towards food and keep your cool. 鈥淵ou might want magic, instant answers but handling fussy eating is largely about taking it back to basics,鈥 explains Lucy.

8 tips to encourage your fussy toddler to eat

1. Don鈥檛 pressure them

If you鈥檙e having a stressful dinner, it鈥檚 second-nature to try some hard 鈥楪o on, just one more bite!鈥 negotiation. But this is counter-productive and can fuel fussy eating, explains Lucy. 鈥淚t can make your child afraid of mealtimes, which is why when they get to the dinner table, they might say 鈥業'm not hungry鈥. We all know that when we鈥檙e stressed as adults, about interviews or tests for instance, our appetite tends to drop. Finishing what鈥檚 on your plate is engrained in us from our childhoods but children should be in charge of how much they eat.鈥

2. Monitor their weight and height

鈥淚f you weigh and measure your child regularly and log these, it can put your mind at ease because you鈥檒l see that they鈥檙e growing well,鈥 advises Lucy. If you have any concerns about your child鈥檚 growth, then be sure to bring it up with your health visitor or GP.

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"Just one more bite?" Added pressure on eating can be counter-productive and help fuel fussy eating.

3. Eat as a family (when you can)

It鈥檚 a great opportunity to talk and interact but it also gives you the chance to be a positive role model, explains Lucy. 鈥淐hildren learn by copying. So sit down with your children, eat with them, show them that you are enjoying eating. If you don鈥檛, then children can think: 鈥榃ell, why am I doing this?鈥.

4. Get your children involved with meals

鈥淭here鈥檚 a reason that people who like cooking like eating 鈥 it鈥檚 because they're interested in food, they've learned about it, they understand flavours and where things come from,鈥 explains Lucy. 鈥淟et鈥檚 be realistic, we鈥檙e all busy and you won鈥檛 be able to do it every day but as much as you can, get your toddler involved: washing fruit and vegetables, getting things out of the cupboard, cracking eggs. The more they have food in their hands and they're interacting with it, the more it will break down their fears and worries.鈥

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Interacting with food can help toddlers overcome their fear and worries about it.

5. Talk positively about food

鈥淎void negative language around food and your body,鈥 say Lucy. 鈥淭hrowaway comments like 鈥業 can't eat that!鈥 stick in a child鈥檚 mind and communicate they shouldn't eat certain things.鈥

6. Teach them that all food is just food

鈥淎void putting certain foods on a pedestal and using them as a bargaining tool. For example, 鈥業f you eat your broccoli, you鈥檒l get ice cream鈥. We know from the research that this makes fussy eating worse, because you're telling that child that broccoli is bad, and ice cream is good. Your message should be that all food is tasty and is there to be enjoyed.鈥

7. Have set meal and snack times

鈥淕et into a routine and avoid grazing if you can help it,鈥 says Lucy.

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All food is just food. Try to avoid using certain foods as a bargaining tool.

8. Be realistic

Don鈥檛 put too much pressure on yourself and remember that lots of families are dealing with the same dinner battles as you, says Lucy. 鈥淪ometimes this reassurance can help you feel more positively about feeding your little one.鈥

So, fussiness is normal, but when should you be worried?

鈥淚f your child is extremely fussy and by this, I mean it鈥檚 been going on for months, or years, rather than just weeks and you鈥檙e looking at a really quite limited diet, avoiding whole food groups,鈥 says Lucy. 鈥淎nd perhaps it's affecting them in another way, for example they鈥檙e constipated, you鈥檙e worried about their growth, they seem to be very tired and lethargic, or they don't sleep well. Then see your GP. From here you can get a referral to see a dietician.鈥

For more advice on fussy eaters, check out the

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