Nutrition: Picky Eaters? What Can Parents Do?

“Most children who are perceived as picky eaters probably have adequate diets. What parents often perceive as picky eating simply reflects their children’s normal response to new foods.”

– Dr. Leann Birch, Professor and Head of the Human Development and Family Studies Department, Penn State University, US.

It is normal if children aged 2 to 5 refuse to eat new foods because this is a natural process whereby children develop an innate fear of trying something new. At this stage, your child may already have 4-5 favourite foods.

However, it is of utmost importance to ensure that your child’s diet is nutritious and healthy too.

According to Birch, “children should be allowed to decide what and how much they eat, but it’s the parents’ responsibility to make healthy foods available to their children to choose from and eat.”

Here are some effective ways to put nutritious and healthy meals on your child’s plate:

1. Earlier is better

Expose your child to fruits, vegetables and other essential nutrition as early as possible.

2. Remain patient and keep trying

According to research, multiple exposures (between 5 and 10) to new foods will help children to accept and like the new foods. Offer the new foods to your child in a positive and supportive way.

3. Be a role model

According to a study, children aged 2 to 3 show significant preferences to the foods that their mothers like, dislike and never tasted.

4. Don’t restrict certain foods

Let your child be exposed to all types of foods, including candy and desserts, in an appropriate amount. Research shows that restricting the food availability of certain foods will actually increase their craving for that food.

5. Make it fun

Turn the healthy foods into something creative, colourful and playful. You can go for playing a guessing game, baking carrot muffins together, learning about the texture and functions of the foods, and exploring different ways of cooking.

Nutrition: Fill Your Kids’ Plate with Essential Nutrients

According to USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture)’s ChooseMyPlate.gov, here are the recommended nutrients intakes for children:

Fruits

• Fresh, dried, frozen and canned (100% juice or in water)
• Maximum fruit juice intake of ¾ cup per day
• Fresh fruit (in season)

Vegetables

• Colourful vegetables
• Frozen vegetables are nutritious and fresh too
• For canned vegetables, go for those labelled “reduced sodium”, “low sodium” or “no salt added”

Grain

• More than half of the intake shall be allocated to whole grains
• Whole wheat
• Brown rice
• Buckwheat
• Oatmeal

Proteins

• Consume seafood at twice a week
• Beans, peas or soy products shall be consumed often
• Leanest cuts of meat, trim away visible fat

Dairy

• Fat-free or low-fat (1%) milk
• For cheese, go for those with “reduced fat” or “low-fat”

Nutrition: What Shall Children Eat from Infancy to 1 Year Old?

Children will go through few different stages of food intake from infancy. Thus, it is vital for parents to be equipped with the necessary knowledge of children’s nutritional needs and physical development.

1. Age: Infancy to 4 months old

At this stage, infants have difficulty in swallowing solid foods because they lack the ability to push the food to the back of their throat. Thus, they can only have breast milk or baby formula.

The best source of nutrients is mother’s breast milk because it contains all the nutrition that the infants need. These nutrients are vital in eliminating infantile illnesses such as ear infections, diarrhoea and vomiting.

2. Age: 1 year old

This is the stage when new foods should be constantly introduced into the child’s diet. All foods shall be properly cooked, then mashed or pureed to a texture that allows the small child to swallow safely. The food temperature shall be maintained at an appropriate level to ensure the food is not too hot for the child.

Kids.Physical Development: Is My Kid Developing a Stuttering Problem?

Does your child stumble over words when speaking?

From the moment your child learns to speak till 5 years old, your child’s brain is in the process of rapid development. It is natural that your child tends to stumble over words, facing some difficulties in speaking fluently.

This stumbling over words is different from a true stuttering problem, which affects a small percentage of children (5%). Stuttering happens when the child’s brainpower outstrips verbal dexterity. How can you differentiate this difficulty from stuttering then?

Here are few examples of stuttering problem:

Dragging out the first sound in a word	“ssssorry”
Repeating a sound	“Sh-sh-she nice!”
When your child opens the mouth to speak, he/she may get stuck before any sound comes out. He / She may experience tension in the jaw or cheeks, look away or clench fist from the tension, blink repeatedly, grimace, or stomp her foot from the frustration.

According to Patricia McAleer-Hamaguchi, a paediatric speech-language pathologist, a mild stuttering problem at age 3-4 may not seem to be a huge concern as most kids will outgrow it without any intervention by age 5 or 6. 

However, if the kid is really struggling or the condition has not improved in 3-6 months, you may want to consider talking to the doctor or paediatrician for an evaluation.

Kids.Physical Development: Preschooler - Slower Weight Gain vs. Failure to Gain Weight

Slower Weight Gain

Getting sufficient nutrition during the first three years of life is vital for the mental and physical development of a child as this will influence the growth rate of your child.

Other situations that can influence weight gain include:

1. Just recovered from illness

Your child may lose a little weight when he was sick. He will regain the lost weight soon with proper diet.

2. A slowdown in the momentum of weight gain

If your child is not gaining weight as quickly as previously, it may just be related to a normal slowing of growth rate.

3. Long-term medical condition

Medical condition can influence your child’s growth rate and he may appear to be smaller than average. If the condition can be easily reversed, he may grow faster than usual for a time period.

Failure to gain weight or Failure to Thrive

If there is a big drop in your child’s weight, you may want to consult a doctor to examine the underlying cause.

“Failure to gain weight” or “failure to thrive” happens when your child’s weight is 20% below the ideal weight for his height (BMI). Usually, it may be due to improper nutrition intake or weaker nutrient absorption.

Your child’s may be required to undergo blood, urine or other medical tests, and monitored for his caloric intake, health history, activity level and stress level for a period of time as there are many potential causes to the problem.