Care and nutrition for picky eaters

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Anorexia and picky eating are common symptoms in young children. This rate is common in toddlers and preschool age up to 25-35%. So what is a picky eater and what to do with a picky eater?

1. What is a picky eater?

Children are considered picky eaters, anorexic when they do not eat enough food according to their body's needs, leading to growth retardation. Children who are picky eaters will not eat certain foods, leading to a lack of certain nutrients. Early signs of a picky eater are:
The baby does not eat all of his or her portion or each meal lasts (maybe more than 1 hour); Your baby is taking less milk or eating less than usual; Children eat and hold in their mouths for a long time, refusing to swallow; The child refuses to eat certain foods, refuses to eat, or has the urge to run away when seeing the food; Babies who see food will have a nauseating reaction.

2. Baby picky eaters what to do?

A child's appetite and appetite are influenced by many different factors, including levels of physical activity, fatigue, and mental and emotional instability. However, some children are picky eaters, anorexia is simply the personality and nature of the baby.
As long as the baby's growth level is normal and the diet is balanced and full of nutrients, parents have no reason to worry. The change in eating habits of a picky eater is mostly temporary and has little negative impact on the child's overall health. However, parents should refer to some of the following tips to answer the question of what to do with a picky eater:
2.1. Parents should encourage babies to feed themselves Children are often very excited about new experiences in life. Therefore, every time the baby learns by touching and feeling objects, certain objects will stimulate the senses to learn about that matter. In which, the craving for new foods is not an exception.
In the process of physical development, your baby can learn motor skills and gradually build the confidence needed to use a fork when eating.
Encouraging your child to eat by himself is one of the solutions for a picky eater, especially those from 9 to 12 months old. More specifically, parents should encourage their children to pick up small pieces of food with their index fingers and thumbs, and then try to bring them to their mouths. At the same time, parents need to know how to welcome and encourage efforts and closely monitor to detect early signs of choking in children.

2.2. It is necessary to limit and control the child's snacking Parents need to limit the number of times their children snack, should only feed them twice a day and only when the child asks, do not give the child too much formula because this can cause problems. may lead to a decrease in appetite during the main meal.
Children who drink more than 470 - 710ml of milk per day may not want to eat other nutritious foods because with this amount of milk the child is basically full, this may cause the child to be underweight, however if the mother gives the child to drink The amount of milk as above but the child still eats well can cause overweight because of excess energy.
2.3. Make children's meals more interesting Meals are not a battle, parents should not force their children to eat everything on the plate, but give them the opportunity to learn and choose for themselves. favorite food. In the process of eating, parents can make a little joke to not cause stress for their children and should encourage children to eat well, creating a healthy appetite.
For children who are picky eaters, parents should only provide small portions and tell them that if they want more, they must ask for it. In some cases, the child is not simply a picky eater, but the problem of being forced to eat is also a cause of loss of interest in the child. In fact, a picky eater will usually accept 30 foods or more, but a person with eating problems can usually only accept 20 foods or less.
If the condition does not improve, parents whose children are increasingly underweight or have serious eating problems should consult a doctor or nutritionist, then the child may have a problem. Hypersensitivity or problems with sensation in the mouth make it difficult for the child to accept new foods.

3. What should you pay attention to when taking care of a picky baby?

Some grandparents in the family of the previous generation always believe that intestinal worm infection is the main cause of the baby's picky eating and lack of appetite. From there, encourage the baby to drink syrup, deworming drugs can be found at pharmacies. However, deworming children without a doctor's assessment and prescription is not recommended.
Through examination, the doctor will evaluate the baby's condition such as whether there is malnutrition, symptoms of abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, prolonged itching because these are common manifestations of infected children. parasites, worms. Once confirmed, an accurate diagnosis of a helminthic infestation, the doctor will prescribe an anthelmintic syrup for the baby.
At the same time, parents can apply the following simple things to prevent intestinal helminth infections for young children:
Maintain proper body hygiene at home; Regularly wash the hands of children and caregivers with soap and clean water; Try to monitor what your children touch or put in their mouths; Make sure children wear shoes when going out, especially in muddy and muddy areas; Make sure that children absolutely do not eat raw meat, undercooked meat or use unwashed fruits and vegetables. Some parents believe that lysine (an essential amino acid) is an ingredient in children's synthetic supplements that has a stimulating, appetite-enhancing effect. However, this has not been properly proven, lysine is uncertain as to its effects as an appetite stimulant, and different responses to lysine supplementation in different children. So, usually, children are picky eaters, to solve this situation, parents should try to find the root causes of their picky eaters, and then learn about supplementing functional foods for children.
Some common causes and easy solutions such as the child being picky eaters because they snack too much between meals or the child doesn't like it because they are forced to eat all their food.
Many parents give their children multivitamins in the hope that they will be healthy and develop normally. However, multivitamins are generally not necessary if the child is healthy and developing normally. Most vitamin needs need to be supplemented through a healthy, balanced diet, including: milk and dairy products, fruits, vegetables and all kinds of chicken, fish, pork, beef, eggs and vegetables. whole grains.
Multivitamins only work when babies are picky eaters often and have many restrictions when eating such as allergies, chronic diseases that need to limit certain foods for life.
The improvement of picky eating can take a long time, so it is recommended that parents be calm and persistent when supplementing with nutrients, even through eating or functional foods. In particular, the use of dietary supplements should choose foods of natural origin that are easy to absorb, do not allow simultaneous use of many types or continuously change types of dietary supplements.
For children to be healthy and develop well, it is necessary to have a nutritious diet in terms of quantity and quality balance. 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.
Children who do not eat properly are at risk of micro-mineral deficiency causing anorexia, growth retardation, malabsorption,... If they notice the above signs, parents should supplement their children with 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
For more nutritional knowledge and child care for each age, parents please regularly visit the website vimec.com and make appointments with the leading doctors, pediatric specialists - nutritionists of Vinmec International General Hospital when needing advice on children's health.