Our children need to eat less than we think. Refer to our tummy size guide which illustrates just how small your baby’s stomach is during their first year of life. In addition, your toddler’s food consumption can vary greatly day-to-day, where one day they eat an entire Costco hotdog and the next day, just a few crackers.

There’s a great mindset shift you can take to ease the stress: “I will focus on food exploration instead of food consumption.“

The more a child is exposed to flavors and textures, the more their food repertoire will grow. Focus on describing the foods with their color, shape, smell, texture and taste. Check out Arielle Dan Lebovitz: 101 Descriptive Words for Food Explorers for ideas.

Food exploration also helps us learn about our child’s preferences and how to offer foods they have been denying in different ways. For example, if a child prefers crunchy foods over soft foods, try offering a mashed food (I.e. avocado) on a crunchy food (i.e. cracker). 

Research say foods need to be offered up to 15 times before we know if we like them! We just have to continue the exposure in fun ways. An additional way to explore foods outside the table is with sensory bins and food prep!

Furthermore, remind yourself that it is  developmentally normal for toddlers to resist foods. They are learning bodily autonomy, testing boundaries, and their senses are changing. 

So be patient and be confident that your child will expand their food horizons in time, as long as we keep offering foods in fun ways. Follow along on our newsletter and on social for ideas and inspiration! 

The post The Number One Mindset Shift to Take to Lower Anxiety at the Table  appeared first on Feeling Yum.

More often than you’d expect, I have a child come in for an initial feeding evaluation and the child takes bites of foods they previously never have eaten before. This happens in clinic and home settings. Yes, feeding strategies are being implemented, but there are some easy environmental changes you could try at home that may make your child more open to trying foods.

A tip is to create a comfortable and calm vibe that would encourage your child to explore and enjoy their meal, similar to a relaxed “dinner party” vibe.

Once you choose some new strategies to implement, be consistent with trying them for a couple weeks before trying a new strategy. The new strategies may take a few trials before seeing any results.

Environmental Modification Suggestions:

1. Serve the food calmly in a non-stressed manner or find a new caregiver who could serve in this way 
2. Turn off distractions: such as a TV in the same/next room, toys within the child’s line of vision, and/or any pets from the dining area
3. Turn on joyful, soft music 
4. Dim the lighting by pulling the blinds or using a dimmer
5. Change the child’s place setting, dish, utensils, and/or cup
6. Face the child’s chair at a different seat at the table and facing away from any visually cluttered spaces
7. Bring a fun visual to keep the child happy, such as blowing bubbles or a puppet or stuffed animal who pretends to eat the meal with you 
8. Eat outdoors at a patio table or on a picnic blanket
9. Eat indoors in a different area, such as in a fort, tent or on a blanket 
10. Eat with your child within their eye level 

Let us know how any of these strategies made a meaningful impact at your table or if there are any helpful changes you have made that we should add to the list!

The post 10 Simple Environment Modifications To Aid Food Refusal appeared first on Feeling Yum.