Guiding and growing happy eaters
Joyful eating
Vanessa Galeano is a master’s level feeding therapist and extraordinaire of behavior change at the table. She took a few minutes from her practice to reflect on the space caregivers can hold to foster happy eaters. You can learn more on her website: Sips to Spoonfuls.
Caregivers often feel disappointed and even disrespected when a child doesn’t eat what is presented, and as a result they start to offer foods that will most likely result in a positive mealtime experience. The reality is that, throughout infancy and childhood, we develop the complicated skill of eating which we will use for the rest of our lives. In this time, we will see tantrums, skipped meals and even kids that are too hungry to eat-which is all normal. As caregivers, we must model the behaviors we want to see. This includes sitting at the table with them, creating a safe and fun space where everyone can be honest about their feelings related to the food. We should offer food when they’re hungry, so they are more likely to try something new. Lastly, we should provide them with language to help them better articulate their experience with food in a more precise way.
In a society where we can always “hold the pickles” or “add extra sauce” it’s important we reflect on our own behaviors to manage the expectations we have for our children. Instead of forcing our children to like what we serve, we are more likely to raise happy and independent eaters by contributing towards skills they will use for the rest of their lives. We are not always going to love what we eat, and that’s okay. We can, however, help our kids listen to their bodies, make choices and learn from their choices. By doing this, we are supporting them as they navigate through managing frustrations and problem solving. By having strong foundational skills in these areas, we are setting them up for success in the future, both during and outside of mealtimes.
Eating is a skill that is slowly developed from infancy through early childhood and is something we will use every day for the rest of our lives. As caregivers it’s important that we set our children up for success in order to promote happy and independent eaters. Learning how to listen to our body and how to manage a variety of different consistencies, temperatures and tastes is an ongoing process. We are most able to learn in a calm and safe environment – and by making mealtimes a fun and pressure-free zone, we are more likely to achieve that.