12 feeding problems that toddlers often face

This is an automatically translated article.

Toddlers can eat a variety of foods, and this is also a new challenge for parents about children's eating problems. Once your child has decided to eat only one type of food or things that he likes to eat, parents should learn 12 common problems when introducing solids to babies and apply ways to solve each of these problems.

1. Bad manners

Teaching children table manners can be done as soon as they start eating complementary foods. So, even if your child is still sitting in a high chair that is different from the rest of the family, you should not force your child too soon to obey everyone because it is never too early to build good habits.
For example, while mealtime is a social experience, teaching your child not to talk with food in his or her mouth is not only good manners, but can also prevent vomiting or choking.
Olivia Bennett Wood, associate professor of food and nutrition at Purdue University, says for starters, make sure they're not too tired to do the eating. And make sure the child is hungry. Do not snack for at least an hour before a meal.
Mealtimes are messy as toddlers explore new foods and work to master self-feeding skills. By 15 months, most children can already handle the spoon fairly well, but some are still messing around with meals after their second birthday.
So you need to make an action plan. Different behaviors require different responses. For example, if your child throws food or bangs a spoon, your best response is not to react. Making kids the center of attention even when they're behaving at the dinner table can encourage expression. But once children realize their unfocused behavior can be positive or negative, they often stop.
Sometimes more drastic measures are needed. A child learns that certain behaviors such as throwing food or arguing with a sibling are unacceptable when he realizes the behavior is not acceptable at the dinner table.
Children look to their parents for signs of table manners, so above all model the behavior you want them to imitate. And pay attention to what the child does right and praise him when he behaves well at the table.

2. Constipation

Constipation is the most common cause of abdominal pain in children. Signs include less frequent bowel movements or hard, dry stools. Talk to your doctor before using any over-the-counter remedy. Changing your diet, drinking plenty of water, and exercising can help. Also, address any concerns she may have about using the restroom.

3. Food allergy

Food allergies are fairly common in children, although a suspected food allergy often turns out to be something else. For example, a child who has an upset stomach or diarrhea after eating something may not be a food allergy but simply difficulty digesting the food.
When you understand the symptoms of a food allergy, you can recognize the early signs. Note that you must know what to do if your child has ever had a real food allergic reaction.

4. Vomiting

We all have the vomiting reflex, which is a lifelong automatic response that helps prevent choking. Toddlers can swallow something they shouldn't put in their mouths, and to prevent choking, they can also vomit if they eat too quickly or have too much food in their mouth. Children may even vomit if they don't like the taste or texture of what they eat.

5. Meal turns into battle

For many families, eating together often means fighting over food or arguing over meals. To avoid arguing during a meal, you can try not to talk about the food on the table. Just serve the meal without comment.
Make sure to give your child reasonable and healthy food choices, but don't force them to eat. You decide the menu and meal times, and your child decides what and how much to eat.

6. Eat only one or two dishes

If your child is old enough, here are additional strategies to get them excited about eating a more varied diet:
Take them to the supermarket with you and allow them to choose two fruits and two vegetables , a snack, a box of cereal, etc. At home, ask your child to help you prepare food. 3-year-olds can assist with mixing dough, washing fruits and vegetables, and tearing lettuce leaves. Children will most likely be proud of their achievements and more likely to want to eat the finished product. Smoothies are certainly no substitute for nutritious foods. But depending on how long the food lasts and how limited your child's diet is in the long run, you may be able to give your child a daily multivitamin.

7. Only eat junk food

Junk food is often high in calories, sugar, and fat. Topping the kids' favorites list are sodas, candies and chips, as well as other packaged snacks.
Unfortunately, when kids eat junk food regularly, it can lead to chronic health problems, including obesity and type 2 diabetes.
So you can't always control what your child eats at daycare, school or someone else's house, but you can keep junk food out of your child's meals at home.
If your child often turns to junk food, then prepare healthier foods in your child's meals. Serve healthy, kid-friendly snacks, such as melon balls with yogurt dip, or red peppers and zucchini. You can also make fruit smoothies with yogurt or milk and frozen or fresh blueberries, strawberries, and bananas.

8. Overweight

Pediatricians use height/weight charts to track a child's growth patterns over time. A child's BMI increases markedly with each visit and can sometimes be a sign that a child is gaining weight too quickly. Toddlers who are overweight are often easy to spot. Normally, their stomachs and thighs are bigger than most children's, so while the length of a pair of pants may be appropriate, the waistband is too tight.
Janis Jibrin, a dietitian based in Washington, D.C., says young children shouldn't go on diets, as they are likely to miss out on nutrients that help their bodies grow. One of the best ways to do this is to increase your child's activity level. With toddlers, this is as simple as making sure they get out for a jog for at least 30 minutes every day.

9. Underweight

The doctor measures your child's height and weight at each physical visit and uses those numbers to chart your child's growth. If your child's weight gain doesn't fall outside this curve, that's something to be taken seriously.
Often, the inability to gain or lose weight is the result of extremely picky eating habits. If that's the case, try to reduce stress during mealtime. Don't force them to eat when they don't want to, but make sure to have healthy snacks ready so they can eat whenever they're in the mood.

10. Picky eaters

Eating solid foods is still a new experience for babies. It may take time for your baby to get used to the different textures, colors, and flavors of new foods. While young children crave consistency and familiarity with many things, from playtime routines to bedtime routines, they are notoriously unpredictable when it comes to food, even familiar foods.
Toddlers often change their daily eating habits and also often don't try new foods until you have given them many times. This may be in part due to a change in a toddler's nutritional needs. Now the child is not growing as much as his first year, so he is less interested in food and does not eat much.
Children also become more independent and learn to make their own food choices. This is also an important skill that a child will need to develop during his or her life years, especially when it comes to food.

11. Refusing to eat

One of the first skills toddlers master is feeding themselves. While children can't control many things in their lives right now, they can certainly control what they put in their mouths.
So it's no surprise that kids are so consistent about what they're going to eat. However, if the food is not suitable for the child, there will be situations where the child is lazy or the child sucks the food or the child may only eat one or two favorite foods for weeks, then suddenly change. intention and want something completely different.

12. Refuse to eat favorite foods

Children 18 months old happily drink milk with every meal. But on a particular day, the child showed no interest in milk anymore. Then don't worry too much. Because children no longer like a particular food is a way for them to assert their independence.
You can continue to offer the refused food, because at some point the child may decide that he or she will like the food again. Meanwhile, if it's an important food, such as milk, try offering other things that contain milk, such as yogurt and cheese...
To keep your baby healthy, growing well It is necessary to have a nutritious diet that ensures quantity and balance in quality. If children are not provided with adequate and balanced nutrients, it will lead to diseases of excess or lack of nutrients, which adversely affect the comprehensive development of children in terms of physical, mental and motor skills.
It is necessary to have adequate nutrition at the toddler stage because this is an extremely important stage for children to develop comprehensively. Children who do not eat properly are at risk of micro-mineral deficiencies, causing anorexia, growth retardation, malabsorption, etc. If they notice the above signs, parents should supplement their children with supportive products. The supplement contains lysine, essential micro-minerals and vitamins such as zinc, chromium, selenium, and B vitamins to help fully meet the nutritional needs of children. At the same time, these essential vitamins also support digestion, enhance nutrient absorption, help improve anorexia, and help children eat well.
Parents can learn more:
Signs of zinc deficiency in children
Micronutrient deficiency and failure to gain weight in children
Please regularly visit Vinmec.com website and update useful information to take care of your child. Take care of the baby and the whole family.
Article referenced source: babycenter.com