The chair that your child sits on should give them adequate support while they sit down to eat. Keep something under the table for them to rest their feet so they are not dangling.
Do you have to chase your child with his or her plate of food during mealtime? If your toddler hates sitting still while eating, here are some tips to get them to do so without being restless, which can make mealtimes less stressful both for the parent and their little one.
1. Make sure your timing is right
According to Natalia Stasenko, MS, RD, CDN, Tribeca Nutrition, toddlers should be fed at an interval of two-three hours, with only water in between. Make sure your child is not snacking during this time or he or she might be reluctant to sit and eat the actual meal. If you don’t get the feeding time right, meals can end up being a real power struggle.
2. Involve your child in the preparation
To make your child feel involved, ask them to choose the vegetables or other foods they want to eat when you buy them. Get them to help you in little ways possible when you prepare the meal.
3. Make the meal attractive
You can try serving the food in different shapes and patterns and make the meal colourful. If your child hesitates about trying new food items, add them to the plate next to their familiar favourite food item but feed them balanced meals.
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4. Keep phones away
Parents often resort to distracting their kids with mobile phones while feeding them. To develop a healthy eating habit, keep your smartphones away while you sit with your baby for the meal. Your child needs to learn to appreciate the food they are eating.
5. Your child should be seated comfortably
The chair that your child uses should provide them adequate support while they sit down to eat. Keep something under the table for them to rest their feet so they are not dangling.
6. Don’t prolong the meals
Make sure your child is not sitting with his or her meal for hours. Ideally, their mealtime should not go beyond 30 minutes, as per experts or they might start getting restless.
7. Don’t force-feed your child
Instead of force-feeding, give your child the freedom to eat what he or she wants to. This way, they will learn to say no to food when necessary, preventing chances of obesity. Force-feeding can result in your child developing an aversion to food.
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