Help, my little darling doesn’t eat enough!

Sometimes a child goes through a “difficult phase” in regard to food meaning that your little one will eat only little during that time, but that is usually only for a short period. In any case, make sure you little one eats a bit from all the different nutrient categories. This will ensure that your child will still get all the vitamins and nutrients he or she needs to grow and won’t miss out on any thing in his/her food.?? And if your baby eats a little less for a while, try not to make a big deal out of it.

Does your little one loath to swallow down even three little peas, while you feel your temper rising? Try to remain calm. Offer your child healthy food, but allow your child to decide how much he eats. Children will feel in their stomach when they’ve had enough.

Try to eat at regular times, taking into account any afternoon naps. In addition to the three main meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner, you can give your child two to three healthy snacks, such as a breadstick, fruit or raisins. Don’t eat late at night. Most small children really crave food around six o’clock. If you wait much longer for dinner, your little one may actually overcome that feeling of hunger. In addition, it is not pleasant to go to sleep with a full stomach. It is better for children if they can digest their meals before they have to go to bed. So it is often not so much a case of your little one not eating enough but of eating “too late” for a proper digestion of the food!

Make a feast out of each meal! Chances are that if you have a pleasant, fun atmosphere at the table, your little one will eat more. You can dish up the food in a fun way. For example, make a face out of the potatoes, meat and vegetables. Two potatoes can form the eyes, the piece of meat is the nose and the vegetables can be arranged in a big smile. Of course, you finish off the meal with a tasty (and healthy) dessert.

Pre-toddlers and toddlers are increasingly getting their own way and there is nothing wrong with that. You may have noticed even when your child was still a baby that he or she may have preferred carrots or green beans. As children get older, their food preferences become more noticeable and clearly defined: Do they prefer to eat pasta separately from the sauce, are they keen on meat or not at all, do they prefer boiled or rather baked potatoes. Respect your child’s preferences and take them into account as much as possible. You don’t have to cook a separate meal for your child, but if you are aware that your child does not like spinach but eats broccoli without any objections, you can rather leave out the spinach at times when your child is a bit more difficult when it comes to eating. Although you can still offer those foods from time to time to your child, because children’s tastes are still changing. Foods that your little one spits out in disgust today may become tomorrow’s favorite! So don’t worry too quickly if you think your little one is not eating enough.