Selective feeding of children

Do not be afraid of the nutritional balance of your child between 3 and 6 years old

Repetitive eating does not necessarily mean imbalance. Ham, pasta and ketchup provide the essentials: proteins, slow sugars and vitamins. If, on the menu, you add calcium (not too sweet dairy, Gruyere…) and more vitamins (fresh, dry fruit, in compote or juice), your child will have everything he needs to grow well.

Don’t feel guilty

The love your child has for you has nothing to do with his refusal of food. And just because he’s sulking on lovingly simmered zucchini mash doesn’t mean you’re a bad mother or don’t have enough authority.

Monitor the growth of your child

As long as your child is growing and putting on weight normally, don’t be alarmed. Maybe he only has a small appetite? Keep his growth and weight charts up to date in his health record and ask your doctor for advice, during a check-up or a minor illness, if you feel the need. Make sure, however, that his lack of appetite doesn’t come from snacking or overeating cakes and sweets between meals.

A small bite to taste

You will not be able to force him to like cauliflower or fish, if the smell and the appearance are repugnant to him. Do not insist, but encourage him to taste. Sometimes it takes ten, twenty attempts for a child to enjoy a new food. Watching others feast will gradually reassure him and arouse his curiosity.

Vary the presentations

Offer him a food that he refuses in different forms: for example, fish and cheese in gratins or soufflés, vegetables in soup, mashed, with pasta or stuffed. Make vegetable sticks, or mini fruit skewers. Children love little things and colors.

Involve your child in the preparation of the meal

Take him to the market, ask for his help in preparing a dish, or let him decorate a plate. The more familiar a food is, the more it will be willing to taste it.

Do not compensate for the lack of appetite of your child with desserts

It’s obviously tempting, but try as much as possible not to fall into this gear. Your child will quickly understand that it is enough to push away his plate of green beans to be entitled to two custard sides. Tell him clearly: “You won’t have more dessert if you don’t eat.” And it’s never too late to make this rule.

Do not punish your child if he does not want to eat

Eating is not a quality and does not relate to notions of good or bad. He eats for himself, to be strong, to grow well and not to obey you or to please you. It’s up to you to make him respect certain rules which you hold, which relate to respect for others (eat with his fork, do not put it everywhere, stay seated, etc.) If he does not respect them, it is he who punishes himself by excluding himself from the meal.