No matter what your child’s preferences and habits are, it’s always a good time to nurture positivity around food and eating experiences. Kids also need support in listening to their bodies in terms of what makes them feel good. You can make a game out of picking different colors of fruits and vegetables (green broccoli, yellow and red peppers, orange carrots). Then, talk about the dishes you can make in the coming week using your rainbow of produce, such as a stir-fry. Asking kids to choose recipes or dishes they’d like to help shop for and prep can be a great way to get kids more excited about cooking (and eating). You’ll be glad you encouraged culinary habits early when your grade-schooler grows into a teen who can skillfully whip up a delicious dinner for the whole family. These are skills that are valuable for every stage of life. Timing is also something to think about, and ideal timing for snacks varies from child to child and family to family. Ideally, kids will eat snacks with enough time left before a meal to get to the meal feeling hungry but not overly so. If your child doesn’t want to eat because they don’t like what’s being served, let them know that this is what’s for dinner and a snack will be available in an hour or so. It’s helpful to include at least one food you know your child likes with each meal, so they have something they feel safe with. This can also make them more willing to branch out and try other foods. Avoid talking about foods as being good or bad, healthy or unhealthy, clean or junky, etc. This is great practice for kids and adults alike. A better way to handle higher-sugar foods is to include them with a meal. At dinner time, you might put spaghetti, salad, and dessert on your child’s plate at the same time. This sends the message that each of these foods is important and that there’s no scarcity around the sweet foods. Allow kids to eat the foods on their plate in any order they wish. Kids who have been restricted when it comes to sweets may have more intense responses to this system until they trust that the sweets will be there consistently. When it comes to a variety of food, if you want your kids to be adventurous eaters, it helps to show them what this looks like. And if there’s a food that’s new to you, explore it with your kids. While including kids in the shopping and preparation of a meal does take longer, doing so whenever you can can enhances the meal experience for everyone involved.
