Avoiding common mistakes for parents of fussy eaters

Parenting a fussy eater is tough. It is frequently a LOT of work, a LOT of stress and a LOT of worrying. Oh, if only there was a pill to swallow that would make everything better!

Unfortunately, resolving picky eating is usually a process and one which takes time and effort. However, along the way there are some common mistakes that parents make which make progress more difficult, or even prevent it from happening.

Eating for many children can be exceptionally difficult and having a child who doesn’t eat well is often frightening. As there is little help and support, especially as children age, it’s not surprising that compromises creep in and habits can develop that make progress harder.

Supporting a child to eat enough and as widely as possible may mean parents are making up rules as they go along and finding compromises that preserve sanity. However, many of these strategies inadvertently make great eating less likely.

Let’s look at some ways we can impede progress without even realising it and explore better strategies for supporting our fussy eater.

Avoiding mistakes for fussy eaters

1. Staring not sharing. From when babies are first eating we are encouraged to do this! Every photo of a parent feeding a baby is of the child sitting in a highchair and an adult shoveling food into their mouth or placing food on their tray.

My vision is of baby in the highchair up at the table while as many of the family as possible share food with them. Eating alone is never as fun as an adult, never mind as a child.

Similarly, who wants to eat while someone stares at us? It’s far better to ‘break bread’ together and share food. If we do this as a parent it also role models great habits for our child and shows them how to eat well.

2. Believing they’ll grow out of it. Yes, some children do grow out of their fussy eating, but many don’t.

A simple way to think about it is to ask a few questions: