The parent provides, the child decides.

How do you get your toddler to eat veggies and develop good eating habits? Eat with them, be patient and adopt a no-pressure approach. Excessive forcing and bribing can decrease the consumption of healthy foods. The parents decide what goes on the plate, and the child decides what they eat off the plate. Letting children eat with the family is shown to promote fruit and vegetable intake (1).

Children may need to be offered new foods more than 10 times before trying it (2). Try different foods often, and don’t assume that they dislike a food after only one attempt.

Follow-on formulas are not recommended after 12 months. Toddlers should be offered water or full cream cow’s milk. Milk and dairy foods should be consumed no more than 2 servings per day. Avoid fruit juice, cordial and soft drinks (2).

Tips & Tricks.

• Eat meals as a family where possible to model positive eating behaviour.
• Ensure meal settings are distraction-free and allow 30 minutes for each meal.
• Allow toddlers to play with food when practical to become familiar with the food.
• Trial making shapes and animals on the plate to encourage trial and play with food.
• Allow the child to choose what they eat off their plate. Avoid bribing to eat vegetables.

Resources

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REFERENCES

(1) Liu X, Zhou Q, Clarke K, Younger KM, An M, Li Z, et al. Maternal feeding practices and toddlers’ fruit and vegetable consumption: results from the DIT-Coombe Hospital birth cohort in Ireland. Nutrition Journal. 2021 Oct 19;20(1):84.Retrieved from: https://nutritionj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12937-021-00743-z

(2) Queensland Government. Guidelines for fussy eating. 2013. Retrieved from: https://www.health.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0017/151505/paeds_fussyeaters.pdf

(3) Riley LK, Rupert J, Boucher O. Nutrition in Toddlers. AFP. 2018 Aug 15;98(4):227–33. Retrieved from: https://www.aafp.org/afp/2018/0815/p227.html