42 min listen
Ask Margaret: My Kid Won't Eat a Bite of Dinner!
FromWhat Fresh Hell: Laughing in the Face of Motherhood | Parenting Tips From Funny Moms
Ask Margaret: My Kid Won't Eat a Bite of Dinner!
FromWhat Fresh Hell: Laughing in the Face of Motherhood | Parenting Tips From Funny Moms
ratings:
Length:
7 minutes
Released:
Aug 21, 2023
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
What do we do when, despite every tactic we can think of, our child refuses to eat dinner? Margaret puts a mom's anxieties around missed meals into perspective.
Jillian asks:
"What do you do when your two-and-a-half-year-old absolutely refuses to put a lick of dinner in her mouth? Night after night I offer multiple items. We've tried eating on the couch and in front of theTV, hoping the mindless eating scenario might happen. None of it has worked. At my wit's end!"
Margaret recommends buying the book Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense by Ellen Satter. Satter explains that the parent decides what to serve, and the child decides what to eat. It's not our job to force feed our kids when they would rather be doing anything else. They may simply not be hungry, especially if they had a late afternoon snack.
If you think there's something serious underlying this reluctance to eat, definitely reach out to your pediatrician. But if your child eats well at other meals, there is probably not reason for concern. Don't chase your child's behavior and bend over backwards to get them to eat at all costs. Even if they don't want to eat, they can sit quietly at the table while everyone else enjoys dinner. If they start throwing food or otherwise misbehaving, don't hesitate to end the meal for them or otherwise give appropriate consequences.
And as Margaret can attest from the other side, it will get better as they get older!
Special thanks to our sponsor, Pampers:
For trusted protection, choose Pampers, the #1 Pediatrician Recommended Brand. Download the Pampers Club App today to start earning free diapers.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jillian asks:
"What do you do when your two-and-a-half-year-old absolutely refuses to put a lick of dinner in her mouth? Night after night I offer multiple items. We've tried eating on the couch and in front of theTV, hoping the mindless eating scenario might happen. None of it has worked. At my wit's end!"
Margaret recommends buying the book Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense by Ellen Satter. Satter explains that the parent decides what to serve, and the child decides what to eat. It's not our job to force feed our kids when they would rather be doing anything else. They may simply not be hungry, especially if they had a late afternoon snack.
If you think there's something serious underlying this reluctance to eat, definitely reach out to your pediatrician. But if your child eats well at other meals, there is probably not reason for concern. Don't chase your child's behavior and bend over backwards to get them to eat at all costs. Even if they don't want to eat, they can sit quietly at the table while everyone else enjoys dinner. If they start throwing food or otherwise misbehaving, don't hesitate to end the meal for them or otherwise give appropriate consequences.
And as Margaret can attest from the other side, it will get better as they get older!
Special thanks to our sponsor, Pampers:
For trusted protection, choose Pampers, the #1 Pediatrician Recommended Brand. Download the Pampers Club App today to start earning free diapers.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Released:
Aug 21, 2023
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (100)
Dividing the Workload: In any home, there’s the workload everyone can see: the dirty dishes, the broken crayons under the dining room table, the laundry to be folded. And in most of our homes, that workload is divided more equitably than it was in the homes where we grew up.... by What Fresh Hell: Laughing in the Face of Motherhood | Parenting Tips From Funny Moms