{"id":2003,"date":"2020-04-07T14:47:47","date_gmt":"2020-04-07T12:47:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/?p=2003"},"modified":"2020-04-07T14:47:48","modified_gmt":"2020-04-07T12:47:48","slug":"picky-eaters-the-struggle-is-real","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/picky-eaters-the-struggle-is-real\/","title":{"rendered":"Picky Eaters-The Struggle is REAL!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>By Lezane Fourie RD(SA)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/fussy-eater-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2004\" width=\"335\" height=\"335\" srcset=\"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/fussy-eater-1.jpg 450w, https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/fussy-eater-1-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 335px) 100vw, 335px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>You know how everyone always tells you that having children is a\ngood idea and they will bring you buckets full of joy, love and laughter in\nyour life? Right! So, you followed their advice, got your own little bundle of\njoy and after six months they have to start eating, and you realise that your\nbundle of joy is not a bundle of joy anymore. Mealtimes are like a war zone\nwhere you have to tread carefully, and your buckets full of joy, love and\nlaughter turn into buckets full of tears and frustration. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Always remember, in the\nmidst of all your emotions and frustration, you are not alone, you are not a\nbad parent, and you are definitely not a failure. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is a very common struggle that millions of parents before you\nhad to overcome and those after you will have to overcome mealtime battles as\nwell. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now the questions you probably have are: How do\nI improve my family\u2019s mealtimes? Will we ever be able to eat together as a\nfamily in peace? What will society think of me if my child starves to death?\nAll the above questions are absolutely normal responses, and if your child is\ngrowing according to their growth curve, then there is no reason for panic. Visit\nyour paediatrician or dietician if you are worried about your child\u2019s weight. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here are some tips on how to improve mealtimes\nwith your toddler without waving the white flag and letting your child stampede\nall over you or your partner. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>First of all, have patience and\noffer nutritious meals often to your child. In order for your child to get used\nto the new flavours or textures, you might need to expose your child to that\nflavour or texture at least 15 to 20 times. &nbsp;<\/li><li>Do not prepare a special meal\nfor your child, offer the same food as the rest of the family. Dish everything\nup but in smaller quantities and if your child refuses to eat the specific\nfood, they have to kiss it goodbye and throw it in the dustbin. In this way,\nthey are still exposed to the texture and flavour. <\/li><li>Avoid giving your child\nsomething to drink 30 minutes before a meal. The fluids will fill up their\nstomach, and then they might refuse to eat as well. <\/li><li>Be the role model for your\nchild. If you don\u2019t like or eat certain types of food, your child will also not\nlike to eat it, so try not to make any negative comments. Eat healthily and\nshow your child that you enjoy it. <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Fussy-eater-2-600x450.jpg\" alt=\"Image result for fun healthy food for kids\" class=\"wp-image-2005\" width=\"388\" height=\"291\" srcset=\"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Fussy-eater-2-600x450.jpg 600w, https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Fussy-eater-2-450x338.jpg 450w, https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Fussy-eater-2-510x382.jpg 510w, https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Fussy-eater-2.jpg 696w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 388px) 100vw, 388px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Make meals and snacks look appealing and fun.<\/li><li>Praise good behaviour with non-food\nrewards, for example, saying well done if they ate something new; if they try a\nnew food you may give them a sticker or a badge; going for outings or their\nfavourite activity can also be a reward. We do not want to bribe our children\nto eat. <\/li><li>Do not force-feed your child. <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>If your child refuses to eat, take a look at\nthe bigger picture \u2013 is this the first meal they\u2019ve missed for the day or the\nweek? Stay calm no matter what, do not let your emotions get the better of you.\nThe little ones know exactly how to wrap you around their little finger.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Laughter is the best medicine you can get,\nespecially in a stressful situation, so here\u2019s a picture to make you smile.\nHang in there! You are doing a great job! <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/fussy-eater-3-600x584.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2006\" width=\"374\" height=\"363\" srcset=\"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/fussy-eater-3-600x584.jpg 600w, https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/fussy-eater-3-450x438.jpg 450w, https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/fussy-eater-3-768x748.jpg 768w, https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/fussy-eater-3.jpg 1071w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 374px) 100vw, 374px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>For\nthe joy of food, <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Until\nnext time <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Lezane <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Lezane Fourie RD(SA) You know how everyone always tells you that having children is a good idea and they will bring you buckets full of joy, love and laughter in your life? Right! So, you followed their advice, got your own little bundle of joy and after six months they have to start eating, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[87,88,84,85,86,83],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4CNFS-wj","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2003"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2003"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2003\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2007,"href":"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2003\/revisions\/2007"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2003"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2003"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dieticiansatwork.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2003"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}