Good Eating Habits - Start to Teach Your Child Early

Did you know that experience with food in the first year of life shapes your baby's preference for new foods? Research shows that if your baby is exposed to a new food several times, she is more likely to eat it. If you introduce a variety of foods to your child's diet, she'll be more accepting of them. However, always follow advice from your health care provider regarding when and how much food to introduce into your child's diet. Always introduce one new food at the time and watch for allergic reactions.

Meals should be an enjoyable experience and never a struggle! To make that happen, remember that everyone has a responsibility related to meals: parents are to provide a nutritious meal and children are to eat what was prepared for them. Preparing two dinners, one for adults and the other for picky children IS NOT FAIR to the person who must cook. If the child refuses to eat or does not finish what is on the plate, accept it without a comment. Offer a nutritious snack later on and you'll see a better appetite when the time for the next meal arrives. Children have a natural ability to regulate hunger so never force your little ones to clean their plates.

Remember that toddlers have very small stomachs, probably the size of their fist. Therefore, offer fluids at the end of a meal. If you let them fill-up on fluids before dinner, they will not be able to finish what is on their plate.

Dr. Hillary is a pediatric nurse practitioner with a doctoral degree in health promotion and risk reduction. She works as a pediatric clinician and writes for Plugged in Parents. Plugged In Parents provides up-to-date info on pediatric health, safety and nutrition along with movie reviews, recipes, tech-savvy tips, and a parent's only forum. You can also contact Dr. Hillary for personal questions related to health and nutrition. Please visit http://www.pluggedinparents.com